Letter from the Director
Professional Societies
Meeting Agenda
Speaker Biographies
Research Abstracts
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................................
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Poster Session A.......................
Poster Session B......................
Poster Session C......................
Index ..................................................
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11
12
3
4
65

STEM Teacher and Researcher Program
2014 STAR Closing Conference
SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory
Menlo Park, CA
This material is based upon work supported by Chevron Corporation, Howard Hughes Medical
Institute, National Marine Sanctuary Foundation, S.D. Bechtel, Jr. Foundation, and National
Science Foundation (under Grant Numbers 0833353 and 1340110). Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the funders.
The STAR program is administered by the Cal Poly Center for Excellence in STEM Education on behalf of the California State University.
Front Cover: Starfish and Anenomes in a Cold Water Rocky Community
Credit: OAR/National Undersea Research Program (NURP)
Back Cover: The Bullet Cluster
Credit: SLAC/Chandra X-ray Observatory

Silicon Valley’s culture of innovation is an excellent setting for the 2014 STAR Closing
Conference, where STAR Fellows will present their cutting-edge research—and its applications to the classroom!—to a broad coalition of educators, researchers, and other stakeholders in K-12
STEM education.
In partnership with SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, STAR staff have organized this conference to showcase the research done by 70 pre-service and early career teachers during nine-week internships at 17 research sites across the western United States. Research projects include: designing robots that will help collect Martian samples; modeling vibrations in rocket nozzles to prevent disastrous in-flight instabilities; and, studying the impacts of invasive species and global warming on marine ecosystems. Other STAR Fellows spent the summer studying citizen science strategies for measuring soil moisture, light pollution, and the timing of leafing, flowering, and fruiting of plants across the globe. STAR Fellows will present these and other research projects during afternoon poster sessions.
The ultimate goal of the STAR experience is for teachers to connect their research to their teaching. Under the guidance of 10 Master Teachers and 8 University Liaisons, STAR Fellows designed lesson plans that leverage their research, foster research learning environments, and align with the Common Core Math Standards and the Next Generation Science Standards.
Summaries of all lessons are included in this booklet.
To promote STAR Fellows’ long-term professional development as teacher-researchers, the
Closing Conference features a panel of STAR alumni as well as a keynote address from Kevin
Coulombe, a Silicon Valley high school teacher who engages his students in particle physics research related to ongoing projects at the CERN Large Hadron Collider in Switzerland. In addition, Vic Castillo will describe how teachers can stay connected to research through the
Teacher Research Academies at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. Finally, during the afternoon, STAR Fellows will have the opportunity to meet with representatives from the American Modeling Teachers Association, California Math Council, California Science
Teachers Association, and the IISME Summer Fellowship Program.
Of course, STAR is not alone in our effort to improve STEM teacher preparation. We are part of a constellation of programs that form the 100Kin10 movement, a multi-sector network aiming to train 100,000 STEM teachers by 2021. Joan Bissell, Blair Blackwell, and Terry Woodin will discuss the connection between STAR and 100Kin10 through the lenses of the California State
University, Chevron, and the NSF Robert Noyce Teacher Scholarship Program, respectively.
Their perspectives will frame the STAR Program in the broader context of the national need for excellent K-12 STEM educators.
We’re looking forward to a great Closing Conference!
Sincerely,
Dimitri R. Dounas-Frazer
Director, STAR Program

cmc-math.org
The California Mathematics Council (CMC) is a statewide professional organization committed to promoting activities that will lead to the continual improvement of mathematics education.
CMC believes that all students have the capacity to become mathematically competent and confident when provided a rigorous and challenging mathematical program supported by high expectations. The California Mathematics Council is committed to: promoting professional activities that will ensure continual improvement towards excellence in the teaching of mathematics; communicating with educators, parents, the public, and legislative bodies concerning issues related to teaching rigorous, challenging mathematics; and increasing the diversity of membership of the California Mathematics Council and the diversity of leadership in mathematics education at the local, state, and national levels.
CMC puts on three conferences or workshop series each year for PreK-16 educators, which have been hailed by many as the best mathematics education conferences in the nation.
CMC is affiliated with the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics and the
National Council of Supervisors of Mathematics and partners with Computer
Using Educators and the California League of Schools.
cascience.org
For more than fifty years, CSTA has been the professional association for science teachers in California. Representing K-16 educators in all areas of science, CSTA’s mission is to promote high quality science education. CSTA organizes and participates in statewide reform initiatives, and provides leadership opportunities for members who wish to serve on CSTA committees and state advisory committees, including framework, standards, and textbook committees. CSTA has played and continues to play an active and critical role in the state’s adoption and implementation of the Next Generation Science Standards. CSTA publishes California Classroom Science, a monthly e-newspaper packed with news, information, resources, ideas, and activities of current interest to science educators, including a periodic column suited to the needs of new teachers. CSTA hosts three private groups on
Facebook, one each for elementary, middle, and high school educators. These private groups allow members to share resources and ideas and get advice from their peers.
Get two years’ CSTA membership for the price of one! Join CSTA at the regular member rate of $50 and get your second year of membership for free! We must receive verification of your status as a new (first or second year) teacher, signed by your principal or BTSA provider.
