Runaway Greenhouse Effect Exercise
This activity, Runaway Greenhouse Effect Exercise, discusses "Why is Venus so much hotter than the Earth?" This is a collaborative problem-solving exercise about the greenhouse effect on Venus. Students role-play biologists, coal geologists, space warfare experts, astronomers, pollution-control scientists, and hydrophysicists. Each student gets a copy of the appropriate briefing sheet (there are 6) containing some information important to solving the problem, much of it quantitative. On this Sta
Sir Charles Lyell
The Sir Charles Lyell collection at Bartleby.com contains scientific papers authored by Lyell such as The Progress of Geology and The Uniformity of Change. Users may follow links to other Harvard Classics as well as a variety of literary material.
Distribution of Active Volcanoes
On this website, Starting Point Teaching Collection explains the Distribution of Active Volcanoes exercise. This worksheet is intended to direct students working independently in a 6-week exercise on volcanoes within an online geology course. The exercise consists of a series of questions plus helpful links and a map. The students collect and plot data, then interpret the results and answer questions about the geologic causes and the human effects of volcanic eruption. The exercise includes indi
Collaborative Decision Making: NASA's Deep Impact Mission
The NASA's Deep Impact Mission is used to teach collaborative decision making. This Starting Point Teaching Collection page describes the highly-developed unit plan involving collaborative problem solving using data. The subject is the launch of a probe to investigate the composition of a comet. The students will engage in quantitative risk analysis, role-playing, persuasive writing and speaking, and group decision-making procedures. The students will study the objectives and the risks of the pr
Cemetery Geology
This field exercise determines the susceptibility of different rocks to weathering, and, using the dates on the tombstones, estimates some weathering rates. Placing the field lab in context for use, this site describes the learning goals, teaching notes and materials, assessment recommendations, and provides links to other resources and references.
Cans and Can`ts of Teaching Evolution
This essay discusses what U.S. public school teachers are allowed to say about evolution and religious creation accounts. Eugenie Scott, the author, cites and describes the relevant legal cases that have been judged. The essay also contains links to other essays on the topic of teaching evolution in public schools.
Heisenberg Uncertainty Principle, The: A Video Opera
'The Heisenberg Uncertainty Principle' is divided into several distinct sections, the contents of which are described as follow: Act 1: The Gloria: Nature scenes accompanied by opera punctuated by flashes of city scenes, followed by shots of city landscapes; Interlude 1: Computer graphic shots of sexless bodies; Act 2: Pursuit for Plastic: Children play among ruins, accompanied by a score of children singing; two boys push and shove before one of the boys runs off into a field; Interlude 2: Comp
Anges Rebelles, Les
"In six minutes, a conjuring trick combining special effects and the magic of painting enables us to enter the world of Jacques Brissot. It is a visual poem that humorously recounts the building of a collage inspired from artist Peter Breugel's 'La Chute des Anges Rebelles.'" Artist Jacques Brissot is shown adding to and retouching a large-scale collage work, lending insight into his compositional choices and his techniques and methods. Music is by Michel Arich, with Barney Wilen playing saxopho
Galactic Inquiry
In this inquiry activity, students view NASA images of galaxies and develop a galaxy classification scheme. Students then compare and contrast their classification scheme with that developed by Edwin Hubble.
Digital Images: From Satellites to the Internet
Students will learn about digital images and how satellites orbiting Earth send information and pictures to Earth over the Internet.
KiteModeler
KiteModeler was developed in an effort to foster hands-on, inquiry-based learning in science and math. KiteModeler is a simulator that models the design, trimming, and flight of a kite. The program works in three modes: Design Mode, Trim Mode, or Flight Mode. In the Design Mode (shown below), you pick from five basic types of kite designs. You can then change design variables including the length and width of various sections of the kite. You can also select different materials for each componen
For Kids Only: Earth Science and Technology Enterprise
This site helps students learn about aerosols, ozone, air pressure, tropical rainfall and hurricanes, plate tectonics, earth science careers, and more.
Earth from Space
This site presents selected photos of features and processes of the earth, including cities, as seen by astronauts from space. Photos are from the NASA Space Shuttle Earth Observations Photography database, which contains more than 375,000 images.
Chandra X-ray Observatory
features news and information about NASA's newest space telescope. As the world's most powerful X-rayobservatory, Chandra joins the Hubble Space Telescope and NASA's other observatories in a study of our universe, providing insights into the universe's structure and evolution. Visitors can track Chandra in orbit, watch live images from NASA-TV, and learn more about prior shuttle launch preparations.
Cosmology 101
This is is a primer on scientific efforts to understand the origin, evolution, and fate of the universe. Among the questions it explores: What types of matter and energy fill the universe? What is the age and shape of the universe? How rapidly is it expanding? The website examines the Big Bang theory, as well as tests and limitations of the theory.
Building a Winogradsky Column: An Educator Guide with Activities in Astrobiology
This 27-page educator guide is a NASA Quest resource about Microbial Ecology and related Astrobiology activities. Students will construct a Winogradsky Column to observe the growth of microbes in a column of mud. During this investigation students will develop a hypothesis, record their observations and results, and form conclusions. They will compare and contrast their methods during the investigation with those of the astrobiologists performing research in the field and the laboratory. It incl
Rio Tinto Images
This collection of images highlights the Rio Tinto area of Spain, specifically where the NASA Mars Analog Research and Technology Experiment (MARTE) took place. The site includes links to related news releases.
Solar Physics: The Sun Spot Cycle
This NASA website contains extensive information on sun spots and sun spot prediction. Users have access to several forms of graphical and numerical data such as sun spot numbers, the Maunder minimum, the Butterfly diagram, the Greenwich sunspot data and sun spot cycle predictions. The site also includes a wealth of information about the sun and NASA's ongoing sun research.
Social:Learn Introduction
An introduction to the Open University's social:learn project.
WolfQuest
Learn about wolf ecology by living the life of a wild wolf in Yellowstone National Park. Play alone or with friends in on-line multiplayer missions, explore the wilderness, hunt elk, and encounter stranger wolves in your quest to find a mate. Ultimately, your success will depend on forming a family pack, raising pups, and ensuring the survival of your pack. The WolfQuest experience goes beyond the game with an active online community where you can discuss the game with other players, chat with w
