Rube Goldberg Machine

Inquiry Presentations!

Excitement buzzes through the first floor of the science building. For a school year, students collected data on a self-generated question. What have they found out? What are the answers to their questions? What do they still wonder? We'll find out soon...

Groups:

	Dr. Leaf
	Dust How does the quality of air change through out the year?
	JArs of light science
	Soiltologists
	The Owl Observers How Does The Water In The Pond Changes Throughout The Year
	The Pond
	The Raindrops How does the pH in rainwater change through out the year?

Air molecules as a force

Over the next two classes, you will perform a series of experiments. Then, you will write up your results using the Claim-Evidence-Reasoning structure.

Don't forget the inquiry project - see next post...

Inquiry Rubric

Hot & Cold Water

Opening Predictions:

1. Water at two temperatures are mixed together. The two temperatures are 50 C and 10 C. Please make a selection that best fits what you believe will happen to the temperature once they are mixed.
1. The temperature of the “colder” water will be subtracted from the “warmer” water, resulting in a final water temperature of 40 C.
2. The temperatures of the two waters will be averaged, resulting in a final temperature of 30 C.
3. The temperatures of the two will be added, resulting in a final temperature of 60 C.

Please explain the reasoning behind your choice:

1. 2. In this type of experiment ________________ energy is transferred. For this type of energy transfer,  what do you believe is the direction of transfer?

1. From “hot” to “cold”
2. From “cold” to “hot”
3. There is an equal transfer of the two materials.

Please explain the reasoning behind your choice:

Please create a sketch, procedure and data table to produce evidence through experimentation for question #1.

Claim - Evidence - Reasoning - WHITEBOARD SUMMARY

You've collected data. Now, let's go back to the original question of what will happen when water at two different temperatures is mixed.

1. What is your claim (based upon data)?
2. How can your data collected (evidence) support your claim?
3. Reasoning - Why does your evidence support your claim?

Note: Chapter 4 of the Matter & Energy book provides additional background information.

Each person please submit for next class!
Class Data

Home Stretch on Inquiry Projects

The month of May will find you obtaining your last data collection point (Friday, May 10), discussing data, writing up your final report and presenting your findings to the class. Today, we will talk about the structure of your final presentation and report and begin with a bit of Curiosity...

As you watch the video, please have the following questions in your mind:

1. What are these scientists curious about -- what do they want to know?
2. What data will the rover collect?
3. How will this data help scientists answer -- make claims about -- their questions?

What does an explanation consist of?

• A claim that answers the question
• Evidence from your data that backs up your claim.
• Reasoning that involves a "rule" or scientific principle that describes why the evidence supports the claim.



Edutopia Source: http://www.edutopia.org/blog/science-inquiry-claim-evidence-reasoning-eric-brunsell

Let's use this framework to think about the girl's claim in this video. 

• What does she claim? 
• What is her evidence?  
• What is reasoning (or rule) that connects the evidence with her claim?

Our journey so far and the next few steps.

Past Inventions...

Invention Convention Topics

Students are beginning to get ideas for their projects. Problems that are being looked into include:

• People cut down lots of trees at the mountain area, and when it rains the rocks will start moving down very fast through the slope of the mountain. The rocks will destroy many things when erosion happens. (Kyoko & Brenda)
• Many people around the world do not have enough clean water to drink, so they drink "dirty" water. The people who drink dirty water might get sick and die. (Jaysen & Alex)
• People all over the world are wasting batteries that can be re-used and causes more trash to the world. Batteries that are thrown away are dangerous because they might destroy farmlands, destroy crops and might increase the mutation rate.(Henry & Irene)
• There is too much trash on Earth. Anywhere you put it is still taking up space. Incinerators cause pollution and often trash gets dumped in the most inconvenient locations. It is a growing problem. (Andrew, Richard & Roy)
• In Taiwan, typhoons arrive in the summer when fruits are starting to ripen. Strong winds and rain causes the fruit to fall off the tree and rot, making profits low for farmers. (Jan & Andy)
• 75% of Earth is covered by water but only 2% of fresh water can be used. So if people keep wasting soon there will be no fresh water so we have to save water. (Teresa, Grace Anne & Athena)
• Mosquito bites are a great issue for our school and the whole world. Some mosquitoes even carry lethal diseases. (Raymond, James & Brian)
• Batteries are used as power sources everywhere around the world, especially alkaline batteries. But such batteries waste energy when they lie unused. (Cliff, Shoki & Fabien)
• Humans dump trash in the ocean. This normally results in sea animals being hurt, killed or even poisoned by the plastic in the trash. (Leah & Lisa)
• In cities, private transportation is causing pollution and wasted resources. First of all, private vehicles gives us a great need for fuel and in the making of fuel we pollute the world. (Vincent, Jadon & Tim)
• Pollution is one of the world's main issue, which came from the modern society we have right now that are made by human beings. Pollution from large factories, smoke from the vehicles, chimneys and burning of woods are all examples of pollution that are made by us. Our group is focusing on the smoke that the vehicles are making. (Cassandra, Jewelry & Sarah)
• Pesticides used to kill buys and animals are mostly not environmental. Instead of preventing bugs from entering your territory pesticides kill the bugs. Our group will be focusing on how to prevent bugs from entering your territory in a more eco-friendly way and not killing the bugs. (Kelly, Rose & Vickey)

