The Scientific Method

The Scientific Method- Wesley Love- Presenter
A Universal Standard for Investigation

1. Observation
2. Question
3. Hypothesis
4. Method
5. Result
6. Conclusion

What is the Scientific Method?  - A tool of inquiry.
A logical serious of steps that allow you to move through the process.

Why is it important as a tool of investigation?
Ask a question-  do background research-  construct hypothesis - test with an experiment -analyze data and results  - hypothesis is true/false- REPORT RESULTS!

Questions to ask.
Control group? experimental group? why?

Step 1: "The Problem"
Step 2: Hypothesis   - an educated guess, intended explanation to the problem.
Step 3: Establish a "Method or Procedure"

• Make a logical series of steps to test hypothesis and these steps produce a controlled experiment
• Dependent variable happens based off of controlled variable. 
• Need to clearly define variables and steps taken
• Independent variable is the single issue you are examining.
• Controlled group V. Experimental group. 

Experiments should be reproducible!

Step 4: Forming "Conclusions"

• Negative conclusions- data does not support your original hypothesis
• Positive conclusion- the data strongly supports your original hypothesis.
• Summarize and evaluate your experiment. What would you do differently?
• Suggest changes in the experimental procedure? Errors?
• Random error- data results move around randomly- hard to eliminate. 

Definitions of Sustainability

1. To keep in existence; maintain.
2. To supply with necessities or nourishment; provide for.
3. To support from below
4. To support the spirits, vitality, or resolution of; encourage.
5. To bear up under; withstand: 
6. To experience or suffer: 
7. To affirm the validity of: 
8. To prove or corroborate; confirm.

I interpret this diagram of sustainability to mean that there are many related components of sustainability. the diagram is based off of three main ideas; economic, social and environmental. These ideas are all related and share commons ideas such as equity, bearability, and viability and when we combine all of these elements we get sustainability. Sustainability I think is best  defined as "creating an economic system that provides for quality of life while renewing the environment and its resources. A sustainable community is one that resembles a living system where all of the resources (human, natural, and economic) are renewed and in balance for perpetuity." 

Classroom Science: Using simulations in the classroom

I really enjoyed reading the article (Gates, Nikkel, & Eastham. 2017.) that explained the many ways to incorporate science simulations in the classroom. Studies have shown that student should not just be learning science, but instead, should be doing science. I thought this was a really great point to show the important role of students planning and carrying out investigations to gather data and analyze. Science class should be hands on labs and experiments, not only reading from a science text book. Inquiry based learning is crucial for student learning and retention.

Online simulations can be used in classes that do not have a large lab space. I think I would use science simulations mostly for introducing a topic. The simulations would allow them the chance to play around with the new topic and explore to gain a basic understanding. The simulations can then be used to start a discussion which can lead into explaining and exploring the subject more.

Gates, Nikkel, & Eastham. 2017. Using online simulations to support the ngss in middle school classrooms. California classroom science. California science teachers association.
http://www.classroomscience.org/using-online-simulations-to-support-the-ngss-in-middle-school-classrooms

Climate Change

Dr. Eddielstein, Prof at Ramapo College- Head of Environmental Studies

Since WWII we have symmatically destroyed our environment.

How do we create a world were not destroying and help future generations?

Climate Change is most serious issue we currently face. The earth will not be destroyed, but its habitability will be.

Schizoid-nature of the world we live in because we don't face reality, Governmental figures making repairing this issue impossible with the current administration. Climate Change information were taken off the White House's website and many scientist are being re-assigned and pushed out of their field. Agencies will need to be rebuilt without their senior officers and scientists.  FEMA/ Coast guard funds are being cut in times of extreme weather.

"The further you go the less returnable."

"We are making Earth inhabitable and setting off chains of events that will make it even more inhabitable. "

How to teach in a time of alternative facts?...
-Careful how we accumulate these facts, teach facts.
-

·         IPCC- United Nations’ Meta Study that asked scientist to evaluation all C.C. research and try to find if they match or converge. They found they fit together and we have entered a new geometric pattern called Anthropocene age beginning (the real climate change).

o   The Gya Hypothesis. Lovelock showed for the first time that we are dealing with a earth that is cybernetic, self- directing system.  What is a system??

·         Inputs from the environments, thruputs, outputs into the environment.

·         The Earth is finite, limit-system and act accordingly.

·         1800’s-go west- infinite land, accommodations, resources

o   See things differently when you live on an island.

·         Ecological Footprint Test- Living on earth as if we have two of them.

o   Clean air, food, resources scarcity.

o   Systems are connecting to and affects everything else- no isolation.

o   All institutions are misbehaving and based off it being bigger than it is.

o   Pope Francis- U.N. speech encyclical- our moral responsibility to take care of others on earth. Very few accumulate all the wealth/resources. 

