The universe is full of magical things, patiently waiting for our wits to grow sharper. -- Eden Phillpotts
Hi Everyone,This week we are exploring topics for your midterm debate, outreach project lesson plans and fleshing out our abstracts for IdeaFest which are due to the drop box Feb 18th. Thursday, we will also be discussing chapters in Science Matters: Achieving Scientific Literacy. Be sure to follow the blog template when posting to the blog this week.
Have a great week.
Dr. E
Being placed into my group was a pleasant surprise. I am excited about the prospect of learning more about the nuances involved with the introduction of non-native species on island ecology. More specifically, I am excited to gain a better perspective on the real life issues facing a place as beautiful as Hawaii.
ReplyDeleteOur first minute write up was fun and went well. Brainstorming with the rest of the group was a good way of covering all our bases and making sure that important points were grasped by all. Energy, specifically, was the topic of discussion and I could see that my group members were both well versed in the reading material.
In addition, creating the abstract for our ideafest submission was also fun. I am excited to delve deeper into the topic in the coming weeks.
Chapter 3: Electricity and Magnetism:
ReplyDeleteWhen I saw the title of this chapter I was not looking forward to reading it. Electricity and magnetism are concepts covered in physics which I had a difficult time with. However, when I started reading the chapter I realized that electricity and magnetism are around me everyday. Although, I don't think about electricity and magnetism in my everyday life it is amazing to see how involved it is in my life. The example in the text gives ways these concepts are integrated in your life within the first few hours of the day. This chapter does a really good job of making the concept relevant to everyone and easier to understand.
Chapter 4: The Atom:
This chapter gave a very brief overview of what the atom is and how it relates to chemistry. I found this explanation very helpful in describing what seems to be an abstract topic for many students. Atoms comprise everything, and this chapter does a very good job introducing it.
Class Activities:
During classes this week, we discussed our midterm debates and developed an abstract for IdeaFest. Our group is still undecided as to what topic to debate or even what position to take on a particular topic. The exercise in class helped us see the importance of relevant information in a debate topic, as the article on Global Warming was outdated. By the end of Thursday's class we had completed our abstract and have a pretty good idea of what our outreach project will look like.
This week's readings were on Chapter's 3 an 4. Chapter 3 was pretty interesting. There was some information that I didn't know about electricity. I was dissappointed when I read chapter 4 which was about atoms. It was interesting, but I don't know how writing about atoms could be. I have learned about atoms since the 4th grade, so I was a little bored with the chapter.
ReplyDeleteThis week in class we finalized our draft for IDEAfest. It was easy to work with my group because we've worked together really well so far by completing tasks in a timely fashion.
We received information about how to debate a subject. Our group hasn't decided which topic to debate, so we will work on that next week. We also did a practice one minute paper about the text book chapters. I'm not sure that I like the idea of that. I'm a planner and like to plan out what I say before I write it down. Having to write fast is frustrating because I don't have time to write an outline or check spelling. Sometimes writing about science is hard because there is no room for an opinion. Most science is just assumed facts. If you don't agree with those facts people look at you like you're crazy.
Chapter 3 and 4
ReplyDeleteChapter three focused on the connection between electricity and magnetism. It stated that electricity and magnetism are closely linked, and one cannot be found without the other. This idea made me think back to my Physcial Science for Elementary Teachers class. We did an activity where we used tape to create electricity and tested to see if it would repel or attract other things, such as another piece of tape. As well, we create a compass using a needle in water and used electricity to get it to rotate. Chapter four was about atoms. One line in the chapter that caught my eye the most was when the atom's structure was compared to the solar system. As a teacher, I think this would be a very good way to introduce the structure to students. They have had lessons alreay on the solar system, so by comparing each part of the atom to a part of the solar system, students can use their background knowledge to understand the concept of the atom.
Class Activities
This week we discussed the midterm debate. The activity my group did on global warming showed me how important it is to have current facts when we do our debate. The facts from our article were no longer correct for this time, so if we were to argue this point we would have needed facts that were more recent. As well, we worked on the abstract for IdEAfest. This helped us organize everything into a final form, but we still need to come up with a title for our project.
