Tag: NEWS

International Space Relations

In the 1960s, it was every child’s dream to be an astronaut. This was the age of the space race, or who would get into orbit and to the moon first. Of course, Russia beat America in getting into space, but we beat Russia in getting to the moon. With the International Space Station, it […]

InternationalRelationsinSpace_52f104453d20cIn the 1960s, it was every child’s dream to be an astronaut. This was the age of the space race, or who would get into orbit and to the moon first. Of course, Russia beat America in getting into space, but we beat Russia in getting to the moon. With the International Space Station, it has become less of a competition against one another and more of a cooperation to gather knowledge.

This infographic gives information on the space race, relations between various nations since the moon landing, and little tidbits that are just interesting. Share this with your students, and discuss the future of the space program. John F. Kennedy said that America would reach the moon by the end of the 1960s, which came true with a few months to spare. What do your students think will be next? Ask for a timeline on the future of space travel with support for their guestimations.

Blog: http://visual.ly/international-relations-space

Timeline of the Far Future

The good news shared by this infographic is that Earth should still be around for at least another one hundred quintillion years, at which point everything that is not biodegradable will be destroyed, although this infographic does mention even the decay of titanium in laptops. But this infographic goes into many more details that lead […]

timeline-of-the-far-future_52d481e19c764The good news shared by this infographic is that Earth should still be around for at least another one hundred quintillion years, at which point everything that is not biodegradable will be destroyed, although this infographic does mention even the decay of titanium in laptops. But this infographic goes into many more details that lead to the destruction of the Earth.

The first two points on the timeline involve civilization collapse versus continuance. It gives us a timeframe for when buildings will collapse, and when vocabulary will be changed. The timeline continues to changes in the solar system and the galaxy even what can be seen with the naked eye. It also involves global changes, including global warming, Earth’s tilt.

There are several questions that arise from this infographic. First, what data supports this? We have all heard the theories of global warming, and that it is inevitable, but has man made it come sooner. In addition to this, there is the questions of Earth’s tilt, would this occur suddenly and be catastrophic, or would people most likely migrate over thousands of generations and not notice these global changes?

Blog: http://visual.ly/timeline-far-future

DNA Explained

This short video on DNA is an overview of the details of what DNA is, and what can be done with it. The video goes from explaining the correlation of DNA and genetic material, to comparing it with other living things, to Genetically Modified Organisms. While GMOs are a very controversial subject, this video simply […]

This short video on DNA is an overview of the details of what DNA is, and what can be done with it. The video goes from explaining the correlation of DNA and genetic material, to comparing it with other living things, to Genetically Modified Organisms. While GMOs are a very controversial subject, this video simply gives the positives of what may be accomplished, and the negatives of the unknown.

This video would be a great opening to a segment on DNA, or more specifically on GMOs. This video is about as unbiased as possible, giving the potential positives and negatives of GMOs. A great activity would be to divide your class into pro and anti GMO, ignoring personal feelings of your students. Have your students gather information in support of or against research into GMOs, and debate whether it should be continued, and if so, how. While this may not help lead to students changing sides, it will lead to more knowledgable students.

Blog: http://visual.ly/dna-explained

World’s Worst Session Title

It is with enormous pleasure that I will be part of the American School of Bombay’s 2014 Un-Plugged event in Mumbai, India.  It is also an even bigger privilege to be working with International educators again.  I’ve said many times that if I was in the beginning of my career, this is where I would be, expat’ing in some exotic land, making great friends, teaching great students and growing in educational institutions where innovation is part of the currency of success.

Even though my workshop, on Friday and Saturday, will be about visual literacy, and contemporary literacy will be part of the underlying theme of the day, this workshop will primarily and overwhelmingly be about something that I believe is the

Coolest thing on the Net,

Infographics and Data Visualization

Of course this, and most all of what we do in our classrooms concerns basic literacy, “The skills involved in using one’s information environment to learn what you need to know to do what you need to do.” (my definition)

As a teaser, here are two word clouds.  The first is taken from the descriptions of ASB Un-Plugged pre conference and hands-on workshops from 2012.  The second comes from the same category of sessions to be held next week in Mumbai.

2012 Preconference & Hands-On Workshop

2014 Preconference & Hands-On Workshop

Of course, this is a small sampling of the themes that are part of the conversations hosted by the American School of Bombay.  However I found a couple of things interesting.  First of all, might it be that we are finally getting over this whole 21st Century craze.  After all, we’re good and there.  Also, design seems a little more prominent and create and maker/making have emerged.

I’m so looking forward to next week and counting on the journey being less challenging than last week.

The Physics of Santa Claus

Luckily for children everywhere, a group of physicists believe Santa is real, and have worked out how he is capable of giving toys to children around the world. They deal with the issue of his bag, seeing millions of children, if not a billion, children on a single night, and of course making all his […]

they-physics-of-santa-claus_52ba4c0bb950c_w1500.pngLuckily for children everywhere, a group of physicists believe Santa is real, and have worked out how he is capable of giving toys to children around the world. They deal with the issue of his bag, seeing millions of children, if not a billion, children on a single night, and of course making all his toys.

Wormholes, relativity, and an ever moving North Pole are the answers to these questions, and a great opener to these subjects in an introductory physics class. While many of the answers are theories, it is important to remember that ideas such as gravity were also once simple theories.

