Laynapu tree survey

[Image appears of text on a black screen: The following video made by Yolngu Matha Language Group was prepared for Questacon’s Science in First Languages Project as part of the International Year of Indigenous Languages 2019]

[Music plays and the image changes to show text on the screen: Science In First Language]

[Images flash through of various people and children in various traditional activities, dances, talking, experiments, and school children playing basketball]

[Image changes to show text: Science in First Language]

[Images move through to show a birds eye view of a dense tree canopy and the camera slowly pans out, and then image changes to show a different tree canopy and camera pans up] 

[Image changes to show two children together as one hammers in a wooden stake, and then image changes to show a female on the left talking to the camera while another female listens, and text appears: Hello, We are at Mandjawuy (in Arnhemland)]

Speaker 1: Hello. We are at Mandjawuy (in Arnhemland).

[Image changes to show a medium view boy running a string through the bush, and then a close view of a female on the left talking to the camera while another female listens, and text appears: Our community is thinking about the health of our Cypress Pine trees which we call Laynapu]

Our community is thinking about the health of our Cypress Pine trees which we call Laynapu.

[Image changes to show a wide view of the boy running out the string through the dense bush, and then a female on the left talking to the camera while another female listens, and text appears: We are doing a survey…]

We are doing a survey…

[Image changes to show two children in the foreground helping two males unroll the string in the dense bush, and text appears: Walk all the way, unroll the string,]

Speaker 2: Walk all the way, unroll the string.

[Image changes to show a female on the left talking to the camera while another female listens, and text appears: … to measure the density in, some land system areas]

Speaker 1: … to measure the density in some land system areas.

[Image changes to show a close view of a child holding the string roll, and then image pans up to show another child and two males behind the first child, and text appears: All that way, let it stretch]

Speaker 2: All the way, let it stretch.

Speaker 3: OK, let’s go.

[Image changes to show a medium view of a female talking to the camera, and text appears: We want to find out which of the land systems, has more Cypress pine, and scientifically measure and understand, how fire affects the different land systems]

Speaker 4: We want to find out which of the land systems has more Cypress Pine and scientifically measure and understand how fire affects the different land systems.

[Image changes to show a profile of a male directing two children, and the camera pans to the right to show a female is listening, a male walking and dense bushland, and text appears: There’s a string going around and you have to go, count the Laynapu inside it. Inside that boundary, Inside this quadrant boundary, we’ll count the Laynapu]

Speaker 2: There’s a string going around and you have to go count the Laynapu inside it, inside that boundary. Inside this quadrant boundary, we’ll count the Laynapu.

[Image changes to show a child and a male studying a burnt tree trunk, and then camera pans up to show the upper tree trunk and live canopy, and text appears: Laynapu This tree is half burnt nut still alive]

Laynapu, this tree is half burnt but still alive.

[Image changes to show a medium view of a female talking to the camera, and text appears: Later, we will make a fire management plan, to help more trees survive]

Speaker 4: Later, we will make a fire management plan to help more trees survive.

[Image changes to show a medium view of three children walking away from the camera unrolling the string, and holding a hammer and stake, and text appears: Walk straight]

Speaker 2: Walk straight.

[Images move through to show a medium view of a female talking to the camera, the children and males unrolling the string as they walk, and then the female talking to the camera again, and text appears: In this survey we want to find out, how many Cypress there are in, the sandy Goromuru land system, versus the stony Key land system]

Speaker 4: In this survey we want to find out how many Cypress there are in the sandy Goromuru land system versus the stony Key land system.

[Music plays and image changes to show a black screen, and text appears: But how do we know we

are really marking out a quadrant? We did a quick maths lesson]

[Image changes to show a hand written note below text: We know a Quadrant needs four right

angles…]

[Image changes to show small coloured square counters arranged into three large coloured squares,

and text appears: … and an easy way to make a right angle is to use Pythagoras’ 3 4 5 triangle]

[Image changes to show a female explaining diagrams on the wall behind her, and then the image changes to show three children with the two males talking and walking together, and text appears: To make sure each quadrant has square corners, we can use this mathmatics equation tool]

Speaker 5: To make sure each quadrant has square corners we can use this mathematics equation tool.

[Music plays as Image changes to show a black screen with text: With our quadrants marked out, it’s time to get started with our survey!]

[Images move though to show hands recording data on paper for Kay Land Systems, a close view of a female’s profile, and then three males, and text appears: Four dead ones, Are there any alive ones? None! There’s no live ones? All dead?]

Speaker 6: Four dead ones. 

Speaker 7: Are there any alive ones?

Speaker 6: None!

Speaker 7: There’s no live ones? All dead? 

[Image changes to show a wide view of people walking along the sting line in the dense bush, and text appears: Ah next quadrant, 

Next quadrant.

[Image changes to show a female sitting down with children holding pens and paper and while talking to the camera pointing out the quadrants, and text appears: So the kids are going to go, counting for the survey, Surveying these Laynapu, Heading off to quadrant 5, they will also look at quadrant number 3, and we’ll go for quadrant 4, just here, Okay]

Speaker 8: So the kids are going to go counting for the survey. Surveying these Laynapu. Heading off to quadrant 5, they will also look at quadrant number 3, and we’ll go for quadrant 4, just here. Okay.

[Images move through to show various different children and females walking, talking and recording data as they move though the dense bush studying the trees]

[Music plays as image changes to show a black screen with various images of the written survey results, and text appears: Our survey results are in – So what did we find out?]

[Image changes to show a medium view of a female talking to the camera, and text appears: Our results showed more living Cypress, on the sandy Goromuru than, the stony key land system]

Speaker 4: Our results showed more living Cypress on the sandy Goromuru than the stony key land system.

[Image changes to show a medium view of three males and two children standing in the bush, while one male talks and one child moves left off camera, and text appears: So, it’s the dandy area]

Speaker 2: So it’s the sandy area.

[Image changes to show a medium view of a female talking to the camera, and text appears: We think because there are less small plants in this area, when fire comes through it doesn’t get as hot, Hot fire kills Cypress, Goromuru is the better place to plant Cypress]

Speaker 4: We think because there are less small plants in this area when fire comes through it doesn’t get as hot. Hot fire kills Cypress. Goromuru is the better place to plant Cypress.

[Image changes to show a medium view of three females talking to the camera, and text appears: Thank you for watching our story on how we use our science!]

Group: Thank you for watching our story on how we use our science!

[unidentified]

[Music plays as image changes to show the Australian Government, Department of Industry Innovation and Science and the Questacon logos, and text appears: Thanks to Mundjawuy Community, Mundjawuy Education Team, Mapungu Ngurruwutthun, Mundul Ganambarr, Ginyipu Mununggur, Lynne Tolmay, Rod Baker and All the other community members, Knowledge Water, Will Tinapple, Formation Studios, Eric Pilkington, 365 docobites]

[Image changes to show camera panning across a dense tree canopy horizon]