Student teams are challenged to evaluate the design of several liquid soaps …
Student teams are challenged to evaluate the design of several liquid soaps to answer the question, “Which soap is the best?” Through two simple teacher class demonstrations and the activity investigation, students learn about surface tension and how it is measured, the properties of surfactants (soaps), and how surfactants change the surface properties of liquids. As they evaluate the engineering design of real-world products (different liquid dish washing soap brands), students see the range of design constraints such as cost, reliability, effectiveness and environmental impact. By investigating the critical micelle concentration of various soaps, students determine which requires less volume to be an effective cleaning agent, factors related to both the cost and environmental impact of the surfactant. By investigating the minimum surface tension of the soap, students determine which dissolves dirt and oil most effectively and thus cleans with the least effort. Students evaluate these competing criteria and make their own determination as to which of five liquid soaps make the “best” soap, giving their own evidence and scientific reasoning. They make the connection between gathered data and the real-world experience in using these liquid soaps.
In this exercise students work with light, temperature, and phytoplankton biomass proxy …
In this exercise students work with light, temperature, and phytoplankton biomass proxy (chlorophyll a concentration) data to;
Become more skilled in reading and interpreting semi log graphs, temperature profiles, and time series plots. Practice unit conversions. Gain an understanding of k, the attenuation coefficient for nondirectional light. See how the depth of the photic zone and the surface mixed layer varies seasonally at temperate latitudes and how this relates to seasonal phytoplankton productivity dynamics.
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An activity/lab where students determine the changes in 100-year flood determinations for …
An activity/lab where students determine the changes in 100-year flood determinations for 2 streams over time.
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This Western Mining History database uses Mineral Resources Data System to list …
This Western Mining History database uses Mineral Resources Data System to list known Colorado historical mines by county. Each county site has links to the known mines within its borders. Some are known and named, others are unnamed. Mines should be assumed to be on private property unless other research is conducted. Data provided for each mine site include: Name, State, County, Elevation, Primary Mineral Mined, Latitude and Longitude and a link to Google Maps. Photos are provided where available. Additional information for some Mines are satellite photos, and ownership, business and historical records. Mining History is an historical site that provides information on mining, mining towns, the gold and silver rush, and Photos and maps of the western United States. This is a great database for student historical research or data and statistics classes. Consider becoming a member or making a donation to help further the work of the site.
This activity introduces students to using real-time data about earthquakes to make …
This activity introduces students to using real-time data about earthquakes to make decisions.
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This activity allows students to plot arrival times for direct and head …
This activity allows students to plot arrival times for direct and head waves in a simple refraction system (2 or 3 layers, assuming horizontal interfaces). Students use provided MATLAB functions to investigate the effects of changing layer thicknesses and velocities on arrival times and crossover distances.
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This short video and interactive assessment activity is designed to teach fifth …
This short video and interactive assessment activity is designed to teach fifth graders about converting capacities using illustrations (english units).
Student will use geospatial tools (WebGIS and/or ArcGIS 9.3) to create a …
Student will use geospatial tools (WebGIS and/or ArcGIS 9.3) to create a total of 4 original maps that begin to provide a solution to a real world environmental problem. The Project Problem Statement will guide the students project. Two of these maps may come from exercises if they are appropriate to answer the project problem statement. The project topics will be determined by the student from a list of topic options (e.g., climate, energy, agriculture, sustainable practices). Other topics may be approved at the discretion of the instructor. For example, a student may choose to create a map that will represent the various energy source option(s) in one region of the United States. All students will write a 2-3 page essay on their topic. References are required. Students essay and the 4 maps will be presented in various manners. Most students will use an electronic template and design their PowerPoint poster. With approval from the instructor, students can present their findings via a video (collaborate with video department), mural (collaborate with art department) or develop a Web page (Second Life or web page). Student projects may be highlighted at MCC functions (e.g., Sustainability Day, GIS Day, Scholars Day, and/or Earth Day). Some projects may continue each semester as new students take the course and begin where the last student left off. A sample project might describe the current climatic condition, recent climate changes, evaluate the various energy source option(s), and present an energy plan for the future in one region of the United States.
An in-class activity for connecting earthquake magnitude, shaking, and intensity. (Note: this …
An in-class activity for connecting earthquake magnitude, shaking, and intensity.