Chapter 3
ReplyDeleteChapter 3 really caught my attention because it reminded me of a physics project me and a friend did back in high school. Electricity and magnetism are connected in many different ways but one of the more interesting interactions between the two is a concept called electrogravitics first theorized by Townsend Brown back in the early 1900's. Electrogravitics says that you can electrically charge capacitors around an object and create a magnetic field around the object that partially neutralizes the gravitational pull on the object. We proved this on a small scale in my physics class by using a hand pumped electrical generator and a rig of capacitors all connected to a small non condusive object placed on a digital scale. As we pumped the generator and filled the capacitors the digital read out after about 30 seconds began to register less weight. The result was small but solidified some fact on the relationships between electricity and magnetism.
Class Activities:
In class we created the abstract to our ideafest presentation which will be on the colonization of islands and the impacts that humans have on these islands. Our theme will probably follow a before and after type presentation showing just how significantly humans alter the islands they travel to. We also looked briefly into our midterm debate topic which will hopefully be on genetic engineering permitted some other group takes up the side opposite of ours. This week was very beneficial to making progress in both of these areas.
Class Activities for the week:
ReplyDeleteThis week in class we focused on writing an abstract for our ideafest presentation and tried to come up with some more interesting ideas for our presentation. Also, we discussed our midterm debate and were given a list of ideas to try and decide which topic we would like to tackle. Finally, on Thursday, we did a brief one-minute writing activity with our group to determine our understanding of the course thus far and to activate our background knowledge and to determine our understanding of the first few chapters.
Chapter 3: Electricity & Magnetism
One of the main points that this chapter made was that "electricity and magnetism are two aspects of the same force" (45). I thought this chapter was interesting because I have already learned some of the information previously in my Physical Science course. Additionally, we did several experiments dealing with magnetism that I thought were a lot of fun and allowed us to better understand the material.
Chapter 4: The Atom
I thought this chapter was a little more complex, but gave a lot of information regarding the atom and what it consists of. Like Chapter 3, I have learned some of this information previously, but also learned new information as well. Again, in my Physical Science course we also discussed the atom more in depth. I think that with any science class is is really important to do hands-on activities to allow students to better understand the material and how certain elements of science work.
This week we were assigned to read Chapters 3&4 of "Science Matters". I was not too thrilled to read this book at first; however it soon grew on me. I really enjoyed chapter 3 because it dealt with Magnetism and electricity. I have alot of interest in both of these. I have been continually researching different designs for magnetically driven engines and generators. My friend and I are going to be working this summer to build a prototype. I find this area of physics incredibly amazing. The next chapter was on "The Atom". The atoms are a very interesting thing to study because everything is essentially made from them. I have taken numerous chemistry courses and yet I feel like there is so much more that we can learn from studying them.
ReplyDeleteThis week in class we talked about topics for a debate. Later, on Thursday I was sick and didn't make it to class. From what I heard we had to do a one-minute writing excersise to see how much we were understanding from the course. I think it's good to do writing excersises like this in order to see that everyone understands the material. I do however, dislike being rushed when writing. I would rather not see these one-minute writings count for alot of points.
Weekly Activities:
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed working through the process of making our abstracts for IDEA Fest. I am excited to learn more about the midterm debate, and what is expected of us. The flow of class allows ample time to prepare for activities that are required. I look forward to the guest speaker on Tuesday.
After reading this weeks readings about the relationship between electricity, atoms, and magnetism, it became increasingly clear that the basis for our Western Society can be found in the understanding of relationships between the concepts. After all much of our American society would not exist if it were not for our usage of electrical power. Therefore it is understandable that this prior week’s readings were of great value to me and to our society.
ReplyDeleteWeek 5 in class we wrote our abstract for our ideafest presentation and focused on creating some ideas for our ideafest presentation. In class, we discussed some issues for our midterm debate and read a topic about the view points of women’s competitive sports. The view was that women take a different approach to sports then men do, and that we should teach the future generations to focus more on playing sports for fun. On Thursday groups preformed a one-minute writing activity to see what our progress was so far in our readings and class activities. We had to write about what we have learned thus far in class and by our class readings. We wrote about thing that we learned in the chapter about energy.