Moving Windmills: The William Kamkwamba Story

Note: William's story is being made into a full length documentary that is scheduled for release sometime this year. For more information, go to the documentary site.

My invention that made peace with lions

Upcoming Schedule

April 10: Brainstorming, Project Details, Begin work

April 12: 1/2 day for parent conferences. Inquiry Field Day - please come to class ready to collect data. It is a short class.

April 16: Research time in the Satellite Lab + Project Work Time

April 18: TAIMUN - enjoy the conference!

April 22: Group discussions + Project Work Time + Early Evaluations - Do we have all of the components in our project?

April 24: Final Group work time - Finish projects! (Note: if everyone from your group is traveling to TAS for the MS MUN, please turn in your project before Friday.)

April 26: Projects due in class before school starts. During class, we will tour projects and decide on awards:

• Best Innovation
• Best Model
• Best Visuals
• Best "Repurposing" for Display
• Most Detailed
• Incredible Effort

2013 Invention Convention

Earth Day 2013 - Invention Convention

In support of this year’s Earth Day, your amazing creativity is needed for the 2013 Invention Convention.  You each have a lot of potential and ability to help design solutions for today’s world.  So, let’s get started!

The Info…

Who: AST middle school students.  You can work in pairs or in groups of three.  You may work with anyone in the middle school.

What: Define a local or global environmental problem. Come up with a solution to help solve this problem. Prepare a display that shows your project research, design process and model.

When: Friday, April 26, 2013 (All projects are due to science class in the morning)

How: There are several components to this project.  Imagine the science room being transformed into an exhibition hall of break-through ideas and models.  Throughout the room, displays are set-up that discuss a problem, provide solutions, a group’s hope for the project and a model of the design.  Keep reading for more details:

Project Planning Sheet

Project Criteria

3.0  The process of technological design begins by defining a problem, followed by research to better understand the problem and brainstorming to arrive at potential solutions.

a) I can identify a problem that exists in my neighborhood, city, world.  Unfortunately, there are a lot of problems in this world that need great solutions. The largest problems often need a combination of solutions. Your task is to narrow down the possibilities and focus on one problem.

b) I can fully describe the problem (where is it happening, who does it affect, what are the causes and effects, what is the main issue...)  In the gallery of projects, people need to know what problem you are working to solve. Be clear. Be specific. Be thorough.

c) I can research solutions to similar problems (what have other people/organizations done).  Coming up with new solutions can be difficult and a great way to get started on ideas is to find out what other people have or are doing. Today, people can use technology to quickly find out about solutions in different parts of the world. What is being done to help solve problems similar to yours?

• Repurposing an idea: Find an idea (web, magazine, etc.) and incorporate it into your design. Make sure you cite your source and let people know who thought of the idea.  
• Biomimicry - Animal/Plant Adaptations:  Find an animal/plant adaptation and apply it to your problem… make sure you let folks know that YOU thought of this by learning from nature.

d) I can collaborate with others to generate several creative solutions.  People are powerful when working together. How will your team work together to come up with creative solutions. Are you taking risks with your solution?