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This activity uses GIS methods to subtract the isostatic rebound from a …
This activity uses GIS methods to subtract the isostatic rebound from a DEM in order to create a map of the shoreline of Glacial Lake Hitchcock. Students are then able to evaluate how delta surfaces reflect the past levels of the lake.
Critical Data Studies (CDS) is an interdisciplinary field that addresses the ethical, …
Critical Data Studies (CDS) is an interdisciplinary field that addresses the ethical, legal, sociocultural, epistemological and political aspects of data science, big data, and digital infrastructure.
This course focuses on current topics in critical data studies scholarship. Students will develop tools and methods to think critically and engage the public in conversation about data and society.
The overall course and module are designed for asynchronous independent or group learning experiences. Instructors and students are encouraged to use the module as a whole or incorporate individual videos, discussion, writing and/or reading assignments into their course of study as desired.
[Note: The first module is available, and a second module is planned for a future release]
Students work in small groups to re-create sidewalk-scale fault bend folds and …
Students work in small groups to re-create sidewalk-scale fault bend folds and fault propagation folds from textbook images.
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Seismograms of the 2004 M9.0 Sumatra earthquake, as recorded on station WANC …
Seismograms of the 2004 M9.0 Sumatra earthquake, as recorded on station WANC on Wrnagell volcano, Alaska. The red signal shows the raw data and the blue represented data that have been lowpass filtered. The red spikes near 2800 s are local microearthquakes triggered by the passing of the surface waves.
Provenance: Jackie Caplan-Auerbach, Western Washington University Reuse: This item is offered under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike license http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/ You may reuse this item for non-commercial purposes as long as you provide attribution and offer any derivative works under a similar license.
In this exercise, written for an undergraduate seismology class, students use MATLAB to analyze waveforms from the 2004 Sumatra M9.0 earthquake, as they were recorded on three seismic stations in Alaska. Two of the stations are broadbands and one is a short period station. Students use MATLAB scripts (provided) to plot and filter the time series data and to calculate power spectra at the different stations. They also see that surface waves from the Sumatra earthquake triggered microseismicity at Wrangell volcano as they passed through the hydrothermal system, an observation first made by West et al. (2005).
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Click to watch Jackie Caplan-Auerbach discuss her activity or watch the full webinar.
In doing this exercise students learn how the type of instrument and the instrument response affect the appearance of a seismogram. They identify body and surface waves in broadband seismograms. After examining the data on their own, students read a scientific paper that describes how microearthquakes were triggered by the passing surface waves. Not only does this provide them with experience reading and interpreting a scientific paper, but it shows them the types of observations made by the authors when they first analyzed the same data presented in this study.
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Simmons University and academic health sciences libraries across the USA are partnering …
Simmons University and academic health sciences libraries across the USA are partnering to offer a post-master’s certificate program in the area of Inter-Professional Informationist (IPI), for the purpose of bridging the gap between traditional and emergent skills in health sciences librarianship and increasing the diversity in the workforce. A small cohort of librarians in the program will complete seven IPI courses, and partner institutions will connect them with researchers and clinical leaders who will mentor their capstone. This project was made possible in part by the Institute of Museum and Library Services with the Laura Bush 21st Century Librarian Program Grant [RE-17-19-0032-19]. Simmons University, School of Library and Information Science, College of Organizational, Computational and Information Science provides cost-share of the project.
One of the courses included in the IPI program is “Scientific Research Data Management” was taught Fall 2020 by Elaine Martin and Julie Goldman. This course had been an elective in the Simmons School of Library and Information Science curriculum for many years, but underwent a redesign to include and address many of the newer emerging areas related to data services in libraries. For example, the course included “Special Topics” that included Data Curation, Data Skills, Reproducibility, and Informationists. While basic understanding of data management is critical for librarians to work with researchers, there are these emerging areas where librarians can provide even more specialized help to their communities. It is one of the IPI’s project’s goals to bridge the gap between traditional and emergent skills in health sciences librarianship.
This Open Science Framework project site includes curriculum materials for Simmons IPI LIS-532U-OL Scientific Research Data Management (course offered Fall 2020). This course serves as an introduction to the field of scientific data management, and aims to help prepare information professionals and information students for engaging with scientists.
This is a simple lab exercise early in the semester to teach …
This is a simple lab exercise early in the semester to teach student the limitation of raster data structure, simple buffer and overlay operation without using computer. It helps students to get in the habit of drawing flow diagrams.
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