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August 16th, 2014

modelinginstruction.org
The American Modeling Teachers Association (AMTA) was created in 2005 by and for teachers to address the critical shortage of teachers with adequate disciplinary preparation in the sciences. At its core is the practice of Modeling Instruction, a research-based pedagogy that centers learning on the construction, elaboration and application of the fundamental conceptual models of the disciplines. This organization represents a unique teacher-led response to the need for high quality ongoing professional development and mentoring. AMTA’s growth and development over the last 9 years demonstrates that teachers can successfully organize to promote and sustain improvement in their teaching practice. This evidence of teacher empowerment stands in stark contrast to the accountabilitydriven environment in which today’s public school educators function. In 2014,
AMTA was recognized by the American Physical Society as the recipient of the
APS Excellence in Physics Education Award. AMTA hosts numerous Modeling
Workshops for in-service and pre-service high school science teachers each summer across the country
If you are not already a member, you can join the Modeling Teacher community through the AMTA website. In addition to connecting with a vibrant teacher community, members have access to the large and growing repository of Modeling
Instruction curriculum resources in physics, chemistry, biology, physical science and (coming soon!) NGSS aligned middle school science.
iisme.org
Celebrating its 30th Anniversary, Industry Initiatives for Science and Math Education’s (IISME) mission is to bridge the education, business and research communities to foster innovation and enhance the quality and relevance of education, with a focus on STEM, 21st Century skills and other emerging disciplines. IISME’s flagship program, the Summer Fellowship Program, provides eight‐week summer internships for K-16 teachers in high-tech companies, universities and research labs. Teachers are paired with scientists, technologists, and engineers, and earn $8,200 per summer.
IISME Teacher Fellows gain experience in the practical applications of subjects they teach, enhance their STEM content knowledge, and engage in stimulating hands‐on projects for their host organizations. Also during the summer, with the guidance of the IISME Education Staff and IISME Coaches, Teacher Fellows develop an Education Transfer Plan for transferring their Fellowship experience into updated and enriched classroom instruction that benefits thousands of students. These lessons are linked to the National Technology Standards, National Board Standards, California State Standards, Common Core or Next Generation Science Standards and are available to any interested teacher in a searchable database of Fellowship‐inspired curriculum via IISME’s Community Website (http://community.iisme.org). In 2010
IISME also launched the IISME Research Collaborative which supports high school science teachers committed to increasing the rigor and frequency of science inquiry and research in their classrooms, schools, and districts.
2014 STAR Closing Conference
5

Acknowledgements
The STAR program wishes to thank the following laboratory personnel for their dedication and contribution to STAR summer internships:
Ann Thorne, ESRL
Ann Wright-Mockler, PNNL
Bernice Mills, SNL
Claire Raftery, SSL
Dale Ingram, LIGO
David Andrews, CSUF
Deidre Sessoms, CSUS
Erin Blackwood, RTC
Jessica Lipsky, SFSC
Joanna Albala, LLNL
Kriss Vanderhyde, AFRL
Liz Goehring, NEON
Maria Mastrokyriakos, SLAC
Pamela Harman, SI
Petra Kneissl-Milanian, JPL
Rob Sparks, NOAO
Shaun Smith, AFRC
We would also like to thank the following Master Teachers and University Liaisons for supporting the
STAR Education Workshops:
Analise Elliot-Heid
Ben Spike
Chris McCarthy
Dana Tomlinson
DaNel Hogan
Deidre Sessoms
Elizabeth Nagy-Shadman
Greg Stoehr
Jean Pennycook
Jennie Guzman
Katie Rowley
Kristen Maxwell
Martin Mathews
Ron Hughes
Seth Hornstein
Shealyn Malone
Steve Unterholzner
Yvonne Campos
6
Director,
CSU Teacher Education and Public Schools Programs
Dean,
Cal Poly College of Science
and Mathematics
Co-Director, CESAME
Co-Director, CESAME
Director, STAR Program
Coordinator, CESAME
Assistant, STAR Program
Assistant, CESAME
August 16th, 2014

Acknowledgements
STAR is grateful to the following foundations for their generous support of our program:
Chevron Corporation*
Howard Hughes Medical Institute
National Marine Sanctuary Foundation
National Science Foundation*
S. D. Bechtel, Jr. Foundation*
STAR appreciates partnership and in-kind support from the following research facilities:
California State University*
CSU Fresno
CSU Sacramento
Romberg Tiburon Center
Department of Defense
Air Force Research Laboratory
Department of Energy*
Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory
Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory
Sandia National Laboratories
National Aeronautics and Space Administration*
NASA Armstrong Flight Research Center
NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory
National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration*
NOAA Boulder
NOAA Southwest Fisheries Science Center
National Science Foundation*
LIGO Hanford Observatory
National Ecological Observatory Network
National Optical Astronomy Observatory
Non-profit and University Partners
SETI Institute
Space Sciences Laboratory at UC Berkeley
*Asterisks indicate 100kin10 partner
2014 STAR Closing Conference
7

NMFS Research Permit #1591

9:00
9:30
9:45
10:00
10:30
Registration and Continental Breakfast
Welcome Remarks
STAR and the CSU
LLNL Teacher Research Academies
STAR Alumni Panel
11:00
11:45
1:00
Engaging Students in Research at CERN
Lunch and Group Photos
Remarks of National STAR Partners
1:30
2:20
3:10
4:00
Poster Session A
Poster Session B
Poster Session C
Closing Remarks
Dimitri Dounas-Frazer
STAR Program
Chi-Chang Kao
SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory
Joan Bissell
California State University
Phil Bailey
Cal Poly San Luis Obispo
Vic Castillo
Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory
Bobby Buchan
InterMountain AmeriCorps
Damion Delton
Mendota Junior High School
Jessica Potter
Crittenden Middle School
Lauren Peterson
Montgomery High School
Kevin Coulombe
Menlo Atherton High School
Blair Blackwell
Chevron Corporation
Terry Woodin
NSF Noyce Teacher Scholarship Program
Dimitri Dounas-Frazer
STAR Program
John Keller
Cal Poly CESAME
11
2014 STAR Closing Conference

Speakers
Director, SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory
SLAC Director Chi- Chang Kao, a noted X-ray scientist, came to SLAC in 2010 to serve as Associate Laboratory Director for the Stanford
Synchrotron Radiation Lightsource. He became SLAC’s fifth director in
November 2012.
