In this activity, students will explore two given websites to gather information …
In this activity, students will explore two given websites to gather information on Bone Mineral Density and how it is measured. They will also learn about X-rays in general, how they work and their different uses, along with other imaging modalities. They will answer guiding questions as they explore the websites and take a short quiz after to test the knowledge they gained while reading the articles.
This is a lesson about measuring magnetic field directions of Earth and …
This is a lesson about measuring magnetic field directions of Earth and in the environment. First, learners go outside, far away from buildings, power lines, or anything electrical or metal, and use compasses to identify magnetic North. Next, they use the compasses to probe whether there are any sources of magnetic fields in the local environment, including around electronic equipment such as a CD player and speakers. This is the first lesson in the second session of the Exploring Magnetism teacher guide.
This is a collection of mathematics problems relating to the moons of …
This is a collection of mathematics problems relating to the moons of the solar system. Learners will use simple proportional relationships and work with fractions to study the relative sizes of the larger moons in our solar system, and explore how temperatures change from place to place using the Celsius and Kelvin scales.
This book introduces students to some of the most unusual places in …
This book introduces students to some of the most unusual places in our galaxy outside of our solar system. Answering the question, "How many stars are in the sky?" introduces students to basic counting, tallying, and grouping techniques, as well as allowing for the use of simple proportions.
In this lesson, learners will construct their own 3-D glasses in order …
In this lesson, learners will construct their own 3-D glasses in order to use them on 3-D images, such as images of the Sun from the STEREO spacecraft. This activity requires special materials, such as red and blue acetate paper and can be used with an accompanying activity, titled Create Your Own 3-D Images.
As science extension activities, this book of problems introduces students to mapping …
As science extension activities, this book of problems introduces students to mapping the shape of the Milky Way galaxy, and how to identify the various kinds of galaxies in our universe. Students also learn about the shapes and sizes of other galaxies in our universe as they learn how to classify them. The math problems cover basic scientific notation skills and how they apply to working with astronomically large numbers. It also provides exercises in plotting points on a Cartesian plane to map the various features of our Milky Way.
This is an activity about the solar activity cycle. Learners will construct …
This is an activity about the solar activity cycle. Learners will construct a graph to identify a pattern of the number of observed sunspots and the number of coronal mass ejections emitted by the Sun over a fifteen year time span. A graphing calculator is recommended, but not required, for this activity. This is the second activity in the Solar Storms and You: Exploring the Wind from the Sun educator guide.
This activity introduces students to the visible light spectrum, and demonstrates what …
This activity introduces students to the visible light spectrum, and demonstrates what happens to the appearance of an image when certain wavelengths of light are blocked by filters or made visible using special tools.åÊStudents are lead through experiments with light and filters, demonstrating that the broader the range of the electromagnetic spectrum we can detect, the more information we gather about the universe. By completing this activity, students gain background information that is necessary for activities that follow this one. This activity is part of the "Cosmic Questions: Our Place in Space and Time" educator's guide that was developed to support the Cosmic Questions exhibit. Activities in the guide can be used in conjunction with, or independently of, the exhibt.
In this activity, students use base-two slide rules, log tapes, and calculators …
In this activity, students use base-two slide rules, log tapes, and calculators to practice raising exponents in base notation and pulling down exponents in log notation. Students will develop an understanding that antilog notation expresses the exact same idea as raising a base to a power.åÊThis activity is activity C2 in the "Far Out Math" educator's guide. Lessons in the guide include activities in which students measure, compare quantities as orders of magnitude, become familiar with scientific notation, and develop an understanding of exponents and logarithms using examples from NASA's GLAST mission. These are skills needed to understand the very large and very small quantities characteristic of astronomical observations. Note: In 2008, GLAST was renamed Fermi, for the physicist Enrico Fermi.
