President Bush Signs Bill - statement from George Bush about the Energy Policy Act of 2005. This is where you will find info about the bill.
Web Exhibits - DST - A history of Daylight Saving Time - be sure to check the links on the left of the home page for more information
Y2K Again? At CNN.com - A CNN newstory about the potential for computer problems because of the early DST switch this year.
Write Your Representative - How to find your representative (for the persuasive writing activity)
How to Adjust to DST - article about how people can better adjust to the time change (the fact that we need to work this hard to adjust might tell you something)
More on Health Effects - more information about the health effects of adjusting to the time change
Some People May Lose More Than An Hour - an article describing some of the additional negative effects of the DST switch for some people
National Geographic - more information on the history of DST
Daylight Saving Time Save Energy - from a California state government site promoting the energy saving benefits of DST (CA was trying to go on DST all year in the early 2000s, due to an energy crisis - it was their research that led to the development of the Energy Policy Act of 2005)
Time And Date.com - more info, including a link that shows where DST is being observed world wide
Reminder - the Spring Equinox was on March 21st - on that day, the daytime and nighttime hours were the same. Keep that in mind when analyzing your data, and formulating your opinion.
If you do end up working on this over Spring Break, and have a question; post it here, and I will answer it - our e-mail may be down for work over break.
Thursday, March 29, 2007
Monday, March 26, 2007
At Gabriel's Request...
What are your favorite movies? Why?
As a huge movie buff, I have too many movies that I really like to designate any as my favorite. I have some that I will watch every time they are on TV, no matter how many times I have seen them (A Few Good Men and The Shawshank Redemption are two).
We could qualify the questions as well - what is/are your favorites genre(s) of movies? What is your favorite sci-fi, horror, comedy, drama, etc?
As a huge movie buff, I have too many movies that I really like to designate any as my favorite. I have some that I will watch every time they are on TV, no matter how many times I have seen them (A Few Good Men and The Shawshank Redemption are two).
We could qualify the questions as well - what is/are your favorites genre(s) of movies? What is your favorite sci-fi, horror, comedy, drama, etc?
Wednesday, March 14, 2007
Life Cycle of a Star - Interactive Lab
What are some questions you have about the universe?
What will happen to the sun in the future? What is a black hole? What would it be like to travel to one? How do we learn about things so far away?
These questions and more will be explored through the online activities linked to this site.
After you complete the activities, post a power writing comment (1, 2, 3, 2, 3, 2, 3, 1) about three things you've learned today - make it original!
ONE:
First, let's explore spectra. Once you launch the interactive page, you will see questions marks above a wavelength graph. Your mission will be to correctly match the mystery wavelengths with the spectra of certain elements to determine the composition of the sun. If you succeed and have more time, try Jupiter, the Orion Nebula, and the galaxy.
TWO:
Next, let's learn a little about the life cycle of a star. All stars start in a cloud of gas and dust called a nebula. If conditions are right, fusion will begin and a star is born. What happens next depends upon the mass of the star. Explore what happens to both a star with a mass like the sun and a larger star. What about our sun?
THREE:
One of the most fascinating objects in the universe is the black hole. Scientists still don't understand everything there is to know about these space mysteries. We do know that black holes form as the last part of the life of a very large star, and those stars must have much more mass than our sun. The objects are black because they are so dense, and have so much gravity that they pull in everything - even light.
FOUR:
Finally, scientists have categorized stars based on their luminosity and temperature. The chart used is called the Hertzsprung-Russell, or H-R diagram, after the scientists who designed it. Most stars fall on the main sequence, a diagonal line going from the upper left to the lower right of the chart. Stars on the main sequence are in their "middle age" and generally follow the rule of "hotter equals brighter; cooler eqauls dimmer. Not all stars follow this rule - those not in the main sequence are the stars in old age, or dying stars. These would be stars like red giants and white dwarfs. Learn how to use it here and here.
More to explore:
Excellent site on black holes with good information. Be sure to check out a black hole "up close and personal" as well as experiment with one here.
Experiment with how a black hole bends light and space here. Just click on the picture and see how the black hole bends light. Change the mass and see the effect! Also see what it might look like to travel into a black hole here.
NASA's Starchild - excellent site with lots of info - and also in Portuguese!
Windows to the Universe - another excellent site - and also in Spanish!
Remember - click on comments below, and add yours! Still more questions? Ask those as well - maybe someone will be able to answer it.
What will happen to the sun in the future? What is a black hole? What would it be like to travel to one? How do we learn about things so far away?
These questions and more will be explored through the online activities linked to this site.
After you complete the activities, post a power writing comment (1, 2, 3, 2, 3, 2, 3, 1) about three things you've learned today - make it original!
ONE:
First, let's explore spectra. Once you launch the interactive page, you will see questions marks above a wavelength graph. Your mission will be to correctly match the mystery wavelengths with the spectra of certain elements to determine the composition of the sun. If you succeed and have more time, try Jupiter, the Orion Nebula, and the galaxy.
TWO:
Next, let's learn a little about the life cycle of a star. All stars start in a cloud of gas and dust called a nebula. If conditions are right, fusion will begin and a star is born. What happens next depends upon the mass of the star. Explore what happens to both a star with a mass like the sun and a larger star. What about our sun?
THREE:
One of the most fascinating objects in the universe is the black hole. Scientists still don't understand everything there is to know about these space mysteries. We do know that black holes form as the last part of the life of a very large star, and those stars must have much more mass than our sun. The objects are black because they are so dense, and have so much gravity that they pull in everything - even light.
FOUR:
Finally, scientists have categorized stars based on their luminosity and temperature. The chart used is called the Hertzsprung-Russell, or H-R diagram, after the scientists who designed it. Most stars fall on the main sequence, a diagonal line going from the upper left to the lower right of the chart. Stars on the main sequence are in their "middle age" and generally follow the rule of "hotter equals brighter; cooler eqauls dimmer. Not all stars follow this rule - those not in the main sequence are the stars in old age, or dying stars. These would be stars like red giants and white dwarfs. Learn how to use it here and here.
More to explore:
Excellent site on black holes with good information. Be sure to check out a black hole "up close and personal" as well as experiment with one here.
Experiment with how a black hole bends light and space here. Just click on the picture and see how the black hole bends light. Change the mass and see the effect! Also see what it might look like to travel into a black hole here.
NASA's Starchild - excellent site with lots of info - and also in Portuguese!
Windows to the Universe - another excellent site - and also in Spanish!
Remember - click on comments below, and add yours! Still more questions? Ask those as well - maybe someone will be able to answer it.
Saturday, March 03, 2007
Lunar Eclipse - March 3, 2007
Tonight, North America will be able to see the full moon rise in a total eclipse - that is, of course, if the weather cooperates.
Best time for viewing is betwee 5:45 and 7:00 PM. The direction will be to the east, opposite of the setting sun.
For more information on this eclipse, click here and here (on the NASA site, check out the "solar eclipse" that someone on the moon would see tonight - it's a simple animation, but it's still cool).
For information on eclipses in general, click here and here.
Did you watch? What did you think?
Best time for viewing is betwee 5:45 and 7:00 PM. The direction will be to the east, opposite of the setting sun.
For more information on this eclipse, click here and here (on the NASA site, check out the "solar eclipse" that someone on the moon would see tonight - it's a simple animation, but it's still cool).
For information on eclipses in general, click here and here.
Did you watch? What did you think?
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