Research and Education
Based in New York, the people behind the Green Atlas have been going “green” since 1995. The Green Map system is an “adaptable framework for charting nature and culture in hometown environments.” Recently, they published the Green Map Atlas, and now visitors can access the entire publication on this site. The Atlas includes maps of Jakarta, Kyoto, New York, Milwaukee, Toronto, and six other areas around the world. Visitors will find all types of interesting information on each of these maps, including the locations of community gardens, green spaces, bike trails, and other environmentally-friendly aspects of the built environment. It’s certainly a novel and new way to think about communities, and these maps could also be used in courses on environmental science or urban planning. [KMG]
http://www.futurelab.org.uk/index.htm
Based in Britain, Futurelab is primarily interested in “developing innovative learning resources and practices that support new approaches to education for the 21st century.” Working in tandem with government and industry groups, they have created a wide range of resources for people interested in bringing new technologies to the classroom. Most of these materials are contained within the “Showcase” and “Research” sections of the site. In the “Showcase” area, visitors can learn about their more recent projects, which include a mobile-phone based activity that teaches young people about physics and “La Piazza”, which focuses on intergenerational learning in public places through the use of technology. Moving along, the “Research” area includes literature reviews and their “Innovation” report series, which includes such titles that address the role of technology in preschools and the developing field of emotion technology. [KMG]
http://www.ipy.org/index.php?/ipy/audience/C31/
During the International Polar Year, which started in March 2007 and runs through March 2009, a team of thousands of scientists from 60 nations will be examining a wide range of physical, biological, and social research topics that deal with the Arctic and the Antarctic. The project is sponsored by a number of organizations, including the World Meteorological Organization and the International Council for Science. Visitors to their homepage will find that they can look over such thematic sections as “Atmosphere”, “Ice”, “Land”, “Oceans”, and so on. Within each of these sections, visitors can look over news items, events, blog listings, and of course, a set of links and resources. Educators should not pass up the “Educators” area, as it contains a selection of classroom tested activities and links to the International Polar Year Youth portal which is designed for both students and educators. [KMG]
http://www.mfa.org/collections/index.asp?key=37
The Museum of Fine Arts in Boston has always put forth a top-notch effort when it comes to their online exhibits for touring shows, and recently they have revamped many of their in-house online exhibits, and the results are well worth looking at. On this page, visitors can view collection highlights from their African, Ancient Near Eastern, and Etruscan holdings, as well as other thematic areas. Each online collection allows visitors to take a close look via a zoom feature and read about each work’s details, such as particulars about materials used in its creation and its dimensions. Visitors looking for a place to start should look over the “Watercolors by Homer” collection and the “Musical Instruments” audio tour. As if that wasn’t enough great material, the site also has a number of thematic online exhibits, including ones that cover American history, Boston, florals, and portraiture. [KMG]
http://www.amstat.org/publications/jse/
Published since 1993, the Journal of Statistics Education (JSE) is a publication of the American Statistical Association. Given the wide range of material found within its pages (both virtual and print), it can truly be considered one of the most important resources available for those who wish to make the world of statistics lucid for their students and others. Visitors can wander through the current issue and view full-length peer-reviewed articles and also check out some of their departments, which include “Teaching Bits” and “Datasets and Stories”. Recent articles have included “Critical Values and Transforming Data: Teaching Statistics with Social Justice” and “Probability in Action: The Red Traffic Light”. Those who feel up to the challenge may wish to contact the editors and submit their own work for inclusion in a forthcoming volume, or just to send along suggestions and comments. [KMG]
http://ds9.ssl.berkeley.edu/themis/pdf/explore_mag_on_earth.pdf
Understanding the power of magnetism on Earth isn’t always easy, and students and teachers alike will be glad to find out about this handy guide to the subject. Created by experts at NASA, this 15-page teacher’s guide was designed in partnership with other educators at Berkeley as well as several other participating institutions. The guide contains problems which examine Earth’s changing magnetic field in time and space, and how these changes can impact navigation on Earth’s surface. In terms of specific activities, the guide includes exercises on navigating the earth with a compass, the declining magnetic field, and the reversal of magnetic polarity. Each of these activities is explained in detail, and they all include relevant illustrations, graphs, questions, and an answer key. [KMG]
Drawing on material support from the National Science Foundation, the American Association of Community Colleges, and Chemeketa Community College this site provides access to a number of instructional items for those who are teaching classes about the world of sustainable resources. As one might guess, the “Instructional and Educational Materials” is a fine place to start. This area has complete course materials for such subject as environmental ethics, aquatic field and lab methods, environmental science, and principles of wildlife conservation. There are also a number of instructional modules, such as those that teach students how to evaluate media coverage of an environmental issue and the impact of land use on water quality. The site is rounded out by a listing of community colleges that offer programs in various natural resource disciplines. [KMG]
As part of a collaborative effort between the National Science Foundation and a number of other institutions, the Penn State Center for Nanotechnology Education and Utilization is designed to incorporate nanotechnology into all levels of education and into industry applications. The materials on the site are divided into sections such as “Education”, “Industry”, “News”, and “Resources”. A good place to start is the “Education” area, as it contains information on different outreach programs, and most importantly a set of educational tools. These tools include video segments on various aspects of nanotechnology and a Flash-based introduction to nanoscale properties that can be used in the classroom. Visitors can also sign up to receive their bi-monthly bulletin as well. Finally, the site also includes information about upcoming workshops and conferences that may be of interest to educators and people in the nanotechnology industry. [KMG]