This week in class we discussed quite a bit about our projects for the Idea Fest in April. Our group came up with a solid abstract and idea of what we want to argue. Also, our group talked much about debate issues and the sides we would take with different topics.
ReplyDeleteFor our weekly reading, the two chapters described electricity and magnetism, and atoms. There were many points that were discussed.
Electricity and magnetism are two aspects of the same force - They are both related to each other and act in similar ways. This relates also to the law that like charges repel each other; unlike charges attract. Also, moving electric charges create magnetic fields and magnetic effects can accelerate electrical charges. Another topic in the chapter is on light and waves. There is a graph and figure displayed of waves that is helpful to understanding the concept. The last subject covered in that chapter is on radiation and the wireless world.
The second chapter we read is on atoms. I like the questioning at the beginning that asks us what the following have in common: an elephant, sand, air, etc. The answer is that they are all made of atoms. The chapter continues on to talk about the anatomy of atoms, such as the nucleus and protons and neutrons. Additionally the chart of the elements is a nice addition to examine while the chapter discusses different elements.
Chapters three and four of "Science Matters" covered Electricity/Magnetism and Atoms, respectively. Chapter three provides a brief description of electrical charge which helps one to better understand the structure and mechanisms at play in an atom. The other part of the chapter that I found interesting was on the relationship between electricity and magnetism. I think that these two inseparable forces could play a role in solving America's transportation problem. By implementing a high speed rail system, already in place in Japan, fed by green energy America could enter the next generation of transportation.
ReplyDeleteChapter four focuses on the fundamental building blocks of the universe, atoms. The atomic theory of matter has been ingrained in me since a young age in public science classes for good reason. It is essential for understanding not only physics but also established the groundwork for modern chemistry, which has provided countless innovations. It is truly amazing and beautiful that everything in the universe is composed of the same particle type.
Chapters 3 & 4- Quite honestly these two chapters were not the most interesting to me. This will be a short post! There were a couple of things that really stood out to me, things that I did not know before reading. I did not realize the difference between AM and FM radio. I have never really thought about it. Chapter 4 was basically a review of the elements, and the periodic table of elements. It is so interesting to think about how many atoms it takes to form an object. Unimaginable!
ReplyDeleteIn class Tuesday- we discussed the midterm debate. It will be exciting to pick our topic and start the researching process.
In class Thursday- we developed a rough draft of our abstract for IdeaFest. I think we have a pretty solid abstract, one that won't need much editing. It was also a day for us to keep putting together the details of our project.
Class during week 5,
ReplyDeleteTuesday we briefly summarized our outline and abstracts for our IdeaFest projects, The Invasive Species of The Brown Tree Snake. We did get a general outline of how things are going to go and with the abstract, we didn't get to far so as a group we were going to email back and forth to come up with a correct abstract for the description page in IdeaFest.
Thursday as our 3/4 group wrote a minute paper discussing our reading of chapters 1 and 2, with our feelings of how up-to-date our blogging was. Short minute paper that Shannon was the editor writing down what Jevon and I were blurting out.
Chapter readings
3: Electricity and Magnetism
The four laws of nature and Maxwell's equation summarize the main concept of electricity and magnetism. Electricity and Magnetism are two aspects of the same force(pg 45). Back in the 18th century the scientist did basic research on the current and electrical components that transformed society today. The chapter continues to describe how electical charges are on objects, basic physics. Yet again this chapter is a review session for a Biology major because without a basic understanding of these laws described in the reading, my homework assignments and test material would not mean anything. The section on electric motors and generators is a very interesting concept since our scientist today are experimenting with this simple machine in order to make it more efficient to use for transportation. Speed, wavelenght and frequency are all components of waves describing the waves that are made from magnet or electric fields. The electromagnetic spectrum shows that from massive wavelengths, radio waves, to shorter more frequent wavelengths, gamma rays. Visible light is a small portion of this were infared and x-rays are next to the visible spectrum.
