To better understand the role of mass and gravity in the formation …
To better understand the role of mass and gravity in the formation and existence of black holes we will model the collapse of a star into a black hole using aluminum foil. Along the way students will measure the decreasing circumference, and constant mass of their star as it collapses.
A bungee jump involves jumping from a tall structure while connected to …
A bungee jump involves jumping from a tall structure while connected to a large elastic cord. Design a bungee jump that is "safe" for a hard-boiled egg. Create a safety egg harness and connect it to a rubber band, which is your the "bungee cord." Finally, attach your bungee cord to a force sensor to measures the forces that push or pull your egg.
Students create and decorate their own spectrographs using simple materials and holographic …
Students create and decorate their own spectrographs using simple materials and holographic diffraction gratings. A holographic diffraction grating acts like a prism, showing the visual components of light. After building the spectrographs, students observe the spectra of different light sources as homework.
A zip line is a way to glide from one point to another while hanging from a cable. Design and create a zip line that is safe for a hard-boiled egg. After designing a safety egg harness, connect the harness to fishing line or wire connected between two chairs of different heights using a paper clip. Learn to improve your zip line based on data. Attach a motion sensor at the bottom of your zip line and display a graph to show how smooth a ride your egg had!
How do you build a tunnel 32 miles long -- under water? …
How do you build a tunnel 32 miles long -- under water? This video segment adapted from Building Big, follows the construction of the Channel Tunnel (nicknamed "Chunnel"), the engineering wonder that connects England to France.
We are surrounded everyday by circuits that utilize "in parallel" and "in …
We are surrounded everyday by circuits that utilize "in parallel" and "in series" circuitry. Complicated circuits designed by engineers are made of many simpler parallel and series circuits. In this hands-on activity, students build parallel circuits, exploring how they function and their unique features.
This activity is a guided discovery where students gather information on how …
This activity is a guided discovery where students gather information on how to add a seat belt to a clay figure that is sitting on top of a toy car. The clay figure should stay in place when it hits a speed bump placed after a ramp.
Students conduct a simple experiment to see how the water level changes …
Students conduct a simple experiment to see how the water level changes in a beaker when a lump of clay sinks in the water and when the same lump of clay is shaped into a bowl that floats in the water. They notice that the floating clay displaces more water than the sinking clay does, perhaps a surprising result. Then they determine the mass of water that is displaced when the clay floats in the water. A comparison of this mass to the mass of the clay itself reveals that they are approximately the same.
This activity is a lab where students gather data on buoyant force …
This activity is a lab where students gather data on buoyant force and height of and object being submerged in two different types of fluids. The slope of the buoyant force and height is proportional to the density of the fluid. Students compare the densities of the fluids calculated with the actual densities.
Students bury various pieces of trash in a plotted area of land …
Students bury various pieces of trash in a plotted area of land outside. After two to three months, they uncover the trash to investigate what types of materials biodegrade in soil.
COSI Connects launches audiences of all ages into a universe of science …
COSI Connects launches audiences of all ages into a universe of science through online videos, activities, plus a free mobile app that enables science exploration even when offline. COSI Connects is helping to bridge the digital divide, promote digital literacy, and address critical science education needs simultaneously. This repository of activities and videos is for learners of all ages and is a great supplement to at-home learning or for use in the classroom.
Students will discover the terminal velocity to mass relationship and use this …
Students will discover the terminal velocity to mass relationship and use this information to calculate the air resistance constant. They will evaluate the accuracy of their lab using the Monte Carlo method.
This activity is a project-based inquiry where students design and create a …
This activity is a project-based inquiry where students design and create a machine to complete a task. Then students will be asked to calculate velocities, kinetic energy and potential energies of various parts of their machine.
This online game activity allows the learners to calculate their carbon footprint …
This online game activity allows the learners to calculate their carbon footprint using a French language calculator developed by a Swiss environmental organization. Students will describe their results in French and engage in related expansion activities for the language class.
This activity is a chance for students to apply the diffraction grating …
This activity is a chance for students to apply the diffraction grating equation m*Λ/d = Θ to solve a real life problem: find the wavelength of given source of light. It is also useful for them to apply trigonometry to real life scenarios.
Students apply their knowledge of linear regression and design to solve a …
Students apply their knowledge of linear regression and design to solve a real-world challenge to create a better packing solution for shipping cell phones. They use different materials, such as cardboard, fabric, plastic, and rubber bands to create new “composite material” packaging containers. Teams each create four prototypes made of the same materials and constructed in the same way, with the only difference being their weights, so each one is fabricated with a different amount of material. They test the three heavier prototype packages by dropping them from different heights to see how well they protect a piece of glass inside (similar in size to iPhone 6). Then students use linear regression to predict from what height they can drop the fourth/final prototype of known mass without the “phone” breaking. Success is not breaking the glass but not underestimating the height by too much either, which means using math to accurately predict the optimum drop height.
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