4.0  In addition to 3.0, “criteria” is constructed that determines the design's success and a model of the design is constructed. The best solution is communicated persuasively.

e) I can evaluate and choose the best solution to my problem.  In “3-d,” your group generated multiple solutions. Why did you decide to green light this one, or move it the design phase? Describe why this is the best choice of your multiple solutions.

f) I can describe criteria for the success of my design.  What does your design need to be able to do for your group to consider it a success? Criteria (the plural of criterion - meaning you need more than 1) can be defined as “a standard by which something can be judged or decided”.

g) I can construct a model. 3D construction! You may come up with an amazing solution that is currently not technologically possible or that you simply do not have the equipment to prepare a working model. That is OK.  Your model does not have to be operational.  It does have to be a replica of your idea and be designed so that your audience can see exactly what the final product would look like.

h) I can present the recommended design. I’m sure the world is full of great ideas that never get acted upon because people do not present their designs. Your presentation needs to include all the parts of this project. Please pay attention to the layout of your display as it should be neat and easy for people to understand your work. Headings of topic areas are a must! More than one color is highly suggested.

5.0 In addition to 4.0, the design requirements (materials, resources, size...) are fully described and an analysis of the hopes and limitations of the design is provided.

 

Your group gets into the fine details about the project. You describe all of your project’s requirements. The analysis looks into the future. Your design has been constructed and has gone to the area it is most needed. What do you hope will happen? How will the design be installed? What will be limitations of the project?

Invention Convention Kick-off

Welcome back from Spring Break!

Marshmallow Challenge Revisited...

Rules

1. ✦The Entire Marshmallow Must be on Top: The entire marshmallow needs to be on the top of the structure.

Cutting or eating part of the marshmallow disqualifies the team.  

2. ✦Use as Much or as Little of the Kit: The team can use as many or as few of the 20 spaghetti sticks, as much or as
   

   2. little of the string or tape. The team cannot use the paper bag as part of their structure.

3. ✦Break up the Spaghetti, String or Tape: Teams are free to break the spaghetti, cut up the tape and string to create new structures.
   
   
4. ✦The Challenge Lasts 18 minutes: Teams cannot hold on to the structure when the time runs out. Those touching or supporting the structure at the end of the exercise will be disqualified.
   
   

Inspirations


More details next class. Until then, please start thinking about ideas.

Important Change!

You have all been working hard. Unfortunately, the materials of construction have been difficult to work with and many group members have been out with illness. I am impressed by how groups have risen to this technical challenge and have built functioning roller coasters but we lost valuable testing time. As a result, the following two items have been removed from the project.

Level 4

• Illustrate the motion of the roller coaster using a position vs time graph.
• Illustrate the motion of the roller coaster using a speed vs time graph.

As a result, there will be a few extra questions that I individually ask you regarding these two topics.

Updated Schedule:

• March 15 - Test Roller Coaster / Work on write-up (Write-up due next class)
• March 19 - Roller Coaster presentations + Assessment 
• March 21 - Science Inquiry Data Collection Day

Testing Day

Today's schedule:
12:20 - 12:35 Project Team discussion regarding testing. The Project Manager and Technical Lead should make sure that this meeting is focused. At the end, the Technical Lead will have a discussion with the TLs of other groups.

• What is your plan? 
• What are challenges that you anticipate? 
• What questions do you have?

12:35-12:50 Technical Lead meeting. Fishbowl style (other members are observers). Technical leads will problem solve challenges and present solutions.

12:50 - 1:45 Testing - data must be collected in a data table. Multiple trials are expected.

1:45 - 1:50 Clean-up, final comments

Everyone worked hard today - thanks! Unfortunately, it appears as if groups did not have enough time to collect data. We will take the first half of class on Friday to collect data.

Updated schedule:

• March 13 - Complete construction 
• March 15 - Test Roller Coaster / Work on write-up (Write-up due next class)
• March 19 - Roller Coaster presentations
• March 21 - Science Inquiry Data Collection Day

Roller Coaster Design/Build

Today, your goal is to construct a roller coaster. As you work, I will come around and talk with each group about concepts relating to your design.

At 1:30, the Technical Lead person from each team will meet in the fishbowl to discuss the testing that will take place next class. Each member is expected to be ready to talk and help the group problem solve any issues.

Criteria Rubric

Upcoming dates:

• March 13 - Complete construction / Test
• March 15 - Final Results - Group Discussion (Write-up due next class)
• March 19 - TBD
• March 21 - Science Inquiry Data Collection Day

PhET Simulation: Roller Coasters

Alright! Today I hope that everyone can build upon the excitement in class on Tuesday to work out more ideas about your roller coaster. Here is the general flow of the class:

1. Brief project manager meeting. (Note: If you are not a project manager, your job is to observe the meeting and think about the discussion. If you have any follow-up questions or there are items you do not understand, you will have time after the meeting to ask them.)