Previously, Kao served for five years as chairperson of the National
Synchrotron Light Source at Brookhaven National Laboratory in New York. He undertook major upgrades to the light source’s scientific programs and experimental facilities while developing potential science programs for NSLS- II, a new light source now under construction at Brookhaven. His research focuses on X- ray physics, superconductivity, magnetic materials and the properties of materials under high pressure.
Kao was elected a fellow of the American Physical Society in 2006 and was named a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science in 2010 for his many contributions to resonant elastic and inelastic X- ray scattering techniques and their application to materials physics, as well as for his leadership at the NSLS.
Dean, College of Science and Mathematics at Cal Poly, SLO
Philip S. Bailey, Jr. is Dean of the College of Science and Mathematics and a chemistry professor at Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo. Prior to joining
Cal Poly’s faculty in 1969, Dr. Bailey earned a bachelor’s degree in chemistry from the University of Texas, Austin, and a doctorate from
Purdue University. He became Associate Dean in 1973 and Dean in
1983. He served as Interim Vice-President for Academic Affairs in
1989-90 and is currently the CSU’s Senior Science Dean. He and his wife, Dr. Christina Bailey, professor emerita and former chair of the
Chemistry and Biochemistry Department, are co-authors of Organic
Chemistry: A Brief Survey of Concepts and Applications. The Baileys have performed their chemistry magic show for over 125,000 people and distributed 25,000 copies of a professional DVD of the show. Dr.
Bailey has taught almost every term during his 44 years at Cal Poly.
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Speakers
Director, CSU Teacher Education and Public
Schools Programs
Joan S. Bissell, Ed.D., is the Director of Teacher Education and Public
School Programs and the Mathematics and Science Teacher Initiative for the 23 campus California State University system. She received her bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral degrees from Harvard University and her areas of expertise are human development, theories of learning, the history and philosophy of science, and science education. She was an
Assistant Professor at Harvard University and was on the faculty in the
School of Education at UC Irvine for 18 years. She later served as Dean of the College of Education and Integrative Studies at Cal Poly, Pomona.
Joan is a member of the California STEM Learning Network Advisory
Committee. She was recognized in 2012 as one of California’s
Outstanding STEM Women Leaders. he has published numerous books and articles, including Changing the face of science and engineering:
Good beginnings for the twenty-first century (Oxford University
Press). She is an elected Fellow of the American Association for the
Advancement of Science.
Research Scientist, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory
Vic Castillo is the group leader for the Quantitative Risk Analysis
Group in the Computational Engineering Division at the Lawrence
Livermore National Laboratory and the lead scientist for the Teacher
Research Academy for Computer Modeling and Simulation. He received his Ph.D. in Engineering Applied Science with emphasis in
Computational Physics from the University of California at Davis.
Throughout his twenty five years as a computational scientist,
Vic has done research in fields ranging from neural networks to convective turbulence. As the lead scientist for the LLNL Teacher
Research Academy for Computer Modeling and Simulation, Vic mentors students and teachers on the methods and applications of computational science. With the help of master educators, he hopes to help teachers prepare for the anticipated changes in the STEM education standards.
Recently, Vic received the 2013 Community Service Award from
Great Minds in STEM, a nonprofit that focuses on STEM educational awareness programs.
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Alumni Panelists
Science Teacher, Crittenden Middle School
Jessica studied Biological Sciences at Cal Poly, SLO. She was part of the 2009-2010 and 2010-2011 Noyce Cohorts at Cal Poly as well as the
2010 and 2011 STAR Cohort at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL).
At JPL, Jessica studied vegetation and soil data from the Alaskan
Ecological Transect (ALECTRA) to inform the scheduling of the
Carbon in Arctic Reservoirs Vulnerability Experiment (CARVE)
Missionís spring and fall flights. Currently teaching 7th and 8th grade science at Crittenden Middle School in Mountain View, CA, Jessica has also taught high school biology in San Bernardino, CA and 8th grade science in Santa Maria, CA.
Science Teacher, Mendota Junior High School
Damion Delton participated in the STAR program in the summers of
2010, 2011, and 2013 all at Romberg Tiburon Center. His experience with Dr. Cohen was one to remember as it was his 1st time doing real science research, aside from lab course during undergrad. He has been teaching 7th grade life science for 2 years. Damion has a passion for teaching middle school students, many of whom are exposed to real science for the first time in their education. He believes STAR has played a huge influence in making the science classroom more relevant to student lives and more applicable to real science by doing many hands on activities and experiments. He received his B.A. in Natural
Science with a biology emphasis in 2012 and will begin a M.A. in Educational Leadership and Administration in the fall.
