The major goal of this lesson is to provide students with some …
The major goal of this lesson is to provide students with some of the tools they will need to analyze and solve the many complex problems they will face during their lifetimes. In the lesson, students learn to use Flow Charts and Feedback Diagrams to analyze a very complex problem of ecological sustainability. The lesson looks at a specific case study—from my home town in the Philippines—of the Live Reef Fish Trade now threatening survival of the Coral Reef Triangle of Southeast Asia. Live reef fish have long been traded around Southeast Asia as a luxury food item, but in recent decades trade in fish captured on coral reefs has expanded rapidly. Although the trade has provided communities with additional income, these benefits are unsustainable and have come at considerable cost to the environment. This lesson begins by having students analyze a familiar or personal problem, using Flow Charts and Feedback Diagrams, and then moves on to the application of those tools to a complex environmental problem. The lesson could be completed in a 50-minute class session, but using it over two class sessions would be preferable. Everything needed for the lesson is downloadable from the BLOSSOMS website, including blank Flow Charts and Feedback Diagrams, as well as articles on the Philippines case study from the World Wildlife Fund and the United States Agency for International Development.
This short lesson was designed in collaboration with a 7th grade Life …
This short lesson was designed in collaboration with a 7th grade Life Science teacher (Paul Jeffery). The idea behind the lesson is to help students better understand ecological and geographical classifications by teaching them at the same time in their Life Science class and their Geography class. Teaching the two classifications together will help reinforce the idea of classification. While this lesson would best be taught outdoors it can also be adapted to the indoors.
This course provides a review of physical, chemical, ecological, and economic principles …
This course provides a review of physical, chemical, ecological, and economic principles used to examine interactions between humans and the natural environment. Mass balance concepts are applied to ecology, chemical kinetics, hydrology, and transportation; energy balance concepts are applied to building design, ecology, and climate change; and economic and life cycle concepts are applied to resource evaluation and engineering design. Numerical models are used to integrate concepts and to assess environmental impacts of human activities. Problem sets involve development of MATLABĺ¨ models for particular engineering applications. Some experience with computer programming is helpful but not essential.
" We will cover fundamentals of ecology, considering Earth as an integrated …
" We will cover fundamentals of ecology, considering Earth as an integrated dynamic system. Topics include coevolution of the biosphere, geosphere, atmosphere and oceans; photosynthesis and respiration; the hydrologic, carbon and nitrogen cycles. We will examine the flow of energy and materials through ecosystems; regulation of the distribution and abundance of organisms; structure and function of ecosystems, including evolution and natural selection; metabolic diversity; productivity; trophic dynamics; models of population growth, competition, mutualism and predation. This course is designated as Communication-Intensive; instruction and practice in oral and written communication provided. Biology is a recommended prerequisite."
This video focuses on the conifer forest in Alaska to explore the …
This video focuses on the conifer forest in Alaska to explore the carbon cycle and how the forest responds to rising atmospheric carbon dioxide. Topics addressed in the video include wildfires, reflectivity, and the role of permafrost in the global carbon cycle.
This activity is an open-ended inquiry investigation in which students analyze and …
This activity is an open-ended inquiry investigation in which students analyze and predict how an environmental change will affect the visitation rates of insects. Students will ask a question, develop multiple hypotheses, run a scientific investigation, and report their findings to their "colleagues".
Students will explore and create a healthy ecosystem, once established they will …
Students will explore and create a healthy ecosystem, once established they will then introduce additional variables which may harm the ecosystem and determine which hazards should be avoided.
Are all coral reefs the same? Each regional ecosystem has its own …
Are all coral reefs the same? Each regional ecosystem has its own assemblage of species and each contributes uniquely to global biodiversity. Explore why ecosystem diversity is important for conservation decisions. Video by California Academy of Sciences.
Flow of energy and matter through ecosystems. What happens if an ecosystem …
Flow of energy and matter through ecosystems. What happens if an ecosystem is disrupted. Video by California Academy of Sciences. Created by California Academy of Sciences.
Flow of energy and matter through ecosystems. What happens if an ecosystem …
Flow of energy and matter through ecosystems. What happens if an ecosystem is disrupted. Video by California Academy of Sciences. Created by California Academy of Sciences.
Students make edible models of algal cells as a way to tangibly …
Students make edible models of algal cells as a way to tangibly understand the parts of algae that are used to make biofuels. The molecular gastronomy techniques used in this activity blend chemistry, biology and food for a memorable student experience. The models use sodium alginate, which forms a gel matrix when in contact with calcium or moderate acid, to represent the complex-carbohydrate-composed cell walls of algae. Cell walls protect the algal cell contents and can be used to make biofuels, although they are more difficult to use than the starch and oils that accumulate in algal cells. The liquid juice interior of the algal models represents the starch and oils of algae, which are easily converted into biofuels.
Students are charged with thinking about what it takes to 'do science'. …
Students are charged with thinking about what it takes to 'do science'. They are introduced to the science of dendrochronology and learn how tree-ring science is executed.
