UNE Discovery

The UNE Discovery team loves to explore, play and ask lots of questions, and we encourage students to do the same! Today is the International Day of Play 2026 and we are joining Play Australia to encourage everyone to add more play into our lives.

Play Australia states that in just 30 minutes of play, one third of the neurons in your brain are changed. Play literally grows brains. It is vital!

Some ideas for adding play to today:
- For your children or students - provide some objects to encourage creative, unstructured play
- items to build cubbies (boxes, blankets, cushions)
- kitchen items such as pots and muffin tins
- containers for water play in the sink
- natural objects such as seed pods, leaves, flowers for creative artworks
- For yourself, friends or neighbourhood - grab some chalk and draw a hopscotch grid at your local park, footpath, school or community space
- For your family -  set aside time for screen-free play time together: try hide-and-seek, a ball game, a board game, drawing
- For your family, friends and pet explore a new place - a park, bushland or neighbourhood
 

UNE Discovery is at Farmfest 2026. Come and see us at the UNE tent (N29) for some hands-on science. Bring the kids!

Today for Fun Fact Friday, we’re thinking about space! Our entire solar system orbits around the Milky Way galaxy, and takes 250 million years to complete one lap. This means that the part of the galaxy where we currently live is different from the parts of the galaxy where dinosaurs and many other ancient animals lived!

Tell us your fun facts about space in the comments below!

The 23rd of May is World Turtle Day, so for Fun Fact Friday today were learning about the Gulf snapping turtle (Elseya lavarackorum), a species that was first described from fossils, before being found alive in the wild. Like many Australian turtle species, the Gulf snapping turtle is very understudied, but this is something that scientists at UNE are working to change!

Share your fun facts about turtles in the comments!

This week for DIY Discovery, we’re delving into the fascinating world of Echidnas and learning some interesting facts about these unique, important species.

To learn more about Short-beaked echidnas from echidna expert Dr Peggy Rismiller, head along to the Northern Tablelands Wildlife Carers events, “Digging Deeper with Echidnas”. This is a 2 day event including:
* Public Forum at NOVA (122 Faulkner Street Armidale) on 22nd May from 5pm-7pm
* 1 Day Training at UNE Natural History Museum in Armidale on 23rd May from 9am-4:30pm

To find out more about this event and to get tickets, visit https://events.humanitix.com/digging-deeper-with-echidnas-training-with-dr-peggy-rismillar

For Fun Fact Friday this week, we’re learning about electrical conductivity. Some materials (such as wood, rubber, glass and plastic) resist the flow of electricity. These materials are known as electrical insulators, and have tightly bound electrons that resist the flow of electric currents. Other materials such as copper, silver, gold and even salty water conduct electricity. This means electrons in these materials have higher mobility, allowing electric currents to flow through them. Insulators such as rubber and plastic are often used to coat conductive materials, preventing energy leakage and protecting people from electric shocks.

Let us know your fun facts about electricity in the comments!

This week for Fun Fact Friday, we’re learning about plants, and a process known as rhizophagy. During this process, plants cultivate soil microbes, internalise them into their root cells and digest them to extract nutrients, essentially eating the bacteria.

Tell us your interesting plant facts in the comments below!