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Alumni Panelists
Chemistry Teacher, Montgomery High School
Lauren just finished her first year teaching Chemistry in Sweetwater
Unified High School District in San Diego, CA. She earned her degree in Chemistry in 2012 from San Diego State University, and participated in the STAR program the summer after she graduated.
Lauren had the summer of her life living at NASA Ames research base and participating in research related to the soil analysis done on Mars during the Phoenix Mars mission. She has a strong passion for both science and education, and her main goal is to inspire her students to be curious and love science.
Service Member, InterMountain AmeriCorps
Bobby is a 2013 STAR alumni who interned with the High Altitude
Observatory in Boulder, CO, which is part of the National Center for
Atmospheric Research. His research was aimed at determining the feasibility of rainwater collection and use at a solar observatory site as well as making connections between math education and the scientific endeavors it supports. Immediately before the STAR program Bobby earned a teaching credential from UC Santa Barbara in secondary mathematics. Prior to pursuing a career in education he earned a M.S. in Civil Engineering from SUNY Buffalo and worked as a Highway
Design Engineer for the Connecticut DOT. His current position with
AmeriCorps allows him to serve in a High School with their GEAR UP program, Core Success classrooms, and after school homework center, as well many community organizations.
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Speakers
Astronomy & Physics Teacher, Menlo-Atherton High School
Kevin Coulombe works in the Sequoia Union High School District teaching Physics and Astronomy to juniors and seniors at Menlo-
Atherton High School.
Kevin graduated magna cum laude from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo in 2010 with a B.A. in Physics and a double minor in Astronomy and
Communications. During his senior year, he worked on the ALICE detector, one of the four primary experiments at CERN’s Large
Hadron Collider. At CERN, Kevin helped optimize the way in which
ALICE matches particle trajectories with energy signatures left in an electromagnetic calorimeter. This project proved to be quite successful, opening the door for him to become the youngest person in the world certified to be a Shift Lead at ALICE.
Since then, Kevin has been helping Dr. Jennifer Klay with her ALICE program at Cal Poly, returning to CERN last summer to be project manager for her undergrad students. He has designed a program that engages his high school students with Dr. Klay’s ALICE research. He hopes to one day take his students to CERN to join the ground team for the summer!
Manager, Education and Corporate Programs at Chevron
Blair Blackwell is manager of Education and Corporate Programs at
Chevron Corporation, a position she has held since December 2012.
In this role, Blackwell is responsible for leading Chevron’s education focused social investment initiatives in the United States. She has over
15 years of experience with the private sector, nonprofit organizations and international organizations in Africa, the Balkans, Central Asia and the United States. Previously, she served as director of private sector initiatives for the International Crisis Group. Prior to this position, she was executive director of Princeton in Africa. She earned a bachelor’s degree in Slavic languages and Literatures from Princeton
University, and is a Term Member of the Council on Foreign Relations.
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Speakers
Program Director, NSF Division of Undergraduate Education
Terry Woodin is currently a Program Officer in the Division of
Undergraduate Education of the Directorate for Education and Human
Resources at the National Science Foundation. Currently she is part of the four agency (NIH, NSF, HHMI, USDA) effort to improve undergraduate education in biology. While at NSF she has been a
Fellow of the Japan Society for the Improvement of Science, spending three months in Japan observing and commenting upon approaches to teacher preparation and a science education liaison to the State
Department, serving three months in Portugal and a Fellow of the
Brookings Society, helping then Senator Wellstone from Minnesota with education related matters.
She earned her Masters and PhD in Biochemistry at the University of
California, Davis and began her professional career as a biochemist in the Biochemistry Department at the University of Nevada, Reno where she has held positions as Associate Professor of Biochemistry in both the School of Agriculture and the College of Medicine as well as Associate Director of the Honors Program. She has held faculty positions at the Universidad Catolica de Puerto Rico and Humboldt
State University in Arcata, California. She is a lifetime member of
SACNAS, a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science and is on the Editorial Board of the Journal of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology.
Before earning her PhD, Dr. Woodin taught science and mathematics at a high school in Hyde Park New York and then fifth and sixth grades in Baldwin Park and Rowlands Unified School Districts. While at
NSF she has been the lead Program Director for the Collaboratives for
Excellence in Teacher Preparation (one of the first large scale efforts by NSF to engage STEM faculty in partnership with school districts and College of Education faculty to better prepare the nation’s teachers in STEM topics), the Graduate Students in K-12 Education program and participated as a Program Officer in a variety of other programs aimed at improving the preparation of undergraduate to become well informed and effective STEM teachers.
17

1:30 – 2:20
Air Force Research Laboratory
LIGO Hanford Observatory
NASA Armstrong Flight Research Center
Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
Romberg Tiburon Center
Space Sciences Lab at UC Berkeley
University of Houston-Downtown
YES Prep Fifth Ward Titans
Malissa Lightfoot, Research Mentor
Air Force Research Laboratory
Swirl Coaxial Injector Development Of Methods To Scale Between Cold-Flow And Hot-Fire Evaluations
The Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) is undertaking a program to improve the development of a gas-centered swirl coaxial liquid injector. The injector in a liquid rocket engine atomizes and mixes the fuel with the oxidizer to produce efficient and stable combustions that will improve stability performance and provide the required thrust for the rocket engine without endangering hardware durability. Maintaining the proper thrusts will ensure that the mixture of the fuel and the oxidizer are correct. The rocket injector has been experimentally investigated by using a combination of methodologies called cold-flow and hot-fire testing which have been scaled by other laboratory facilities. The AFRL tested few condition parameters for hot-firing testing that could be simulated through cold-flow conditions that include pressure settings and adjustments of the mass flow rate liquid. These conditions were designed to match the momentum flux ratio, density, and velocity between gas and liquid flows. The data was then used to determine which configuration has the best spread and mixing trade-off. The cold-flow and hot-fire testing results were then evaluated for spray instabilities and stable sprays occurring in both sets of methodologies. Based on this approach, the spray characteristics and mixture of the propellants in the rocket injector demonstrate similar performance in a wide range of mixture ratios and pressure conditions to those in hot firing testing compared with cold flow testing. Thus, the liquid rocket injector appears to be viable candidate, from a performance point of view, for consideration in future missions.
