The Puppets...Go Colonial

constitutional convention group project
carlisi
4b honors government and economics
dani-elle, sana, ritu, harika, deepa, loka

"the puppets...go colonial"
guys: this better be okay, because i stayed up for hours doing it!

Water Adventures

The other day in class, Ms. Nietsky [spelling??] came in to complete an activity with us about the water cycle. We were first given cards with either cloud [small cup] or evaporation [spoon]. The people with spoons went around evaporating water from one reservoir to another as indicated on the card. The people with small cups walked around, and if a person with a spoon ran into them, the spoon was emptied into the cloud. Once the clouds were filled up, they "rained" into the reservoir specified by the card. After the first round was completed, results indicated an even system of water distribution. For the second round, some people were given cards for people [big cups]. The round went the same as the first, but the people with big cups removed water from the reservoirs and dumped it into new reservoirs put in place by people, such as agriculture, residential, and industry. There were some floods and droughts in this round due to uneven water circulation. For the third and final round, everything went the same as the second round, only a drop or two of blue food coloring was added to the industry and agriculture reservoirs to represent pollution in the water cycle. When the round was over, results were similar to those in the previous round except for blue coloring in every single reservoir, even residential [people]! This last round demonstrated how pollution generated in industry and agriculture affects the rest of the world's water. Here I found an animated diagram that illustrates just what the first round of this activity did. I learned from that site how the water cycle moves. From this site, I learned that the water cycle is also known as the hydrolic cycle and that there is no start or end point to the water cycle. This activity was a great way to demonstrate the movement of water and the effects of pollution on the rest of the world's water, even us! It makes you think about what is really in your body these days.

iAm an iMovie Star!

In science class, we recently wrote, recorded, and edited our own iMovies on specific assigned energy topics. I collaborated with colourfuly and CuddlyBear to create an iMovie about Wind Energy. You can find it here. We had to learn about wind energy and wind farms in order to create this movie. Wind power plants are called wind farms. Did you know that wind energy has been used for over 5,000 years? Or that it is used to power many, many, MANY things today, including TVs? Well, here I found an invention that actually can store wind energy for use in charging iPods, PDAs, cell phones, and more. While here, building of windmill turbines in Texas is actually quite controversial. Some people actually don't want windmills being built. I personally think that windmills are a great way to cut down on our use of oil and other natural gases that can't be replaced. Once they're gone, they're GONE. But wind will be here forever.

Culture and Technology--Social Studies

Over the past 30 years, many things have been invented and innovations have been made. However, I feel that the one advancement in technology that has made the greatest impact on society would be car airbags. They may not seem like much, but they save hundreds of thousands of lives. Before car airbags, the force of a crash would drive the driver and most passengers into the windshield, most being killed. After car airbags were invented, the driver and passengers were held back in their seats, while the airbags absorbed much of the force of the crash. People still die from car crashes even with airbags, but the rate has dramatically decreased since the invention of the airbag. This is one invention that makes us stop and consider how much more dangerous and different driving would be without them. Today, airbags are standard in cars and are lifesavers in millions of crashes around the world.

Popping Fun

Recently in science class, we studied physical and chemical properties and physical and chemical changes. To reinforce this new knowledge, we completed a lab called Popping Fun. We were split into six groups. Each group had a beaker of vinegar, a beaker of baking soda, a test tube, and a graduated cylinder. The groups had to try to create the right combination of vinegar and baking soda that would create enough carbon dioxide to pop the cork off of the test tube. My group just couldn't seem to get the right combination, but finally the cork popped 600+ meters! We were so happy because our first ten trials didn't work. Here a similar experiment is described in which vinegar and baking soda are combined to make a volcano "erupt." In both the Popping Fun lab and the volcano experiment, new products are created. When new products are created, it is called a chemical change or a chemical reaction. There are many examples of everyday chemical reactions, such as cooking. Here many different kinds of chemical reactions are listed and described. This lab was a fun and interesting way to learn about chemical reactions we encounter every day.

Scientist Research

In science class, we're working on research for podcasts. The people we are researching are scientists both alive and deceased. I am working with colourfuly on a podcast about Dr. James D. Wright of Rutgers University. What we did first was to pick our partners. My partner, of course, was colourfuly. Then, we chose a slip of paper from a bin. If the paper had a ® on it, the scientist was a student or professor at Rutgers. This meant we were able to contact the person for an interview via email. Once colourfuly and I chose Dr. Wright, we emailed him with a list of questions. These questions included "Who was your role model as a child?" and "What specific class do you teach at Rutgers?" Dr. Wright responded promptly, and we have started to record our podcast. We've learned a lot about Dr. Wright's inspiration, role model, role in the scientific community, and background. This activity certainly provided some insight into the mind and life of a scientist.