Ice is a medium that nearly everyone is familiar with. We put it in drinks, skate on it for hockey and scrape it off our windshields in winter. Ice can be turned into sculptures and can even make for some fantastic winter scenery. Ice can also turn into a kaleidoscope of color and patterns under the right circumstances. Science
Most students, regardless of their grade level, live “in the moment,” concerned only with factors and issues that have an immediate and direct impact on their lives. This is, to a large degree, understandable given the pressures, demands, responsibilities and constraints placed on students during their high school academic years. However, as teachers, we are required to not only
This lesson is intended to help students make connections to polar science while discovering how and why sea ice drives deep ocean currents. Students will also learn key terminology related to sea ice and using actual salinity content charts, will graph a typical sea ice core’s salinity as it relates to depth.
To begin the process of educating my students on my upcoming expedition to Antarctica, I introduced an activity entitled, “Questions about Antarctica…It’s What’s for Dinner.” In this assignment, small groups were asked to develop a list of 10 questions about anything - weather, clothing, wildlife, geography, geology, oceanography - related to Antarctica. Each question was worth up to 10 points
This lesson incorporates techniques and experimental designs used by researchers during the Southern Ocean Diatoms PolarTREC expedition and during post-expedition laboratory analysis. This guided inquiry lesson provides students the opportunity to explore photosynthesis and primary productivity using techniques to measure chlorophyll levels.
Objectives
SWBAT:
1. Use models to predict chlorophyll levels in the global oceans
2. Identify
In a “March Madness” game of survival of the fittest, will your microbe and its genes survive the test of changing conditions on Planet Earth and beyond? Students choose genes from a “toolbox” and pit their microbe against their classmates’, using critical thinking and argument writing to determine the microbe with the best chance of success. Based on PolarTREC
Understanding Physical and Chemical Parameters of Ocean Water Using CTD Profiles
Overview
A focus of the PolarTREC Southern Ocean Diatoms expedition was to collect water samples and physical profile data using oceanographic technology. Oceanographers rely on the real-time data transferred from the water column to the ship-based computers using a CTD sensor. The CTD measures conductivity (salinity), temperature and depth
Podcast of the live TV interview with QATV journalist Joe Catalano. This interview is a follow-up to a previous discussion about the PolarTREC expedition.
Podcast of the Currently in Quincy interview related to PolarTREC. Cara Pekarcik sat down with Joe Catalano from Quincy Access Television to discuss her upcoming trip to Antarctica. The conversation touches on the specific research and the outreach component of the trip.
Quincy Access Television interview: PolarTREC teacher Cara Pekarcik talks with Joe Catalano on the Currently in Quincy Program. The conversation includes descriptions of the PolarTREC program, a description of the research project and day-to-day activities as well as a discussion about student and community outreach.