15 April 2013 Feedback

With only days left in this deployment, I thought I would share some feedback with the not-so-subtle hint that feedback is encouraged.

In one of my first journals from Greenland, I tried to describe the colors in the glaciers and found my vocabulary woefully inadequate. Sarah, from PolarTREC, read the journal and connected me to glaciologist Allen Pope who uses the physics of color to better understand glaciers. His video is simply incredible:

vimeo.com/51589462

I’ve gotten great feedback from the interviews in the journals. Turns out readers are not just interested in the terrifically nerdy science; they want to know about the people behind the science. If you are a nerdy science-guy, like me, you are just as surprised as I am.

Lots of people e-mailed me about the interview with Christy Hansen. Here’s one in particular: ‘Your interview with Christy is FANTASTIC! You should show that every year to your classes. I especially like the value she places on drive and determination. It's not all about the grades.’ So I’m reposting that interview here.

Connecting through Skype and Google+ has gotten a lot of positive feedback. Yamini Bala, a teacher at Pedro Campos HS in Chicago and a fellow PolarTREC’er leaving for Antarctica in December, sent me these quotes from reflections her students wrote after a Google+ Hangout: ‘I think I want to become a scientist because we are the future of it. We will inherit the earth.’ and ‘I learned about the experiments he made and the responsibility our generation has for the future. This inspired me to explore what I want no matter what, and take opportunities that may be scary because it could change our lives.’

Xchat, which allows classrooms to connect in real-time with the P-3 as it flies its mission, has also been a big hit. Here’s one example of the feedback xchat has received: ‘The class got to chat with Michael Studinger and Laser Jim on their flight today. They told us they saw polar bear tracks. The kids were very excited. One student is intrigued with Antarctica and has been studying Ernest Shackleton. They are doing a wax museum in school and that is the person he chose to study and be. He will write a report and then be a wax figure and tell some interesting facts. It has been fun to do the research. He is really loving what you have been doing.‘

Send an e-mail to Emily at e.schaller [at] nserc.und.edu if your class wants to do some xchatting with NASA.

Finally, I connected with the Challenger Learning Center in Alaska which works with their partners at NASA and NOAA to bring science to students. They are part of the national network of Challenger Centers. If you are a teacher or have kids at home, then check out some of the awesome on-line science lessons, or better yet, schedule a visit!

And just to catch you up on life in Greenland, I did squeeze in a hike the other day and snapped a few pictures. Willy came along, too!

A quick 30 second pan of Kangerlussuaq, Greenland from atop Black Ridge. The shot starts out looking toward the fjord, pans across Kanger and the airport, then up the Watson River valley, and zooms in on the Russell GlacierA mass of ice that persists for many years and notably deforms and flows under the influence of gravity. about 15 miles away.

Want to give me some more feedback? Go to the Ask the Team or email me at mmbuesing [at] gmail.com.