(Lesson Plan) Cryptography: Cracking Codes With Matrices
The California Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) at Edwards Air Force Base conducted cold-flow testing in Area
1-14 and hot-fire testing in EC-1. The scientific experiment seeks to design a methodology for hot-firing conditions to simulate cold-flow in order to improve shielded gas-centered swirl coaxial (GCSC) injectors. The information that was collected from scaling both methodologies included data images that are basically a matrix of values. The extracted information is based on the values of the pixels and from these pixels we can manipulate the images and measure widths of the spray, threshold value, and see how the brightness varies across the spray. The standard grade level of this lesson plan is for high school students enrolled in Pre-Calculus or Algebra 2. The main goal is for students to understand and implement vector and matrix quantities in order to complete three fun activities. In the first activity, students will be completing the Code Breaking activity where they will be practicing matrix operations and basic substitution ciphers with no inverses. This activity includes students working individually and using ciphers to protect secrets that the Air
Force Research Laboratory has kept since the laboratory’s formation in 1997. The following activity is called Liquid
Propellant Rocket Engines. This activity requires the students to solve 8 encrypted matrices with inverses. The third activity will consist of students encrypting their own message and solving their partner’s message.
18
August 16th, 2014

CSU San Francisco
East Career & Technical Academy
Kayla Kuzmich, Research Mentor
Air Force Research Laboratory
Particle Image Velocimetry Of Transverse Jets In Cross Flow
The jet in crossflow (JICF) has been an ongoing study for the past several decades with applications in the field of fluid mechanics. This particular flow field produces vortical structures tied to the entrainment and mixing of two separate fluids. Research of the JICF seeks to determine a model and trajectory scaling law for future designs. This will help future designers to optimize the mixing and homogeneity of the two fluids to decrease emissions from pollutants, make ignition easier, and improve combustion efficiency of rockets. Our experiment will employ Particle Image Velocimetry
(PIV) to determine the fluid motion of the JICF. PIV uses small interrogation regions to measure the average displacement of tracer particles in the fluid at two instances of time. Velocity is then measured indirectly for each sub region and used to create a velocity gradient graph for the entire region. The compacted results have shown that the new scaling parameter BDj serves as a more effective method of characterizing the JICF. Further research will look into the effectiveness of BDj from different density fluids and the use of multiple transverse jets.
(Lesson Plan) Velocimetry
The ability to measure velocity of particles is an important aspect of any physical science. The motion of fluids within a rocket engine is paramount to its performance. However, fluids the motion of fluids is exceptionally difficult due to the vast number of particles. This lesson will guide students on the process of determining velocity when only given two images separated by a specified time frame. From there, the students will expand upon the basics of velocimetry and begin to look at the movement of a multitude of objects (in this case people) and determine the average velocity. This lesson can serve as an introduction or as a culminating summative assessment for students in their understanding of geometry, kinematics, and its applications to the real world. Velocimetry is the measurement of the velocity of fluids through following what are known as tracer particles. This lesson will guide students by reinforcing their understanding of velocity as the change in distance and time, and it will then guide students to take their ability of determining that velocity for one object and expanding it to examine the motion of an entire group of objects. By doing so, students can also understand the importance of statistics, namely averages, and how the real world uses these same simple rules, but on a much grander scale.
City College of New York
Jeffrey Alston, Research Mentor
Air Force Research Laboratory
Heat Transfer On Superamphiphobic Metal Surfaces
Superamphiphobic surfaces strongly repel both water and oils. In this work, aluminum coupons are processed by sanding with various grit of sand paper to impart microscale roughness. Subsequent submersion of the aluminum substrate in boiling water grows nanoscale grass-like structures. The oxide layer of Al is slightly soluble in water.
During a fast diffusion/equilibrium, Al2O3 nanograss grows on the surface. A low energy coating is then deposited on the surface. The micro and nanoscale features create re-entrant structures that trap air enabling contact liquid to be in a Cassie-Baxter state. Superamphiphobicity of the samples were confirmed by appearance of a reflective plastron on the surface while submerged in water. The SAP surfaces were placed in a water flow cell to assess the heat transfer characteristics under flow by measuring their cooling rate. An air layer should eliminate the zero velocity boundary layer between a flowing liquid and a surface. Increased flow at a surface enabled by a plastron (a thin air layer) could increase the rate of heat transfer. The demonstration of this particular work can be applied throughout various daily life materials, such as: cars, clothes, rooftops, umbrellas, and rocket engines.