This activity demonstrates the effect of changes in the environment on the …
This activity demonstrates the effect of changes in the environment on the growth of plants. The plants are placed in environments such as high salinity, cold, heat, or drought and observe the different reactions (growth) of the plants to these conditions. Students discuss the desirability of breeding new types of plants that are better able to withstand these changes if they occur in the general environment. The objectives of this activity is to: 1. Plant, grow and maintain plants under different environmental treatment conditions. 2. Observe differences in plant growth between these treatments. 3. Compare the growth of treated plants with the growth of control plants
The goal of this exercise is to have students gain an understanding …
The goal of this exercise is to have students gain an understanding of how fractures affect groundwater flow patterns. In order for them to complete the activity, they need some background on characteristic fracture patterns in different rock types. This background could be provided in a variety of ways depending on geographic location and outcrop availability. If outcrops of crystalline and sedimentary sequences are available, you could take students in the field and have them observe (and perhaps sketch) the differing fracture patterns. If geology (and or weather) preclude this option, the students could observe fracture patterns from slides of outcrops (see slides in accompanying PowerPoint Presentation).
The classroom portion of the exercise uses a simple 2D numerical model (TopoDrive, available from USGS) to simulate flow in three aquifers: 1) homogeneous isotropic, 2) fractured crystalline, and 3) fractured sedimentary sequences. The task is to observe how the fracture patterns alter the flow patterns as compared to the homogeneous, isotropic simulation. The activity gives students practice in integrating geologic data into numerical models, describing flow patterns, and using computer technology. The activity also integrates knowledge from structural geology with hydrogeology.
(Note: this resource was added to OER Commons as part of a batch upload of over 2,200 records. If you notice an issue with the quality of the metadata, please let us know by using the 'report' button and we will flag it for consideration.)
This activity begins as a classroom investigation, but may extend to a …
This activity begins as a classroom investigation, but may extend to a field investigation where students will determine the effects of air temperature on seed germination. This is accomplished by developing investigative questions, recording, and analyzing data.
This video shows 15 years of data obtained via Polar-orbiting satellites that …
This video shows 15 years of data obtained via Polar-orbiting satellites that are able to detect subtle differences in ocean color, allowing scientists to see where there are higher concentrations of phytoplankton - a proxy for the concentration of chlorophyll in the ocean.
This worksheet helps students think about the cause and effect of pressure/temperature …
This worksheet helps students think about the cause and effect of pressure/temperature changes in subsurface and how these changes would affect the state of a solid rock. In this worksheet, students are given 6 different scenarios and associated pressure/temperature charts with a solidus line and a starting pressure/temperature point. Scenarios include heating and melting due to a nearby intrusion, diagenesis, decompression melting, cooling of magma at the surface, and adding water to the system. For each scenario, students draw an arrow from the starting point to show how the pressure and temperature would change. For example, students are told that a rock in the subsurface quickly rises towards the surface and melts, so fast that the temperature doesn't change much. A student would then draw a vertical arrow up to show that there is only a change in pressure. There scenarios are chosen to help students better understand the complexities of the subsurface in terms of pressure and temperature.
This worksheet uses the sketch-understanding program with built-in tutor: CogSketch . Therefore, students, instructors, and/or institution computer labs need to download the program from here: http://www.qrg.northwestern.edu/software/cogsketch/. At any point during the worksheet, students can click the FEEDBACK button and their sketch is compared to the solution image. The built-in tutor identifies any discrepancies and reports pre-written feedback to help the student correct their sketch until they are done with the activity. Once worksheets are emailed to the instructor, worksheets can be batch graded and easily evaluated. This program allows instructors to assign sketching activities that require very little time commitment. Instead, the built-in tutor provides feedback whenever the student requests, without the presence of the instructor. More information on using the program and the activity is in the Instructor's Notes.
We have developed approximately two dozen introductory geoscience worksheets using this program. Each worksheet has a background image and instructions for a sketching task. You can find additional worksheets by searching for "CogSketch" using the search box at the top of this page. We expect to have uploaded all of them by the end of the summer of 2016.
(Note: this resource was added to OER Commons as part of a batch upload of over 2,200 records. If you notice an issue with the quality of the metadata, please let us know by using the 'report' button and we will flag it for consideration.)
Make an arts and crafts insect from an egg cartoon. Activity from …
Make an arts and crafts insect from an egg cartoon. Activity from Weekly STEM in a Bag. Colorado Americorp agents in Araphahoe, Denver, Garfield, Larimer, and Weld Counties. Work supported by the Corporation for National and Community Service under Americorps grant number 18AFHCO0010008. Opinions or points of view expressed in this lesson are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official position of or a position that is endorsed by the Corporation or the Americorps program. This resource is also available in Spanish in the linked file.
Students test the question, "Do eggs balance on the equinox?" Students develop …
Students test the question, "Do eggs balance on the equinox?" Students develop their own procedure, analyze their data and come up with their own conclusions.
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