IOL: InterOperability Lab
The University of New Hampshire has compiled this excellent collection of resources on networking and computer technology. Over twenty categories are represented, including emerging technologies such as 10 Gigabit Ethernet, Very high rate Digital Subscriber Line (VDSL), and wireless standards. Many of the resources are papers or tutorials written by researchers at the UNH InterOperability Lab, while others are links to various academic and industry efforts. The site is suitable for a broad audie
Coalbed Methane
The US Department of Interior Web site offers a hot topics section that currently includes information about coalbed methane. The links include a fact sheet entitled "Coalbed Methane--An Untapped Energy Resource and an Environmental Concern." A documents link takes visitors to a page maintained by Wyoming's Bureau of Land Management that contains several reports related to the topic, including information about Atlantic Rim Coalbed Methane Projects and Coalbed Methane and Water Monitor Well Data
Digging into Minnesota Minerals
The Digging into Minnesota Minerals Web site is part of the larger Minnesota State Department of Natural Resources site. These fun and interesting pages explain how Minnesota came to acquire its most common minerals over geologic time, what the basic types of rocks are, mining history of the state, the geology found in state parks, and much more. Included are basic descriptions, photographs, illustrations, and even educational activities for teachers related to the minerals. This well-designed s
American Society of International Law: Wildlife Interest Group
"The purpose of the American Society of International Law's Wildlife Interest Group is to contribute to the objective of conserving endangered wildlife species by helping to strengthen international wildlife treaty regimes, regional accords and national legislation that implements international treaty regimes." The site focuses on scholarly reports and publications, available online for members and non-members alike. Two potentially useful resources are a link to the annual International Wildlif
New York State Ambient Air Monitoring System
The Ambient Air Monitoring System: Near Real Time Data Web site is presented by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation. The collected data includes pollutants such as sulfur dioxide, ozone, carbon monoxide, and methane among others, as well as all common meteorological data. Records are collected and reported hourly, and can be viewed by parameter or by station, which are located throughout the state. One other interesting link gives the current air quality index for each si
Tutorial on Balancing Equations
Dr. Yue-Ling Wong of the Wake Forest University Computer Science Department maintains the online Tutorial on Balancing Equations. Students interactively get to choose the types of atoms in a methane, ethane, propane, and ethanol equation; enter the atom counts for the equation and the product; and then attempt to balance the equation. The program tells you if you are right or wrong and gives the right answers whenever you request them. Twelve other more advance chemical equations are available a
EuroHaptics 2003
Haptics is the science of incorporating touch and physical stimuli into computer applications. A haptics interface can allow the user to feel responses from a program, thereby providing an additional level of perception in a virtual environment, for example. This site hosts the proceedings of the 2003 EuroHaptics conference. Over 30 papers and several more poster presentations are available, spanning the areas of interaction, hardware, algorithms, and psychophysics. Proceedings of the 2001 and 2
Enviro-Science e-Print Service
The Enviro-Science e-Print Service Web site is a project of the US Department of Energy's Environmental Management Science Program and the EPA Office of Research and Development. The service provides free access to unpublished manuscripts, conference papers, presentations, posters, and selected technical reports in environmental management science. Examples include "A New Class of Solvents For True Dissolution and Separation: Ionic Liquids," "Acid-Base Behavior in Hydrothermal Processing of Wast
Cicadas
The spring season marks the long-awaited arrival of the Magicicada Brood X periodical cicadas. The Magicicada cicadas are emerging in great numbers after spending 17 years underground. The following websites offer information about the periodical cicadas, and other cicadas as well. The first (1) site, from the University of Michigan's Museum of Zoology, provides a variety of short information entries about periodical cicadas including photos, and song clips. Hosted by the College of Mount St. Jo
Java Digital Signal Processing Editor
Professor Andreas Spanias of Arizona State University has supervised the development of this online digital signal processing (DSP) system simulation utility. This utility has many functions that allow the user to generate various signals, create filters, and analyze the responses. Other functions include Fourier Transforms, convolution, autocorrelation, and several speech processing tools. The interface is well designed and easy to use, and there are plenty of examples and documentation. Howeve
NOAA Coastwatch Great Lakes Node
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's (NOAA) CoastWatch program provides near real-time satellite observations and in-situ Great Lakes data. Visitors can view AVHRR imagery, contour maps, GOES imagery, and other Great Lakes data imagery. The website offers data on the physical characteristics of the Great Lakes as well as data on the average surface water temperature and current and historic water levels. QuickTime movies illustrate changes in water temperature throughout a given
Earth Science Australia
Earth Science Australia, a site maintained by students and teachers, offers a wide array of quality online science material. The Rocks and Minerals page contains information on the rock cycle, the percent crustal abundance of the common elements, the definition of a mineral, igneous rock facts, types of magma, Bowen's reaction series, sedimentary rock facts, rock formation animations, rock photographs, rock deformation and metamorphic rock information, and much more. Each page contains text, ani
Protect Those Eyes
Students design and build prototypes for protective eyewear. They choose different activities or sports that require protective eyewear and design a device for that particular use. Students learn about the many ways in which the eyes can be damaged and how engineers incorporate different features and materials into eyewear designs to best protect the eyes.
Solar System!
An introduction to our solar system: the planets, our Sun and our Moon. Students begin by learning the history and engineering of space travel. They make simple rockets to acquire a basic understanding Newton’s third law of motion. They explore energy transfer concepts and use renewable solar energy for cooking. They see how engineers design tools, equipment and spacecraft to go where it is too far and too dangerous for humans. They explore the Earth’s water cycle, and gravity as applied to
Bouncing Balls
Students examine how different balls react when colliding with different surfaces, giving plenty of opportunity for them to see the difference between elastic and inelastic collisions, learn how to calculate momentum, and understand the principle of conservation of momentum.
Energy Perspectives
Students utilize data tables culled from the US DOE Energy Information Agency to create graphs that illustrate what types of energy we use and how we use it. An MS Excel workbook with several spreadsheets of data is provided. Students pick (or the teacher assigns) one of the data tables for the students to create a plot from and interpret the information provided. Each student group shares their interpretation and new perspectives on energy resources and use with the class.
Yeast Cells Respire, Too (But Not Like Me and You)
Students set up a simple way to indirectly observe and quantify the amount of respiration occurring in yeast-molasses cultures. Each student adds a small amount of baking yeast to a test tube filled with diluted molasses. A second, smaller test tube is then placed upside-down inside the solution. As the yeast cells respire, the carbon dioxide they produce is trapped inside the inverted test tube, producing a growing bubble of gas that is easily observed and measured. Students are presented with
Spring Away!
This lab demonstrates Hooke’s Law with the use of springs and masses. The students attempt to determine the proportionality constant, or k-value, for a spring. The students do this by calculating the change in length of the spring as different masses are added to it. The concept of a springs elastic limit is also introduced, and the students must test to makes sure the spring’s elastic limit has not be reached during their tests in the lab. After compiling all of their data, they attempt to
Designing a Thermostat
Students investigate circuits and their components by building a basic thermostat. They learn why key parts are necessary for the circuit to function, and alter the circuit to optimize the thermostat temperature range. They also gain an awareness of how electrical engineers design circuits for the countless electronic products in our world.
Topo Triangulation
In this activity, students will learn how to read a topographical map and how to triangulate with just a map. True triangulation requires both a map and compass, but to simplify the activity and make it possible indoors, the compass information is given. Students will practice converting a compass measurement to a protractor measurement, as well as reverse a bearing direction (i.e., if they know a tree’s bearing is 100 degrees from you, they can determine what bearing they are from the tree).