(Lesson Plan) Nanoscale Within Superhydrophobic Surfaces
The goal of the research at AFRL was to develop superhydrophobic (SHP) surfaces on aluminum and investigate their heat transfer rate. SHP material has low surface energy and a unique micro and nano structure. These micro and nano structures create a reentrant surface, which traps air and reduces physical contact with water. This phenomenon can be observed as a reflective layer by placing a SHP surface under water. In this lesson, students will learn about SHP
2014 STAR Closing Conference
19

materials by using a compound light microscope to see the nano structure of a given hydrophobic fabric. An academic article will be provided to demonstrate the effect of nanoscale structures on SHP characteristics. Once students are familiar with this nanoscale phenomenon, they will develop superhydrophobicity on a fabric using hydrophobic coatings such as: coconut oil, wax, crayons, flax seed, lanolin, clay, or glue. After fabricating their own SHP material, it will be compared with the initial given fabric and measure contact angles using a overhead projector or a student’s cell phone camera. As a summative assessment, students would have to write about their very own innovation that will use nanoscale hydrophobic technique. This lesson should take about 4-5 periods (~45 minutes). By end of this lesson, students will have basic knowledge about nanoscale features and how it can be applied to our daily life.
Boston University
Framingham Public Schools
David Forliti, Research Mentor
Air Force Research Laboratory
Evolution Of Perturbations In Flow Field Mechanics
This project explores the stability analysis of a given flow field. Specifically, where the peak disturbance occurs in a flow as this is the disturbance that is most likely to occur. In rocket combustion, it is important to understand where the maximum disturbance occurs so that the mixing of fuel can be stabilized. The instabilities are the results of frequencies in the area surrounding the flow field. The linear stability governing equations are employed to better understand the disturbance. The governing equations for continuity and momentum in the x and y directions are used to form an equation for the second derivative of the transverse complex velocity disturbance amplitude (the transverse perturbation) in terms of y. This research uses the shooting method and Euler’s method of numerical integration to find a frequency (ω) that affects the flow field of a given velocity profile. The shooting method involves making an educated guess for ω, numerically integrating the second derivative of the transverse perturbation across the flow field to find the transverse perturbation, and comparing the final value with the expected asymptotic solution e^(±αy). Euler’s method of numerical integration and the computing language Python are used to find a method to predict the frequencies (ω) that cause disturbances for a given velocity profile.
(Lesson Plan) Investigating Proportional Relationships
My project at the Air Force Research Laboratory looks at the stability analysis of a given flow field in a rocket combustion chamber as the fuel is being mixed. Instabilities are the results of frequencies in the area surrounding the flow field. Generally, this research examines the growth rate for a given wavenumber. I will simplify this idea to explore the topic of proportional relationships for this lesson. Though the relationship between growth rate and wavenumber is not proportional in my project, they are related and proportional relationships are a good place to start teaching relationships between quantities. This lesson is directed to a 6th grade classroom as an introductory lesson on proportional relationships. I will launch the lesson by asking students how many jumping-jacks they think that they can do in one hour. Students will work in groups to count the number of jumping-jacks a classmate completes in a smaller amount of time. Using this data, they will predict how many jumping-jacks that student can do in different lengths of time and test these hypotheses. Students will then calculate the number of expected jumping-jacks in an hour. This will help students start to think about how values change over time and how to describe and investigate relationships between numbers. This will also give students experience taking a “big” problem (the number of jumping-jacks in an hour) and breaking it down into more manageable parts (the number of jumping-jacks in 30 seconds or 1 minute).
Washington State University
Kennewick High School
Robert Schofield, Research Mentor
LIGO Hanford Observatory
Wind Speed And Seismic Motion Data Correlation Analysis
The Laser Interferometer Gravitational Wave Observatory (LIGO) was developed to exploit Einstein’s prediction of gravitational waves to develop a new way to study the universe. Gravitational waves are detected by observing changes less than 1/10000 of the diameter of a proton in the distances between hanging mirrors that are four kilometers apart within two perpendicular evacuated tubes. These changes in distances between mirrors are produced by gravitational waves from large masses in space, such as colliding black holes. Many factors affect the sensitivity of the interferometer.
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LIGO’s Physical Environment Monitoring subsystem (PEM) is one method of both eliminating noise and assisting in identifying false indications of gravitational wave detection. The objectives of this study were to investigate the statistics of wind at LIGO Hanford’s three building locations, develop understanding of the statistics of ground motion in relationship to the interferometer performance, and study the correlation between wind and ground motion. Excel was used to analyze eight years of data (2004-2012) and to represent the wind patterns and seismic motion throughout each year and across the series. Preliminary results suggest The wind speed exceeded 10 m/s at least briefly in 15% of the hours in the eight years analyzed. Ground motion appears to significantly increase above this threshold. Also shown was during each of the spring months, the wind was greater than 10 m/s in more than 15% of the hours, peaking at 24% in
April. Recommendations include developing systems to adapt to winds over 10 m/s.
(Lesson Plan) Who Cares About The Wind?!
Within the Tri-Cities, WA (TC) area, windstorms are frequent and occasionally severe. With wind speeds reaching up to 108 miles per hour and given the students are from the TC area, students may be able to relate their own lived experiences to the work they will complete in this lesson. In this lesson, students will analyze a week’s worth of wind and seismic motion data collected from the Laser Interferometer Gravitational Wave Observatory (LIGO) to create graphical representations with indications as to what data would be deemed as viable or non-viable. This lesson focuses on the Common Core State Standards of Mathematics (CCSSM) A-CED.2 and A-CED.3. The lesson opens with a video showing the results of a wind storm from the TC area and asking students to think of individuals who would be concerned with the amount of wind in the area. Once the class has thought through several scenarios of individuals who would be concerned about wind data collection, students will be prompted to think about what effect this may have on the earth’s surface. Students are to work in small collaborative groups to create representations of their week’s worth of data in such a way that makes sense to them. They are free to create any form of representation to help indicate a relationship between the two variables. The students must justify their choice(s) of representation(s) and be able to delineate which values are considered non-viable and viable through the use of equations.