4: The Atom
The introduction statement posses a question that makes you understand that all matter is composed of atoms and that everything is realated to one another if something basic is compared. It further boggles your mind with a comparison to a head of a pen having 1 E18 atoms in that space. The concept of small has to be rescaled when working with such small items. It continues in the chapter describing the basic anatomy of an atom, the nucleus, nuetrons, electrons, protons, and such combinations that make up larger molecules. The bohr atom, this talks about the electron of an atom being in one circle and no other space defined anywhere else. The planets in our solar system can fluctuate but an electron cannot. The exception is the transferring of an electron by quantum leaping from one molectule to another. The chapters next topic is the periodic table, which is a chemist's best friend when dealing with different elements and finding an experiment that would allow the properties of one or multiple elements show. It also hits on the topic of microscopes and how this technology allowed us to examine the materials surfaces that we use every day. The superheavy elements are basically made in the lab and only last a few seconds but this allowed scienctist bring other elements together by colliding them hoping parts would stick. The last paragraph poses many questions in that if we were to reach 120-130 atomic number, the periodic table might be changed for the future.
I thought this week was a good week for our groups to get somethings done. We have really narrowed down what our topic will be for our projects. I am excited for what we are doing as a group, Invasive species of the Hawaiian islands is a very important topic that needs to be addressed. Now we as a group need to get together and start researching our topic so we know exactly what to say during our presentations.
ReplyDeleteI am also excited for the outreach program that we are going to do. I think we have a good lesson plan that we will be following , and have some good ideas to help teach the students some interesting things about invasive species. Other then these things I really don't have much to say about the week.
Class activities: The past week we really focused on our project. We had a new member added to our group which will really help out and bring new ideas to the presentation. We developed our abstract and finalized some of the activities were going to do for the kids. Our minute paper was a good warmup for the real papers were going to have to write over our readings.
ReplyDeleteReadings: The chapter about electricity and magnetism was somewhat of a review. I took a class called the energy crisis which dealt in depth with different forms of electricity and magnetism and how it works together. The chapter on atoms was pretty interesting and important. Atoms make up everything and it's the basis of physics. Without the knowledge of atoms few things can be really understood to the extent they are now.
Class activities: I was sick on Tuesday but on Thursday we worked on our abstract. We also have not decided on a debate topic yet, but got some great ideas and feedback. We also have worked more on our project and it seems to be coming along. I really think the kids will enjoy it!
ReplyDeleteChapter 3: Electricity and Magnetism
The chapter breaks electricity and magnetism down and says they they are relativily two aspects of the same force. It goes on to explain that magnetism whether it be a compass needle, planet earth, or yourself there is still a north and south pole. I am thankful for this book because it does a much better job of explaining then the text book I have for another class so it helps me in two areas!
Chapter 4: The Atom
For such a small and simple thing it sure is complicated if that makes sense. The text states that all matter is made up of atoms. The text goes on to discuss that the atom mirrors a solar system - the nucleus would be the sun which is oribited by smaller electrons which would be the planets.
This week we worked on our projects and the lesson plan. Our group is rather interesting because I don't think that all five of us have been to a class where we are all present. So we work on it in segments but we are all pretty well aware of what is happening with our project. I'm pretty excited to actually get out there and teach about our subject.
ReplyDeleteThe debate topics were introduced but we're not completely sure what we're picking yet. One group member wanted genetic engineering, and I think that the rest of the group can kind of go with that, and hey, maybe learn more about it than we think we already know.
Our readings covered chapters 3 and 4 this week.
ReplyDeleteChapter 3: Electricity and Magnetism. This chapter was interesting because, like Kayla said, it really shows us how they are both all around us in our everday life. It was a rather interesting read though.
Chapter 4: The Atom. This chapter introduced what the atom is and how it is related to chemistry. It wasn't as interesting as chapter 3 but was still informative none the less.
This week we got to work on our outreach projects. It will really be fun to get out and present it to the kids at Jolley Elementary. Our group is doing a great job working together and will be fun to work with for the rest of the semester.
Debate topics were introduced to the class but we haven't chosen ours yet. Genetic Engineering seems to be what we are leaning towards as a group though.