10 December 2004

Why is my hand at the end of my arm?

Photo opportunity: 10.15 am, Saturday 11 December, Wellcome Trust Biocentre, University of Dundee.

Thirty local school pupils will learn about the amazing process of human development that determines where hands and feet grow on the body at the University of Dundee on Saturday 11 December.

The event called "How an embryo knows its head from its tail" is the last in the series of four Royal Society of Edinburgh (RSE) Masterclasses taking place this term, organised by the School of Life Sciences.

The Masterclass will introduce the pupils to developmental biology. They will discover how different parts of an embryo know how to develop in the correct place. Using role play, the pupils will build a body using themselves as the different body parts - head, limbs and torso to show how the developmental process works.

Developmental biologists Professor Cheryll Tickle and Dr Kate Storey will encourage the S1 and S2 pupils from schools across Dundee, Tayside and Perth & Kinross to think about the enormous process that is undergone to create humans and animals.

Professor Cheryll Tickle and Dr Kate Storey work in the Division of Cell and Developmental Biology.

The RSE Masterclasses are offered to secondary pupils who have shown an enthusiasm and flair for science and technology. Pupils have the opportunity to benefit from exposure to the inspiration of experts at the University, and the opportunity to roll-up their sleeves and take-on practical, hands-on challenges.

For further information on the Masterclasses and to register, please contact Dr Harinee Selvadurai, Education and Events Officer, RSE, on 0131 240 5000.

Contact Angela Nicoll 01382 348377

By Angela Durcan, Press Officer 01382 344910, out of hours: 07968298585, a.durcan@dundee.ac.uk