Students learn about how biomedical engineers create assistive devices for persons with fine motor skill disabilities. They learn about types of forces, balanced and unbalanced forces, and the relationship between form and function, as well as the structure of the hand. They do this by designing, building and testing their own hand "gripper" prototypes that are able to grasp and lift a 200 ml cup of sand.

The Maryland Science Center is working with formal education providers in local underserved schools around a combined project including an interactive exhibit, a Davis Planetarium program and associated Educator Workshops, and will provide outreach to the informal science education community to explore the subject of Astrobiology. Topics covered in both the exhibit and the Davis Planetarium program will include Earthly extremophiles (organisms that survive in extreme conditions), potential other life in the Solar System, locations on nearby worlds where life may exist, the search for exoplanets, the techniques used to discover them, and the NASA missions engaged in the hunt. With an engaging, interactive approach, the exhibit will detail the challenges, questions and techniques of the search for exoplanets, especially Earth-like worlds. The exhibit will help visitors understand the scale of both the Milky Way galaxy and the Universe, and by doing so comprehend the difficulty in searching for other worlds, especially smaller Earth-like worlds.

This is an introductory text intended for a one-year introductory course of the type typically taken by biology majors, or for AP Physics 1 and 2. Algebra and trig are used, and there are optional calculus-based sections. My text for physical science and engineering majors is Simple Nature.

This is a game about light curves that will test your ability to figure out things about an asteroid from just a graph of its brightness. Astronomers use telescopes to collect light curves - measurements of the brightness of distant asteroids over time. It is part of the Killer Asteroids Web Site. The site also features a background overview of the differences between asteroids and comets, information on different types of asteroids (rubble piles vs monoliths), a discussion of how at risk Earth really is to an asteroid or comet impact, and background information on light curves.

Using three images from the Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer (WISE) mission, students measure and analyze infrared light from objects to identify Brown Dwarfs and Ultra-Luminous Infrared Galaxies (ULIRGs). The lesson includes a teacher‰Ûªs guide, student worksheet and PowerPoint presentation (which contains the three images to be analyzed).

This is an introductory text intended for a one-year introductory course of the type typically taken by biology majors, or for AP Physics 1 and 2. Algebra and trig are used, and there are optional calculus-based sections. .

This is a hands-on lab activity about seawater density. After developing a hypothesis, learners will conduct a simple investigation of density. They will discuss changes in density observed and describe how salt affects the density of water. Background information, common student preconceptions, a glossary and more is included. This activity is part of the Aquarius Hands-on Laboratory Activities.

In this activity, students solve exponential equations where the unknown is contained in the exponent. Students learn that taking base-10 or base-2 logs pulls down the exponent, allowing the unknown to be isolated and solved.åÊ This activity is activity C3 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.

In this activity students construct Log Rulers, finely calibrated in base-10 exponents and numbers (logs and antilogs). They practice reading these scales as accurately as possible, listing all certain figures plus one uncertain figure. åÊThis is activity D1 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.

In this activity students construct Log Tapes calibrated in base-ten exponents, then use them to derive relationships between base-ten logs (exponents) and antilogs (ordinary numbers).åÊ This is activity B1 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.

This lesson plan will provide a concrete way for students to understand the concept of distance in space equals distance in time. This is done using information gathered from a timeline activity in Lesson 1: Earth, the Universe, and Culture. Students experiment with how distances are measured in space and create timelines to demonstrate the concept distance in space equals distance in time. This lesson is part of the "Swift: Eyes Through Time" collection that is available on the Teacher's Domain website.

Can you avoid the boulder field and land safely, just before your fuel runs out, as Neil Armstrong did in 1969? Our version of this classic video game accurately simulates the real motion of the lunar lander with the correct mass, thrust, fuel consumption rate, and lunar gravity. The real lunar lander is very hard to control.

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This is a lithograph about NASA's Magnetospheric Multiscale Mission, or MMS. Learners will cut out and assemble a colorful 3D model of an MMS spacecraft. Web links, additional facts, and QR codes are included for audiences to access more information.

Ever wonder how a compass worked to point you to the Arctic? Explore the interactions between a compass and bar magnet, and then add the earth and find the surprising answer! Vary the magnet's strength, and see how things change both inside and outside. Use the field meter to measure how the magnetic field changes.

This is a lesson about how magnetism causes solar flares. Learners will set up an electrical circuit with magnets to examine magnetic fields and their similarities to magnetic fields seen on the Sun. Learners should have a conceptual understanding of magnetism prior to exploring this lesson. This activity requires special materials including a galvanometer, copper wire, and sandpaper. This is Activity 2 in the Exploring Magnetism in Solar Flares teachers guide.

Students visualize the magnetic field of a strong permanent magnet using a compass. The lesson begins with an analogy to the effect of the Earth's magnetic field on a compass. Students see the connection that the compass simply responds to the Earth's magnetic field since it is the closest, strongest field, and thus the compass responds to the field of the permanent magnets, allowing them the ability to map the field of that magnet in the activity. This information will be important in designing a solution to the grand challenge in activity 4 of the unit.

This is a lesson about magnetism in solar flares. Learners will map magnetic fields around bar magnets and investigate how this configuration relates to magnetic fields of sunspots. This activity requires compasses, bar magnets, and a equipment for the instructor to project a PowerPoint or pdf lecture presentation. This is Activity 1 in the Exploring Magnetism in Solar Flares teachers guide.

Students begin working on the grand challenge of the unit by thinking about the nature of metals and quick, cost-effective means of separating different metals, especially steel. They arrive at the idea, with the help of input from relevant sources, to use magnets, but first they must determine if the magnets can indeed isolate only the steel.

Students explore the basic magnetic properties of different substances, particularly aluminum and steel. There is a common misconception that magnets attract all metals, largely due to the ubiquity of steel in metal products. The activity provides students the chance to predict, whether or not a magnet will attract specific items and then test their predictions. Ultimately, students should arrive at the conclusion that iron (and nickel if available) is the only magnetic metal.