Topics of PM Meeting:

• Inverted

• Design Items
• Is your group using the maximum amount of track? (Where is your start point / end point?)
• Can you tell me exactly where is the 130 cm point of your track?
• How far on the roller coaster ride will a person first be inverted?
• What's the fun factor of your roller coaster? Would you want to ride it?
• English language - Are you doing your best to keep the conversation in English?
• Daily Completion / Reflection
• Questions

2. Overview of Today's Simulation

3. Team Meeting - goal setting and design conversation


Handouts for today's class. 

Due Today:

• Design - What do you think? (1 per group)
• Simulation hand-out (each person)
• Personal Reflection (each person)

Due Monday

• Concept Review (each person) - Note: If you do not understand or cannot fully answer an item, you must write the questions you have in order to receive credit.

4. Go to Satellite Lab to Run simulation. Click here if the image link does not work.

Click to Run

By the end of class, each person should turn in his/her reflection sheet and the group needs to turn in the initial design sheet.

For next class, each person should turn in the "Concept Review" sheet.

Roller Coaster Project Resources

Here are some resources. If you find a new one, please add it in the comments!

Text Books:

• Matter and Energy - Chapter 3
• Motion and Forces - Chapters 1-4

Links

• Roller Coaster Safety
• Coaster 101
• Fundercoaster - a simulation
• Amusement Park Physics

Roller Coaster Project

After the success shown with the Zippy Fun project, your design team has been asked to design and build a roller coaster for a new amusement park. The owners of the new park want to build six amazing rides and are hoping that your design team can help them meet this goal.

This is a quick project since the owners want to begin as soon as possible. Today, we will discuss the schedule, expectations and criteria of the project. To get focused on the idea of roller coasters, take a few moments to look at this video of coasters at other amusement parks.

What is the first question that comes to your mind?




Upcoming Schedule:

• March 5 - Project Introduction / Design Teams / Initial Thoughts and Design 
• March 7 - PhET Simulation (Satellite Lab) - We will use a skate park simulation to think about roller coaster design.
• March 11 - Design / Build of roller coaster
• March 13 - Complete construction / Test
• March 15 - Final Results - Group Discussion (Write-up due next class)
• March 19 - TBD
• March 21 - Science Inquiry Data Collection Day

Key Vocabulary:

Project Criteria / Information

Each person on a design/build team has skills that are valuable to the group's success. The most successful groups are those who equally share the work and constantly communicate about design, challenges and ideas. For this project, each person will have a "job" that provides certain responsibilities in addition to making sure the project is successfully completed.

• Project Manager - This person's job is to make sure the group is constantly moving forward on the project. He/she is responsible for attending the daily project meeting, organizing the work of group members and making sure that each person on the team is constantly contributing. This person also makes a point to listen to the ideas of all members on the team.
• Construction Manager - This person's job is to make sure that the construction site is a safe environment to work in and that materials are properly used. At the end of each day, this person makes sure that the construction site is as cleaned up as possible.
• Operations Manager - This person's job is to make sure that the activities of the group are well documented on the Team Whiteboard. Someone should be able to quickly glance at the whiteboard to understand the team's design and progress. This person assists the project manager in making sure that each person has a job (on the whiteboard!) and that the project moves along. There is a due date!
• Technical Lead (Note: this job is spread out in 3-person groups) - This person's job is to make sure data is collected with as much precision as possible. Spreadsheets /Tables are used to record data and create graphs. This person coordinates data collection activities.

February Inquiry Day

By now, each group is fully in the data collection phase. Your procedures were finalized last semester so please stick with the steps you wrote. When you go into the field, you should have the following:

• Procedure - don't leave anything out!
• Data Tables - record your data as you collect it. Record your data directly into your data table. Each time numbers are transferred, there is a chance of making a mistake so please write directly into the table. This also allows you to have all of your "original" data in one place.
• Photo-taking device - How are you capturing the story? Collecting data in the field is more than just the numbers you measure. 
• An idea of the story you will tell - How will you present your data? What will be the story?
• Question/wonderings - Where are you recording this information?