CSU Dominguez Hills
Shaun Smith, Research Mentor
NASA Armstrong Flight Research Center
Compact Fiber Optics Screening System Data Management
The APV3 is an unmanned vehicle that utilizes different methods of data collection such as fiber optics, piccolo, and other data loggers. The Compact Fiber Optics Screening System (C-FOSS) is able to collect thousands of strain data per 1/2 inch of wire, which generates enormous amounts of data. The AERO software architecture team will utilize the
AERO institute as an IT test bed to validate the use of Cassandra, and development of a data management interface.
Using the already exiting AERO portal and Cassandra database the team will validate the ability to store and query
C-FOSS data. Cassandra in contrast to other programs is inexpensive and may have the ability to store enormous amounts of data, as is currently being used by Netflix to store movies. A user-friendly interface will be developed to allow the customer (team working towards the development of the APV3) to analyze and view data collected.
Conforming to the software development lifecycle, system requirements will be collected from customer and submitted to the software team for review, and subsequently, system design and implementation. Software application will be monitored for compliance with DPR 7150 Class IV non-safety critical software regulations.
(Lesson Plan) Developing An Application To Display Strain Data
Fiber optic sensors at NASA’s Aero institute are currently being used to collect strain data on different objects, such as aircrafts and mock buildings. The objective of this student-centered lesson is to have students explore the engineering process, basics of programming, measurement techniques, data analysis and the use arithmetic to determine stiffness.
Students will be responsible for designing a bridge using popsicle sticks, collect strain data, measure stiffness and create an interactive application using “Scratch” to display their data. Following NASA’s engineering process, students will learn to collaborate in a team, by acquiring different roles as they work towards their design and production. Using excel students will be responsible for creating a line graph that will be used to display their data. During this lesson students will also learn a how to calculate the stiffness of their bridge using a multiplication formula (f=kx). Students will be provided with a graphic organizer, outlining the engineering process and facilitating their data collection. The final stage of this lesson includes students using “Scratch” to develop an interactive application to be used by their classmates to view their data in a cell format and line graph. Overall, this lesson should provide students with an overview of different tasks and skills that are present within NASA employees during research.
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CSU Sacramento
Shaun Smith, Research Mentor
NASA Armstrong Flight Research Center
Fiber Optic Sensor System (FOSS) Data Portal Web Page: Storage And Querying Systems.
Utilizing the AERO Institute as an IT test bed or “Sandbox”, a small development team designed, built, and tested a data management storage system called Cassandra. This open-source database was explored as a solution to manage large data sets and provide multi-cluster system functionality. Utilizing this functionality, the database is able to handle multiple large files uploading at once in an efficient manner with a small process footprint. After verifying applicability, a user-end portal was created to support post processing of archived and in-flight data for clients to access online. In the first phase of this project, data is collected from the Piccolo flight control system and Compact Fiber Optic Sensing
System (C-FOSS). These systems are integrated on the APV-3 (Autonomous Piloted Vehicle), a remote-operated vehicle.
Due to the large amount of data collected from C-FOSS, the system must be designed to sort and organize large data sets. The second phase of this project was to create a querying and downloading interface, for future users to be able to pull archived data. Benchmark tests and reports were generated to validate system functionality and performance.
These three aspects–verifying applicability of Cassandra, creating a front-end querying system, and benchmarking tests–are part of the software development teams main function to enable future ease of access to large data sets collected through various means and applications.
(Lesson Plan) The Only Difference Between Science And Screwing Around Is Writing It Down; The
Experiment Process
After this lesson, students should have a better understanding of the experiment process, including the difference between usable and unusable data, how to ensure objectivity (clean results), and the importance of recording results.
Students are tasked with designing beam deflection tests. They will apply parameters, set goals, devise testing methods, and execute experiments. This lesson plan spans over a one-week period, beginning with identifying a problem and proposing solutions, to justifying test methods, and ends with testing and analysis. By providing only the materials and an end goal for each learning section, students are placed in an environment that facilitates learning through creativity, and opportunities to make changes to their ideas as the lab progresses. There will be a development phase to stimulate ideas about what data to collect. A period of brainstorming on how to keep those data scientifically objective (setting a base line observation, making sure that the same conditions apply for each test, and only one parameter is changed at a time) will follow. Students are given materials and will be prompted to devise an engineering strategy to measure deflection due to force at different arm lengths. There will several variables including arm length, material, and force
(weight). The meat of this module will be in understanding how to collect data and relating those data together in meaningful ways. At the end, students can further their knowledge by brainstorming uses of their interpretations of the outcomes of these results.
CSU Long Beach
Shaun Smith, Research Mentor
NASA Armstrong Flight Research Center
FOSS Big Data Storage Solution
NASA projects require a reliable approach to store large volumes of data. Accordingly, it is crucial to adopt a lightweight, reliable, and scalable database. Current NASA databases bear costly license fees with undesirable speed and flexibility.
