“Earth Science Week 2010 (October 10-16) won’t take place for some months – so now is the perfect time to start planning your activities! Don’t wait until the hectic first weeks of the next school year.” You can start your planning by visiting the Earth Science Week website or by checking out their March newsletter. The theme for 2010 is “Exploring Energy.”
An article on the Discovery News website reports that the roots of modern geology can be traced back to Copernicus over 500 years ago. It also gives a pitch for the broader recognition of earth science in secondary schools of the United States.
This is an interview with Sally Ride, the first U.S. female in space. She would like to encourage young people, particularly girls, to become more interested in science.
The Geological Society of America has announced an exciting July 2010 trip for teachers. Their GeoVentures program will travel to study the geology and plate tectonics of Iceland.
STEM stands for Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math. Some U.S. schools are having success with the creation of STEM clubs, which allow kids to explore these subjects interactively and in different ways than they would in the classroom.
NASA is gearing up for their 2010 “Great Moonbuggy Race” next month in Huntsville, Alabama. High school and college students can compete in races and win prizes for vehicle designs. This page has links with more details.
A new technology will change the way we explore the oceans. Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution has developed wireless video communication underwater at a speed close to real time. This will be very useful with ROVs and AUVs (remotely operated, and autonomous underwater, vehicles).
Sauropod skulls are extremely rare and only a few complete ones have been found. BYU researchers have found the first complete sauropod skulls known from the Cretaceous of the Western Hemisphere in Dinosaur National Monument in eastern Utah. Listen to how excited these paleontologists are about having these Abydosaurus skulls!
During the spring semester students are often looking for summer field experience opportunities. Geology.com has a large list of over 100 summer field courses and field camps offered at many locations in North America. There are also a few outside of the US (and a couple in the southern hemisphere for those who want a summer field camp between November and February).
Authors from four institutions won a 2009 Science Prize for Online Resources in Education for their Web site, titled “On the Cutting Edge” which shares geoscience content and teaching methods.
The U.S. Department of Energy, a major Earth Science Week partner, provides learning opportunities for teachers and students at all levels. For example, the DOE Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy website offers over 350 K-12 lesson plans aligned with national science standards.
A new Earth Science Week Update is posted on the earthsciweek.org website. The topics include:
* Earth Science Week Is ‘Exploring Energy’ in 2010
* Energy Department Programs Empowering Teachers
* Earth Science Week Founder Releases Video
* Partners Teach Kids About Science of Conservation
* EARTH Magazine on Ranking Snowstorms
* Dig Into Earth Science Education With USGS
* IRIS Reaches Students at ‘Teachable Moments’
The journal Nature polled over 700 scientists in China. The majority agree that their research would be hindered if Google is no longer available in the country.
This isn’t geology-related, but we thought it was pretty neat. It’s a collection of 12 optical illusions that will have you wondering if the images are animated, or if your eyes really are playing tricks on you!
“Students in a Landscape Architecture Design 1 course at a research university in the southern US developed design solutions implementing geologic time for an informal education site. Those students who employed abstract metaphors for their designs were more successful than students who proceeded with a linear design construct.” Quoted from the article abstract.
The Bighorn Basin Field Program seeks to energize and enhance the education of geology students and faculty by introducing them to the breadth and challenges of integrated basin and petroleum systems analysis. Applications for this all-expense-paid field camp, to run 1–6 August 2010, will be accepted through 1 April. Sponsored by Geological Society of America and ExxonMobil.
Science-Metrix has compiled an overview of developments in science over the last three decades. The 16-page .pdf details how countries around the world have progressed, and discusses the role of geopolitics.
Two years ago the English Riviera Geopark became the first urban geopark in a worldwide UNESCO network of 60 plus parks. A purpose of the Park is to ingrain concepts of geology into mainstream consciousness. The video below promotes the park and its geological history.
There are creatures living in even the deepest, darkest parts of the ocean – like the foraminifera that populate the Challenger Deep in the Mariana Trench. Core samples taken by the KAIKO ROV contain foraminiferan tests made with material from coccoliths. This suggests that the seafloor organisms make their shells using debris from surface waters.
Related article: Read about the first – and only – manned voyage to the deepest part of the ocean, in the Bathyscaphe Trieste sea vessel.
“Exploring Energy,” the theme of Earth Science Week 2010, will engage young people and the public in learning about Earth’s energy resources. The Earth Science Week website has lots of information for teachers and anyone interested in learning about the earth.
How bacteria became mitochondria is one of the mysteries of early life. Biochemists at Monash University have some new information about this key metamorphosis.
Could life on Earth have been sparked in deep-sea hydrothermal vents? A paper by Dr. Nick Lane, published in BioEssays, details why this is plausible with chemiosmosis.
The Earth Science Week website offers loads of classroom activities, theme-based resources, research projects, local events and organizations, and careers information. Most importantly, the site features dozens of recommended lessons that teachers and parents can conduct with children. All are aligned with the National Science Education Standards.
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Hobart King
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