This is a very short exercise designed to get students to understand how the Gibbs energy equation is used to calculate the location of a reaction in P-T space. I use it in-class and have students work on it in groups.

Besides calculating the location of one reactions, students also have to think a bit about the significance of volume and entropy with regard to mineral stability.

This exercise is very straightforward EXCEPT that students get the units (bars, Kbar, cc, etc.) confused.

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This example focuses on six letters to the editor. All six letters attempt to describe and compare the amount of taxes paid on two different incomes: $30,000 and $200,000. Tax rates are expressed in absolute dollars, tax per $1,000 of income, $1 of tax per income amount, and as percents of annual income. Students need to be able to organize the relevant information and convert each stated tax rate to a standard form to help make comparisons. Additionally, students need to be aware that letter writers may make their own mistakes!

This task is intended for instructional (rather than assessment) purposes, providing an opportunity to discuss technology as it relates to irrational numbers and calculations in general. The task gives a concrete example where rounding and then multiplying does not yield the same answer as multiplying and then rounding.

In this lab activity, students learn about the relationships between sea level and glaciers during glacial and interglacial periods. First the students need to calculate the maximum sea level rise assuming all water stored in glaciers and ice caps will melt. Then, they are asked to calculate the ice sheet distribution during the last glacial maxima based on the information that sea level dropped by 125 m.

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In this lab, students are walked through a hands-on exercise converting digital numbers to at sensor brightness temperatures using Level 1B Landsat ETM+ thermal imagery acquired over Tallahassee, Florida, USA on November 06, 1999.

Students will observe the patterns of apparent motion of the sun using simple tools.

This activity enables students to calculate the speed of sound in a laboratory setting.

Science students often have difficulty thinking about large spatial scales. The purpose of the exercise is to redo Eratosthenes' calculation of the radius of the Earth using data from to sites in ancient Egypt. The excercise teaches about the methodology of science - how Eratothenes figured it out - rather than worried about what the "right" answer is. It can also be used to discuss the role of models in geological thinking.

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This is a field based exercise that exposes students to streams as a major agent of erosion and to methods of quantifying stream discharge by collecting data in the field. Students also apply basic navigation skills by using hand-held GPS devices and plotting longitude and latitude of the field sites under investigation.

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Students will map two sections of a stream and calculate the depth, velocity, and discharge of flows required to move the stream bedload. Students will produce two cross-sectional profiles of the stream, one through a pool and one through a riffle section, and one longitudinal profile. Measurements of sediment size, depth, and velocity, will be determined at meter intervals across each cross transect. Students will also calculate the approximate cross-sectional areas across the pool and riffle sections and associated discharges. Students will also determine the stream gradient along the longitudinal profile. From these data, students will employ hydrodynamic equations to calculate the critical shear stress, and mean flow velocity required to move the bedload. Students can then calculate what the discharge and stream width would be at the time of sediment movement, and compare these data with those calculated for "normal-flow" periods.

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Prior to assigning this activity in lecture, students gather information about their personal energy consumption so that they can calculate their personal carbon footprint. Specifically they need to determine the gas mileage of their vehicle, the average number of miles they drive in a month, and bring to class an electric bill and a natural gas bill from their apartment. I provide the appropriate information for students living in dorms. Their task during the class period is to assemble this information and calculate how much carbon their activities are responsible for generating. Once this portion of the assignment is complete, they investigate options for reducing their carbon emissions and the costs of those options. The pros and cons of carbon-reduction strategies form the basis for the class discussion. Lastly, students are asked to brain storm a list of potential carbon sources that are not included in this simple exercise, such as the carbon required to make the things we buy (computers, edible dinosaurs, q-tips, etc.).

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An activity where students make a geologic timeline from calculator tape.

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This online game activity allows the learners to calculate their carbon footprint using a French language calculator developed by a Swiss environmental organization. Students will describe their results in French and engage in related expansion activities for the language class.

Spreadsheets Across the Curriculum activity. In advance of an actual lab activity, students virtually simulate the calibration of a laboratory micropipettor. QL: Accuracy and precision.

Working with large datasets that support exploration of patterns is an essential first step in becoming fluent with data. In this dynamic data science activity, students can access part of the U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey, containing demographic information about California residents (e.g., marital status, sex, place of birth, employment status, and health information). Students can try some of the suggested data science challenges, such as finding out the average income of Californians of different age groups in 2013, then engage in investigating their own questions.

Haz tus propias sales de baño relajantes. Actividad de Bolsa de STEM Semanal. Agentes de Colorado Americorp en los condados de Araphahoe, Denver, Garfield, Larimer y Weld. Trabajo apoyado por la Corporación para el Servicio Nacional y Comunitario bajo el número de subvención 18AFHCO0010008 de Americorps. Las opiniones o puntos de vista expresados en esta lección pertenecen a los autores y no representan necesariamente la posición oficial o una posición respaldada por la Corporación o el programa Americorps.

This problem involves the meaning of numbers found on labels. When the level of accuracy is not given we need to make assumptions based on how the information is reported. The goal of the task is to stimulate a conversation about rounding and about how to record numbers with an appropriate level of accuracy, tying in directly to the standard N-Q.3. It is therefore better suited for instruction than for assessment purposes.

Spreadsheets Across the Curriculum module. Students build a spreadsheet to find the combination of mini-pizzas and calzones that maximizes revenue given constraints on labor time and baking time.