Esther Johnson , Del Rio HS, San Felipe-Del Rio CISD; Physics, Grades 11-12, During 3rd or 4th Six Weeks, 5
instructional days
End of Summer Report
Dr. Yeh and Dr. Lekven are collaborating on a project that combines their labs, working to
visualize the development of zebrafish embryos with a two photon microscope. Dr. Yeh’s lab is
centered on non-linear optical microscopy, where researchers are looking for better ways to
connect the world of molecular cell biology and chemistry with the properties and function of
various tissues and organs. Dr. Lekven’s lab has the potential for unlocking the mechanisms of
embryonic development with potential future applications in stem cell replacement therapy,
cancer research, and other biomedical arenas. Dr. Yeh’s graduate student Yuqiang Bai’s research
focuses on visualizing the role the extracellular matrix has on the biomechanical properties of
engineered tissue (particularly fibroblasts).
The collaboration between Dr. Yeh and Dr. Lekven is an interdisciplinary project. Physics,
biology, chemistry, computer science, and mathematical analysis are all core concepts covered
by the research. I am most interested in the physics classroom; however, I would like my lesson
to incorporate the multiple disciplines, because students often fail to recognize the connection
between math and science. Since engineering is predominantly multi-disciplinary, I need to
incorporate multiple disciplines into my lesson plan. I am choosing to focus on one of Dr. Yeh’s
graduate student’s research project: studying the biomechanics of engineered tissue. I plan to
correlate the research to my classroom with a look at elasticity and Hooke’s law. Students will
design a method to test the biomechanical properties of “engineered skin tissue” (fabric) and
determine which “engineered skin tissue” has biomechanical properties most like human skin.
Esther Johnson , Del Rio HS, San Felipe-Del Rio CISD; Physics, Grades 11-12, During 3rd or 4th Six Weeks, 5
instructional days
This classroom project will fall under TAKS Science Objective 5 (physics), and will cover
Physics TEKS c.3.E,F and c.6.B,E.
After the classroom project, students will

Be able to manipulate the Hooke’s Law equation.

Analyze and verify Hooke’s Law.

Explore the field of Biomedical Engineering

Identify practical applications of physics in engineering

Design a Biomechanical testing device

Evaluate and rank the biomechanical properties of various materials
Students will engage in independent activities, cooperative learning, simulations, hands-on
activities, whole-group instruction, lecture, and technology integration. Students will also design
and implement an engineering project.
This week of instruction will play out as follows:
Day 1:
Hook Demonstration – Nitinol springs (shape memory alloy) vs. regular spring
Group Discussion: What made the difference between the Nitinol spring and the regular
spring??
Lecture/PPT on Elasticity and Hooke’s Law
Independent Homework: students will research what a Nitinol spring is.
Day 2:
Discuss homework: what a Nitinol spring is and why it regained its shape when exposed
to electricity
Hooke’s Law computer simulation
Esther Johnson , Del Rio HS, San Felipe-Del Rio CISD; Physics, Grades 11-12, During 3rd or 4th Six Weeks, 5
instructional days
Independent Homework: Hooke’s Law Practice Problems
Day 3:
Hooke’s Law Lab – hands-on cooperative learning
PPT on my summer research experience (focusing on Bob’s research) – whole group
instruction
Day 4:
Hands on Project - Engineering Design Challenge: design a mechanism to test the stretch
vs. strain on skin-like materials – students will compare the graphs from their engineering
challenge with their graphs from the Hooke’s Law lab
Day 5:
Post-Test (independent)
Discussion/Closure
Students will engage in multiple activities. Independent work will be focused in homework
assignments, bell work and the post-test. The computer simulation will be a paired group
activity utilizing a web-based simulation.
Engineering Design has been incorporated into this project by providing the students with a problem
that they need to solve. I will need to obtain some materials for the project. I do not own any Nitinol
Springs, so I will have to order those. I do have hooked mass sets, pulley apparatus, masking tape, etc.
Many of the materials I will provide my students with will be recycled materials, cut pieces of wood
gleaned from wood shop (or around town), scraps of fabric gathered from old clothing or old fabric
strips, old wire hangers from dry cleaning, etc.
I am not concerned about time constraints, since this will fit in nicely into an already working system
when I teach Hooke’s Law. I will incorporate this lesson in between potential energy and simple
harmonic motion; since Hooke’s Law is an excellent segue between these two topics. I will be teaching
Esther Johnson , Del Rio HS, San Felipe-Del Rio CISD; Physics, Grades 11-12, During 3rd or 4th Six Weeks, 5
instructional days
this lesson topic sometime between the third six weeks and the fourth six weeks, so it comes sooner in
the year than my optics lesson does. While I still plan to incorporate the optics lesson I originally turned
in, I feel more confident that I will be able to complete this assignment before our summit in January.
(Continued on next page)
Esther Johnson , Del Rio HS, San Felipe-Del Rio CISD; Physics, Grades 11-12, During 3rd or 4th Six Weeks, 5
instructional days
Engineering Design Problem
Background:
Human skin must be able to stretch and move in many different directions. If our skin wasn’t elastic, it
could tear any time we moved our body. Engineers are working to determine what extracellular matrix
will create a synthetic skin that will most closely resemble natural human skin.
Human skin is considered “viscoelastic”
Problem:
Can synthetic skin handle the same kinds of stressors as its biological counterparts?
Parameters: (macro scale)
Design a mechanism to compare various fabrics/materials to identify which most closely resembles
human skin as it reacts to various forces applied to it.
** Stress/pull on fabric must be over a cross-section so the applied force is universally applied.
** Material must be immobilized on the other side to keep it in place.
** Material cannot be torn or test has failed
Materials:

Various material squares (4”x4”) – swimsuit
material, t-shirt material, denim, woven
material, balloon rubber, leather, etc.



Ruler
Wood blocks
Hanging mass kit
Esther Johnson , Del Rio HS, San Felipe-Del Rio CISD; Physics, Grades 11-12, During 3rd or 4th Six Weeks, 5 instructional
days





Pulley apparatus
Cardboard
Masking tape
Wire hangers
Paper clips
Esther Johnson – Del Rio High School SFDR-CISD
Physics – 11th and 12th grade – 5 day E3 Project