What nuclear war would mean for the planet

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Suitable for 14-19-year olds (secondary and high schools, and college), this article and accompanying activity sheet can be used in the classroom, STEM clubs and at home.

This resource links to KS4 and KS5 Science.

It can also be used as a careers resource and links to Gatsby Benchmarks:
Gatsby Benchmark 2: Learning from career and labour market information
Gatsby Benchmark 4: Linking curriculum learning to careers

• This resource introduces the work of Professor Brian Toon, of the University of Colorado Boulder in the US, who uses atmospheric modelling to investigate the effects of nuclear weapons on the climate. The predictions of his models have even helped influence world leaders to move away from nuclear warfare.
• This resource also contains an interview with Professor Toon. If you or your students have a question for him, you can submit it online – go to the article using the Futurum link below and scroll to the bottom of the page. Professor Toon will reply!
• It also includes an activity sheet, which contains ‘thinking points’ (based on Bloom’s Taxonomy) to prompt students to reflect on Professor Toon’s research and challenges them to consider how they would use scientific facts to influence world leaders.

This resource was first published on Futurum Careers, a free online resource and magazine aimed at encouraging 14-19-year-olds worldwide to pursue careers in science, tech, engineering, maths, medicine (STEM) and social sciences, humanities and the arts for people and the economy (SHAPE).

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