In this investigation
We all know our feet are important. But does where we live and the terrain we walk on affect our foot flexibility? That's what we're going to be discovering in this investigation!
We鈥檒l develop our investigative skills and gather evidence through doing things and taking note of what happen
Wolfblood: Jana gets off on the wrong foot
Jana has found herself in a spot of trouble in an unfamiliar part of town. Will the latest scientific research on feet help save her?
Jana from Wolfblood introduces the Feet investigation
Yana:
Once in a while when you wolf out, you really wolf out.
Yana:
End up on the wrong side of town. In the wrong place.
Yana:
And definitely the wrong time.
Orla:
That's the thief. Bring her to the Alpha.
Yana:
Hey! Get off!
Yana:
Wild city wolf bloods, living underground. I didn't know they existed. Packs that don't know about the truce with humans, even in the heart of the big city.
Yana:
How long have you guys lived down here?
Orla:
Quiet.
Yana:
Guess you don't get many visitors then.
Orla:
We found this wolf blood in the outer tunnels, Orion. She must have the slate of knowledge.
Orion:
What is your name stranger?
Yana:
Yana.
Orion:
Yana. I know of this wolf blood, an alpha. Daughter of Alrich. Your pack came from the hills to the north of the city. What business have you stealing the slate?
Yana:
What slate?
Orla:
Our alpha slate of knowledge. The one you're hiding.
Yana:
A mobile phone.
All:
The slate.
Yana:
You know for wolf bloods, you're into your gadgets aren't you?
Orion:
If wolf bloods are to survive they must evolve. Human science and wolf blood nature hand in hand.
Orla:
The alpha who holds the slate, holds the power of all knowledge in their hands.
Yana:
I'm supposed to have stolen that old thing? It's got a rubbish camera for a start.
Orla:
She lies Orion. We have proof.
Orion:
The slate of knowledge came from the city above us, discarded by the wasteful humans. They no longer live in harmony with the planet. But technology is a wonder.
Orla:
And when your foot broke the invisible beam, the camera started recording. Deny that's you. Deny that you covered the slate.
Yana:
Somebody is certainly covered in my hoodie.
Orion:
Technology does not lie! Does the accused have anything to say in her defence?
Yana:
If it was technology they wanted I'd give it to them. One good thing about working with Dr. Whitewood, I've picked up some science along the way.
Yana:
You said that it was my foot that triggered the security cameras, well human scientists have been studying feet for years. Look.
Orion:
Let the accused speak.
Yana:
Feet are just as unique as fingerprints. They can even be linked to a criminal at a crime scene. Police can figure out gender, height, weight, even if it's somebody who's got a limp. This is all through footprints. But there's even more to it than that. Scientists have been researching how our feet grow with us. There's brand new research here, online, to show that our feet changedepending on where we've grown up, whether that be the city or the countryside.
Orla:
She's just trying to buy time.
Orion:
Wait Orla. You grew up in the countryside Yana, did you not?
Yana:
That's right, deep in the hills. And your wolf pack?
Orion:
Our pack grew up together in the shadows of the city. The streets are the bond that binds us.
Yana:
When I was young and I was running wild, my feet had to put up with stones and roots, mud, hills and valleys, and every single step was different from the next. My feet had to flex and they had to adapt. But those that live in the city, well their feet are鈥
Orion:
Different.
Yana:
Mm.
Orion:
We in the city spend our time walking on pavements. Each step is similar; smooth tarmac instead of rough ground.
Yana:
Exactly. And that's why scientists think that those who grow up in the countryside have more flexible feet than those who spend their time in the city. So, the x-ray security recording of the feet.
Yana:
See how the front moves when it hits the ground?
Yana:
Or should I say doesn't move. It doesn't flex very much. Now look at my foot.
Orion:
Your, your foot! It, it flexes more than the other feet.
Yana:
Because I grew up in the countryside.
Orion:
Then this recording of a foot belongs to a city dweller.
Yana:
Somebody who was dressed up as me but grew up in a very different place.
Yana:
It's over Orla. Nowhere left to run.
Orla:
I found you asleep and saw my chance. Your top was my disguise. Science was my downfall.
Yana:
Taking on two alphas was your downfall.
Orion:
Orla, you stole the slate. Why did you betray me so?
Orla:
Isn't it obvious? Because I wanna be the alpha. You with your love of technology, you're leading us down the wrong path. You're enthralled to the screen.
Yana:
The true nature of a wolf blood is to be wild Orion.
Orion:
Maybe it is time to look beyond our tools, beyond our city. Orla, I forgive you. Yana, you are free to go.
Yana:
Well that was a first. A wolf blood like me using science to get out of a jam.
Orion:
Goodbye my friend. May your flexible feet carry you safe and far.
Yana:
Thank you Orion. But whatever you do, you really need to upgrade your phone.
Yana:
You could say I was flexible with the truth. The thief was Orla, that's for sure. Being city bred, her feet weren't as flexible as mine, but what I didn't tell the wolf pack is that this is a brand new theory. Scientists need to test it thousands of times. So city or country? Does where you grow up really change your feet? We need an army of humans to investigate this theory, anarmy that includes you.
What will we be doing?
To find out how flexible your foot is, you'll take a range of measurements in the classroom.
Here is what you need to do.
Work in pairs, one person is being measured and the other person is doing the measuring.
Take measurements of the left foot while sitting.
Take measurements of the left foot while standing.
Swap over so that the person doing the measuring becomes the person being measured.
Make sure you take measurements for both people, both sitting and standing.
You will then do a range of calculations to measure how flexible your feet are.
Watch this short film that explains how to do the investigation in more detail.
Watch this short film that explains how to do the investigation in more detail
