summer science

Summer is great for exploring! Whether it's geology or biology, ecology or astronomy, we can learn science in our travels or right in our own backyards. What did you learn this summer?

environmental debates coming in March!

Wind Power

Is wind the alternative source of energy for the 21st century?

Aquaculture

 Should fish farms feed a hungry planet?



Wolves

Should wolves be reintroduced to the Northeast?

 Fossil Fuels vs. Nuclear Energy

Should we shift to nuclear energy for our growing power needs?

The Arctic National Wildlife Refuge

Should we drill for oil in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge? 

phase changes

Your assignment is to watch the video below and then answer the questions in the form below the video.
You must include your name in all 3 responses (first name only); then hit submit.

imploding can

Your assignment:
1. watch the video
2. scroll down, under the video and read the instructions
3. answer the question in the form, sign your first name only, and hit submit!
4. you' re done.

play with a purpose...

Eighth graders discover the properties of a curious substance...

Welcome to the 2010- 2011 school year!

Welcome to a place for news, reactions and opinions! This year I will be posting articles about science in the news -- astronomy, biology, botany, chemistry, environmental science, geology, medicine, physics, technology, and more! You will be expected to contribute to our online discussion here through posts and comments on the news articles. Don't worry! It's easy and fun to do and we'll go through the process together so that everyone will be comfortable joining in.
This is the first article I'd like you to read: (click on the highlighted title below)
Gulf Surface Oil Vanishing Quickly



Directly below you will find a form to fill in. Please use your first name and last initial, then answer the question in the form, then click submit. I am the only one who will see your answer; it will not be displayed on the blog.

end of the road trip

The fuzzy pink line shows my route across the Gulf Coast. (click to enlarge) I found evidence of the oil spill as far as the easternmost point of my trip.

I’m a science teacher. The purpose of this trip was to document whatever I could find of the aftermath of the spill to bring back to my students. The effects are ongoing though, so aftermath isn’t really accurate. It’s not over.

I knew that Louisiana was the hardest hit so I flew into New Orleans, rented a car, and drove along the coasts of eastern Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and the upper Florida panhandle. I stuck to the beaches mainly for ease of access, since there are roads running the entire length of the coastline. To get into the marshes and bayous was problematic without a boat, but those fragile ecosystems have been affected as well and probably with more devastating long term results since they are the nurseries for all of the marine life in the Gulf of Mexico. I’ve tried to make observations without editorializing and I wanted to provide evidence for any conclusions that I might have come to along the way. I’m not sure what my students will say when I ask them what they think about the spill. I don’t know what they’ve read or heard or watched. I don’t know if it’s even current enough anymore for it to be on their minds, but it’s been on mine for the last 129 days since the explosion on April 20th, and as the event continues to unfold in the many ways it will, I plan to bring it into my classroom.

A number of sources of further information about the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill are below:

The Encyclopedia of Earth
British Petroleum (BP)
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)
Restore the Gulf
Google Crisis Response Oil Spill (excellent Google Earth maps here)

Tar & Oil: Destin, Florida

Destin was my last stop on the Gulf Coast. These three videos show the increasing amounts of oil and tar as I walked from east to west.

Destin, Florida

Last stop on the drive east was Destin, Florida. The water was clear, emerald green and blue. There were tar balls of varying sizes and the layers of sand that were oil stained were obvious as well. The summer june grass invasion that blankets the water in large vegetative mats was over but there were places where buried plants were clogged and clumped together with oil and stuck in the sand in long horizontal deposits. I saw birds, crabs and even dolphins, but only a few people were on the beach and no one was swimming.
Destin on PhotoPeach

Corexit

The dispersant used in the Gulf of Mexico is called Corexit. I took the photos you see above and below on Destin Beach, Florida on August 26, 2010.

In an AlterNet.org blog post from July, there is a photograph showing what Corexit looks like when it washes up on the beach.

Susan Shaw, in a TED Talk, discusses the use of Corexit and its impacts on marine life.