Today's Goals

1. Collect data - by now your group should be able to get this done within 45 min - 1 hour
2. 1:15 - all groups back in the class
3. Update wall space
4. Update electronic data tables
5. Write-up today's story
6. Discuss data trends. What are you noticing about your data so far? Is your data supporting your hypothesis or not? What are you not so sure about? What else do you need to do?

Groups:

	Dr. Leaf
	Dust How does the quality of air change through out the year?
	JArs of light science
	Soiltologists
	The Owl Observers How Does The Water In The Pond Changes Throughout The Year
	The Pond
	The Raindrops How does the pH in rainwater change through out the year?

What is a force?

Since last class, you have read about forces (unbalanced and balanced) and different types of forces. Today, we will continue with our historical journey. What does Newton have to say about forces?

How can forces be measured? Using a spring scale...


What ideas is the creator of this music video trying to get across? Did it work?

Next Class: Inquiry Day!

Historical views of force and motion

Thanks to the students who are coming in to reassess! I appreciate your efforts. Please remember to schedule an appointment by filling out the form in the side-bar.

Today, we will begin with the question set we did not get to yesterday:

The remainder of the class will be dedicated to "meeting" three historical figures: Aristotle, Galileo, and Newton. What were there thoughts on force and motion?

For next class, please read pages 41-47 in your Motion and Forces text. Answer questions 1-6 on page 47.

Speed & Position Wrap-Up

Welcome back to AST! I hope everyone had an enjoyable break. Before you left, we took an assessment on concepts related to position and speed. Today, you will do the following tasks to get your mind thinking about these topics again:

Tasks:

1. Review the assessment with your group members. Discuss the strategies that each of you used to solve the problem. If you did not correctly answer a question, rework it on another sheet of paper. For each incorrect question:
1. Identify what was incorrect.
2. Describe why this was incorrect.
3. Correctly rework the problem.
2. On a whiteboard, create a diagram and a phrase that distinguishes between each set of ideas: (Note - please organize your whiteboard in a way that gives enough space for each of the 5 ideas.)
1. Interval of Time vs Instant of Time
2. Position vs Change in Position vs Distance
3. Position vs Speed
4. Average Speed vs Instantaneous Speed
5. Acceleration vs Speed
3. 
   

Source:Physics by Inquiry

Making sense of graphs

Today, you and your partner will analyze a series of graphs. What story does each graph tell?


You will receive 5 graphs similar to the one above. On an A3 paper, arrange the graphs. Describe the motion in each one:

• Is it constant? 
• Does it change? 
• Between each meter interval, where is the speed?
• What is the speed?

Dimensions

Not quite what we are discussing right now but check it out.

Graphing Practice

Super Ultimate Graphing Challenge - give it a try. Leave a comment below to let us know how you like it!

Whiteboard images

Thanks for emailing the whiteboard images! These will be used in class on Monday during an assessment.

What is the acceleration of your zip line?

Last week, you began working with a prototype zip line. The information from Zippy Fun was as follows:

"test our zip line that can be scaled down to a vertical drop of 0.4 m over 6 m"

You built zip lines in class and many of you developed an average velocity. However, Zippy Fun was curious why there was so much variation in your data. They would like to see a bit more data in an organized format. Also, please include:

• velocity at each meter
• the acceleration in each meter

To show off your work, please use a whiteboard. It is important that Zippy Fun can see data in an organized way and understand your set-up. What did you do to collect data?

Support reading: Motion & Forces (p. 25-31)

Upcoming Classes

• Thursday 1/31: Trip to the Library - have a great time!
• Monday 1/4: Write up of Zip Line data. More information coming but you will need to produce a position vs time graph, speed vs time graph, provide speed and accelerations...

January Inquiry Day

Today is the first data collection point of 2013. By the beginning of class on Tuesday, your data should be updated on both the hallway board and your web page.

Please begin paying more and more attention to your "story". How is your group capturing your process and the feeling of a year-long project. Do you have photographs? Video? Stories from different field collection days?

On your group web page, you should post a summary of today's activities. What did you do? What did you find out? What fun event happened whiled collecting data? You should also update graphs and data tables.
Groups:

	Dr. Leaf
	Dust How does the quality of air change through out the year?
	JArs of light science
	Soiltologists
	The Owl Observers How Does The Water In The Pond Changes Throughout The Year
	The Pond
	The Raindrops How does the pH in rainwater change through out the year?