The ocean and atmosphere each react to changes in the other. These …
The ocean and atmosphere each react to changes in the other. These reactions and counter-reactions can snowball until the system builds to a point where potentially disastrous effects occur, such as the El Nino events of 1982-83 and 1997-98. This site describes how the Jet Propulsion Laboratory's TOPEX-Poseidon satellite was used to monitor the amount of sea level rise in the Eastern Pacific Ocean, and consequently the amount of heat stored in the water. Sea level and temperature data from TOPEX-Poseidon was used successfully to predict the 1997-98 El Nino event earlier than ever before. It features text, remotely-sensed imagery and a link to JPL's Physical Oceanography website.
This activity shows how an ordinary ruler can measure human reaction time …
This activity shows how an ordinary ruler can measure human reaction time (RT). Learners will convert a standard ruler into a time ruler (relating time and distance) and measure each others RT. They will also calculate means and variances and the RT required to accomplish a specific task. Additional resources and an extension to this activity are available. This resource is from PUMAS - Practical Uses of Math and Science - a collection of brief examples created by scientists and engineers showing how math and science topics taught in K-12 classes have real world applications.
Play with a bar magnet and coils to learn about Faraday's law. …
Play with a bar magnet and coils to learn about Faraday's law. Move a bar magnet near one or two coils to make a light bulb glow. View the magnetic field lines. A meter shows the direction and magnitude of the current. View the magnetic field lines or use a meter to show the direction and magnitude of the current. You can also play with electromagnets, generators and transformers!
Light a light bulb by waving a magnet. This demonstration of Faraday's …
Light a light bulb by waving a magnet. This demonstration of Faraday's Law shows you how to reduce your power bill at the expense of your grocery bill.
All of us have felt sick at some point in our lives. …
All of us have felt sick at some point in our lives. Many times, we find ourselves asking, "What is the quickest way that I can start to feel better?" During this two-lesson unit, students study that question and determine which form of medicine delivery (pill, liquid, injection/shot) offers the fastest relief. This challenge question serves as a real-world context for learning all about flow rates. Students study how long various prescription methods take to introduce chemicals into our blood streams, as well as use flow rate to determine how increasing a person's heart rate can theoretically make medicines work more quickly. Students are introduced to engineering devices that simulate what occurs during the distribution of antibiotic cells in the body.
Working individually or in groups, students explore the concept of stress (compression) …
Working individually or in groups, students explore the concept of stress (compression) through physical experience and math. They discover why it hurts more to poke themselves with mechanical pencil lead than with an eraser. Then they prove why this is so by using the basic equation for stress and applying the concepts to real engineering problems.
This paper model of the Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope includes three pages …
This paper model of the Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope includes three pages of parts that can be cut out and assembled using common household items. It also provides a short description of the scientific instruments on board Fermi, as well as links to other resources about its instruments.
In today’s episode we’ll explore thermodynamics and some of the ways it …
In today’s episode we’ll explore thermodynamics and some of the ways it shows up in our daily lives. We’ll learn the zeroth law of thermodynamics, what it means to reach a thermal equilibrium, and define the first law of thermodynamics. We’ll also explore how stationary, adiabatic, and isochoric processes can make our lives as engineers a little easier.
As engineer, sometimes lives will be in your hands, so this week …
As engineer, sometimes lives will be in your hands, so this week we’re exploring safety and its impact on engineering. We’ll discuss the difference between occupational safety and public safety and how to analyze and review a process for any potential dangers with things like HAZOP. We’ll learn the dangers of having too *many* alarms and look at how important it is to adopt a good mindset of safety culture.
Students are introduced to the important concept of density with a focus …
Students are introduced to the important concept of density with a focus is on the more easily understood densities of solids. Students use different methods to determine the densities of solid objects, including water displacement to determine volumes of irregularly-shaped objects. By comparing densities of various solids to the density of water, and by considering the behavior of different solids when placed in water, students conclude that ordinarily, objects with densities greater than water sink, while those with densities less than water float. Then they explore the principle of buoyancy, and through further experimentation arrive at Archimedes' principle that a floating object displaces a mass of water equal to its own mass. Students may be surprised to discover that a floating object displaces more water than a sinking object of the same volume.
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