This video from NASA describes the detailed computer modeling used to predict that colliding neutron stars can produce gamma-ray bursts similar to those associated with black holes.
Material Type: Lesson
The purpose of the resource is to produce a land cover type map from the digital file of a Landsat satellite image using MultiSpec software.
Material Type: Activity/Lab, Interactive
Students investigate the property dependence between concentrations and boiling point. In section 1, students first investigate the boiling point of various liquid solutions. In section 2, they analyze data collected by the entire class to generate two boiling point curves, one for salt solutions and one for sugar solutions. Finally, in section 3, students use the data they have analyzed to determine how to create a solution that has a particular boiling point and is a cost-effective design.
Material Type: Activity/Lab
The purpose of this activity is to construct a model that will provide students with a visual representation of parts per billion. Students work in teams to construct cubes of different volumes and to compare them to get a feel for parts per million by volume and parts per billion by volume. The intended outcome is that students gain a feeling for the small quantities of gases, such as ozone, present in the Earth's atmosphere.
Material Type: Activity/Lab, Interactive, Lesson Plan
In this activity, students construct three-dimensional models from terrain information provided by two-dimensional topographic maps. This will allow them to visualize how changes in elevation over a certain distance can be represented on a flat piece of paper that can be folded up and tucked away. Each group is responsible for constructing a model of Mount St. Helens 'before' and 'after', a depression, a stream, and a hill. Discussion questions related to the different representations are also included.
Material Type: Activity/Lab, Interactive
In this video, Jonathan examines the biology of coral reefs and their importance to the marine ecosystem. Please see the accompanying lesson plan that discusses pH and ocean acidification for educational objectives, discussion points and classroom activities.
Material Type: Diagram/Illustration, Lesson Plan
This video from NASA features the Cosmic Origin Spectrograph (COS), which allows scientists to use spectrographic analysis to assess the composition of intergalactic material.
Material Type: Lesson
Working through a calculation for K-Ar dating (good to have some prior experience with e and logarithms). Created by Sal Khan.
Material Type: Lesson
This 11-minute video lesson looks at Potassium-Argon (K-Ar) dating and it can be used to date very old volcanic rock and the things that might be buried in between. [Cosmology and Astronomy playlist: Lesson 79 of 85]
Material Type: Lecture
This interactive activity from ChemThink takes a closer look at a covalent bond--how it is formed and how the sharing of two electrons can keep atoms together.
Material Type: Activity/Lab, Interactive
In this classroom activity, students record the temperatures in and around a walk-in refrigerator or freezer to see how cold air behaves when it meets warmer air. The printable five-page handout includes a series of inquiry-based questions to get students thinking about how the temperature of air changes its density, detailed experiment directions and a worksheet that helps students use the experiment results to obtain insight into the wind patterns of Antarctica.
Material Type: Activity/Lab, Lesson Plan
In this interactive activity from the Building Big Web site, investigate dams in distress and decide if they should be repaired, removed, or left alone.
Material Type: Activity/Lab, Interactive
In this visualization adapted from the University of Massachusetts Medical School, discover the role that dengue viral proteins play in a human cell as the virus prepares to replicate.
Material Type: Lecture
After students conduct the two associated activities, Density Column Lab - Parts 1 and 2, present this lesson to provide them with an understanding of why the density column's oil, water and syrup layers do not mix and how the concepts of density and miscibility relate to water chemistry and remediation. Topics covered include miscibility, immiscibility, hydrogen bonds, hydrophobic and hydrophilic. Through the density column lab activities, students see liquids and solids of different densities interact without an understanding of why the resulting layers do not mix. This lesson gives students insight on some of the most fundamental chemical properties of water and how it interacts with different molecules.
Material Type: Lesson Plan
In this activity, students measure the densities of samples of granite, basalt, peridotite/dunite, and an iron meteorite, which are used as representatives of the various layers of the Earth (crust, mantle, core). The samples are weighed to determine their mass, and the Archimedes Principle is used to determine volume. From these two properties, they calculate density, compare it to accepted values presented in the discussion, and answer questions about their observations.
Material Type: Activity/Lab, Interactive
These two hands-on labs are about the role of temperature and salinity in governing the density of seawater, a major factor controlling the ocean's vertical movements and layered circulation. In the first activity students work in groups to determine the density of tap water and of tap water with salt, then compare the densities. The second activity investigates the role of temperature and salinity in determining seawater density. Students use a Temperature-Salinity (T-S) Diagram to examine the effect of mixing on density. A list of key concepts, essential questions, common preconceptions and more is included. These are part of the Aquarius Hands-on Laboratory Activities.
Material Type: Activity/Lab, Lesson Plan
This lesson provides experience working on a real-life scenario by allowing students the opportunity to use topographic maps to design a hiking trail system based on access from road, range of habitats, and other specified criteria. They will also complete a data sheet and produce an informational brochure.
Material Type: Activity/Lab, Interactive, Lesson Plan
In this video from NOVA scienceNOW, learn how scientists detect potential signs of life on distant planets.
Material Type: Lesson
This activity introduces the role of diffusion in supplying cells with nutrients and removing wastes.
Material Type: Activity/Lab
The purpose of this resource is to use a land cover type map to make environmentally sound decisions.
Material Type: Activity/Lab, Homework/Assignment, Interactive, Lesson Plan, Teaching/Learning Strategy