·         Open vs. Closed systems.

·         The body is an open system.

·         The earth is a closed system as well as an open system.

·         Matter/ energy

o   Matter is anything that takes up space. Earth closed system with matter, except asteroids.

o   Energy is anything that allows work. Earth is an open system with energy, the SUN!

“One hour of sunlight provides the earth with enough energy for a year!”

Mostly using fossil fuels instead of renewable energy-the sun.

1^st Law of Conservation of Matter- Cannot be created or destroyed only converted.

2^nd law- Entropy- energy moves towards disorganization. Energy becomes useful and pollutes the environment.

Al Gore’s the Inconspicuous Truth 1995-

The correlation between greenhouse gases and temperature. The role of educator and public service.

Must we Change? Can we change? Will we change?

The boundary of space is a tiny atmosphere. Troposphere and stratosphere. They work together in a simple way because of gravity and things that are light enough to float. A movement of gases. Ultraviolet rays hit the earth and heat it. Darker colors warm up/absorb more and lighter colors reflect the light. The poles have a lighter albedo in cool temps and higher albedo in high temps (reflective properties).

Carbon dioxide creates a blanket in the atmosphere. Carbon dioxide is caused by burning things. The Albedo is effected because there is less reflection. Most of the earth is wearing “a black shirt”. Rising Cardo dioxide and less reflectivity.  Less heat escaping and less reflectivity. Causes melting snow (movie chasing ice) less albedo more in ocean which absorbs sunlight and ultraviolet, warmer is gets. The artic is melting, drilling companies want to start drilling. Positive feedback loop ( causes more to happen)- but very negative for us.

Composting- Bacteria and animals break down waste.

Biproducts = heat and gas

Thawing Permafrost- frozen ground that is melting. Permafrost means the ground is frozen all year long. Alaska oil pipelines is a pipeline that allows us not to rely on tankers. The pipeline is sinking. Repairs can only be done when the ground is frozen. Underneath is decayed fossils and their gases have been stuck underneath.

Surface temp goes up and burning of fossil fuels goes up.  Correlated

Sources of greenhouse gases:

·         Coal mining, coal plants, fertilization, transportation, landfills and oil production.

Loosing predictability to weather patterns

Population doubles around every 34 years?

Earth is like a balloon you keep putting more and more air into…

2016 was the hottest year ever measured.

Scientific Me

             Throughout school, science has always been my least favorite subject. This isn’t because I didn’t find it interesting or enjoy learning about it, but because I was mostly afraid of it. The other subjects in school came more naturally to me. I think this is because I found that the other subjects were based on previous things we have learned and that I had mastered, and then building off that. But when it came to topics in science such as chemistry or physics I found myself more of memorizing information or equations rather than really understanding them. Now that I look back at it, I always made science seem harder than the information really was. This kind of thinking put a blockade around mastering the information in my mind and from allowing me to enough science.

 The only part I recall liking about science in my earlier years was the interactive elements and activities we did in science. This is how all the information I was being taught that I wasn’t fully understanding would could to life, and how I would finally grasp the material. I always really enjoyed the lab part of my science classes and the experiments that went along with them. I am a Kinesthetic Learning when it comes to science, which is learning that takes place by carrying out physical activities, rather than listening to a lecture. I always enjoyed doing projects in science and it would only be after the lab or projects that the information all made sense to me. For example I remember learning about the cell and all of its parts in the 3^rd grade. When originally presented with the material, I remember memorizing all of the structures within the cell and their functions. But when I would make a diagram of a cell with all of its structures, that’s when it really would connect for me. This is when I found myself no longer being as frustrated with science because I knew now if I made models or diagrams of what I was learning that is how I would finally fully understand the material.  

In high school I really started understanding and enjoying science. I think because in high school science started being taught in a different way to me.  My sophomore biology teacher had a really great way of explaining things and she wouldn’t just write information on the board. She would have us get up and act out or represent different ideas. I felt like when I had to act out something I had to pay more attention so I could know what I had to do next. These activities and way of teaching really helped me. It both brought down that barrier I had put for myself about thinking I’ll never be good at science and really engaged me and made me want to learn more. This is when I really started to fall in love with science. To me science is understanding and interacting with your environment. This includes everything your environment is made of and how this came to be.  I think science needs to come to life and isn’t something that should just be read out of a textbook.

When I teach Science I am going to have a lot of activities and projects because I feel the best way to learn science is the hands on approach. I will also present information many different ways because there are many different way being learn, not everyone learns by just writing information on the board.