Blog: http://visual.ly/physics-santa-claus

Winter Storms

The weather is an area of science that has only recently been fully understood. For centuries, people have known the difference between rain and snow, have recognized the change in temperature throughout the year, and have even realized the impact of air pressure on weather. However, only since modern satellites and other weather surveillance has […]

WinterStormsbyWeatherUnderground_52aa95fb5aa0dThe weather is an area of science that has only recently been fully understood. For centuries, people have known the difference between rain and snow, have recognized the change in temperature throughout the year, and have even realized the impact of air pressure on weather. However, only since modern satellites and other weather surveillance has the ability to predict the weather and further understand it been made possible.

This infographic goes into some of the advanced information on weather patters, specifically winter storms. Arguably, winter storms can be some of the most destructive due to the period of time their effects reside. Hurricanes are very destructive as well, and especially on islands can cause a great deal of destruction, however, the affects of winter storms (the snow and ice) can last for days if not weeks, while the affects of other storms (rain and wind), only last for a matter of hours. For this reason, it takes longer to be able to recover from such a storm.

What do your students think about this statement? What have they learned from this infographic?

Blog: http://visual.ly/winter-storms

A Perspective of Time

In history, perspective is very important. It is important to realize that our lives take up a very small portion of time, and even modern era, no matter when historians put the beginning of modern time, is a very small portion of time. However, in that time, many significant events have occurred. Have your students […]

APerspectiveonTime_526027e81ba41In history, perspective is very important. It is important to realize that our lives take up a very small portion of time, and even modern era, no matter when historians put the beginning of modern time, is a very small portion of time. However, in that time, many significant events have occurred.

Have your students brainstorm some of the most significant events in all of history that have helped create life as it is today. Do your students only think back as far as cell phones, or maybe the personal computer, do they go beyond to the colonization and later independence of America, or even further to early theorists such as Aristotle. Do they recognize the events that had to have occurred in order to for America to be colonized, and then for computers to be handheld?

Blog: http://visual.ly/perspective-time

What are the Odds?

What are the odds that you exist? No doubt this is something few people have thought about, but according to this infographic, the odds are 0. Luckily, this world has you, and hopefully luckily, the world has every one of your students. In teaching odds, this would be an interesting infographic to share. Beginning with […]

what-are-the-odds_50290d9b95578What are the odds that you exist? No doubt this is something few people have thought about, but according to this infographic, the odds are 0. Luckily, this world has you, and hopefully luckily, the world has every one of your students. In teaching odds, this would be an interesting infographic to share.

Beginning with the chances of your parents meeting the odds are increasingly less likely. Then, once your parents have met, the infographic goes into the odds of a specific egg and sperm meetings (this infographic may be reserved for only the most mature of students), and creating you. On top of this, as this infographic shares, your existence is dependent upon not only these events, but these events occurring for every one of your ancestors.

Dealing with odds, exponents, and other various mathematics, this would be a great infographic for the math classroom. Share this infographic with your students, and hopefully they will realize how lucky they are. And hopefully this feeling of luck will make them want to learn more, rather than live a crazier life.

Blog: http://visual.ly/what-are-odds

The Whizzpopping World of Roald Dahl

Roald Dahl had quite an imagination. Reading through this list of books that Dahl wrote, it would be interesting to see what was going through his brain. What this infographic also shares is the inspiration behind his book, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, and some facts related to his book, James and the Giant Peach. Choose a […]

Roald Dahl had quite an imagination. Reading through this list of books that Dahl wrote, it would be interesting to see what was going through his brain. What this infographic also shares is the inspiration behind his book, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, and some facts related to his book, James and the Giant Peach.

Choose a book that you are reading, or a favorite of a student, and try to find out the inspiration for the book. Is it based on an event, something that happened in to the author, or something they wish would happen? Using math and science, try to discover something factual about a book. How far do they travel in the Lord of the Rings?

Create an infographic based on this data, especially information discovered by science and math. This infographic shows the heigh of Roald Dahl next to his giant peach.

Blog: http://visual.ly/whizzpopping-world-roald-dahl

Five Ways to Clean Up Space Junk

As you and your students may be able to imagine, our planet is filled with trash. Most of what we consume today is considered not to be used more than a few times, and so we throw it in a trash can and then put it on the street for the trash men to take […]

5 Ways to Clean Up Space Junk | Visual.lyAs you and your students may be able to imagine, our planet is filled with trash. Most of what we consume today is considered not to be used more than a few times, and so we throw it in a trash can and then put it on the street for the trash men to take it far away from us. Unfortunately, this is not the whole truth, it ends up in our quickly filling land fills.

But we do not only occupy this planet. For the past fifty or so years we, or things we have made, have also occupied outer space. Some of these items have been brought back, others have been destroyed reentering our atmosphere. But many are still floating in outer space. And even the tiniest object can cause major damage. Have you students imagine sand being thrown at them. Then imagine it being thrown at you at around 17,000 mph, the average speed of a space craft in low orbit. It can cause a lot of damage to you, or to a space craft.

This infographic goes through various methods being explored and tested to help clean up this debris. From giant fish nets to lasers, there are a variety of ways being explored to make space safe for continued exploration. Have you students discuss the merits of each method, and be able to defend what they think is the best method.

Blog: http://visual.ly/5-ways-clean-space-junk