The purpose of utilizing the AERO Institute as an IT test bed, or “Sandbox,” is to design, build, test, and implement software solutions prior to transfer to NASA projects. Cassandra coupled with the Astyanax API is a viable solution for storing big data. Store a minimum of 2GB of C-FOSS data in multiple file formats (.csv, .log, .xml, and .jpg). Use benchmark tests to verify the speed, flexibility, and reliability of data stored in the Cassandra database. Create userfriendly interface to query C-FOSS data. The Sandbox will design an end-to-end flight data management software solution for Compact Fiber Optic Sensing System (C-FOSS) data collected with the APV3 unmanned vehicle. Cassandra will be validated as a lightweight, open source database capable of managing big data while providing a cluster, faulttolerant system. The implementation of the Cassandra database allows for fast data storage and retrieval. Validation tests prove that uploads are accurate and reliable; a java script found no discrepancies between the original and uploaded data set.
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(Lesson Plan) Physics – Electricity & Magnetism – Headphone Engineering
This physics lesson plan is for electricity and magnetism. Students are introduced to the Culminating Activity (if not done at the beginning of unit). Students dissect a speaker and hypothesize the role of each component. Students experiment with magnets, wire, and paper, plastic, or Styrofoam cups to prototype a single headphone speaker. Students build headphones using T4T materials. Students prepare design brief defending their design and documenting the engineering design process. Introduce the Culminating Activity (if not done at the beginning of the unit). Inform students that they are going to play the role of headphone engineers and designers. In order to design and build a commercially successful product, students must experiment with different designs and materials to achieve their desired sound. Headphone aesthetics will also be important in determining commercial viability (what “type” of person would choose to purchase your particular brand of headphones?). Show video of Sierra Leonean student Kelvin Doe, who builds DJ and radio equipment from discarded electronics components. Have students brainstorm ideas for novel headphone designs. Students know magnetic materials and electric currents (moving electric charges) are sources of magnetic fields and are subject to forces arising from the magnetic fields of other sources. The California standards that I will be using in this lesson plan are, students know how to determine the direction of a magnetic field produced by a current flowing in a straight wire or in a coil. And students know changing magnetic fields produce electric fields, thereby inducing currents in nearby conductors.
State University of New York College at Cortland
Janelle Downs, Research Mentor
Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
Energy Surety At Forward Operating Bases In Afghanistan
Energy access and reliability are high priorities at the U.S. Army’s forward operating bases (FOBs) in Afghanistan.
Using photovoltaic (PV) arrays can help diversify the systems that supply energy to a given area increasing energy safety, security, reliability and sustainability—and thus improving energy surety. PV systems, which convert incoming solar radiation into usable electric power, may be a wise choice for FOBs in the Middle East because the solar resource is relatively constant and abundant. Solar resource refers to the amount of solar radiation a given location on earth’s surface receives. The solar resource for two FOBs were investigated in this study using site-specific weather data combined with satellite generated data produced by NASA’s Prediction of Worldwide Energy Resource project. This research looks at the potential monthly energy production of a PV system design for select buildings, calculated using
RETScreen® International Software (http://www.retscreen.net/ang/home.php), and compares it to the measured energy use of those buildings.
(Lesson Plan) Photovoltaic Car Activity
In groups of 3-4, students will collaborate to design a miniaturized prototype of a PV solar powered car. The goal of the lesson is to construct a PV powered car model that travels 20 ft. in the shortest time possible. Setting this goal creates a sense of competition between the groups and encourages student buy-in. Students will apply their understanding of direct vs. indirect insolation, the sun’s path, and seasonal effects on solar irradiance when designing their model.
The lesson is inquiry- based and offers students an assortment of building materials with explicit, yet brief, assembly instructions in order to encourage creative use of the supplies. Groups will be allowed three test-runs with the opportunity to modify one aspect of their prototype to improve its function following each run. This lesson is a unique method of identifying each student’s ability to apply concepts learned in the sun’s path unit while allowing for their creative expression through a hands-on activity. Following the activity, the class will segue into the next unit with a discussion of human impact on the environment, and the importance of using sustainable energies.
CSU San Luis Obispo
Cliff Glantz, Research Mentor
Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
Updating The Chemical Mixture Methodology: Effectively Reducing Conservatism
The Chemical Mixture Methodology (CMM) is a tool used to assess potential hazardous health impacts of the release of chemical mixtures into the atmosphere. Furthermore, the CMM helps determine if these potential adverse toxic effects will affect an individual’s ability to take protective actions in an emergency. The CMM first calculates the Hazard Index
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(HI) of each chemical then adds the individual HIs together. If the value of the summed HI is >1.0 further examination is warranted. To do so, Health Code Numbers (HCNs), that are similar to medical diagnostic codes, are used to group toxic effects targeting the same organ or organ system. HCNs are sorted using Target Organ System Effect and Specific
Target Organ Effect to examine which target organs are likely to be affected. To accommodate severity, the HCN for respiratory irritation was expanded into three categories: severe, moderate, and mild. To make the CMM more realistic, weighting factors of “1”, “0.5”, and “0.25” are applied to the HIs of severe, moderate, and mild irritants respectively. Using
127 test cases with three concentration scenarios, extensive testing is conducted to investigate if there is any benefit using the improved respiratory irritant HCNs. By refining the respiratory irritants to severe, moderate, and mild categories and applying weighting factors, the conservatism has been reduced. In 23% of test cases benefit increased and none decreased in benefit. Currently the user’s guides for the CMM Workbook and Wizard are being updated to include the aforementioned modifications. PNNL-SA-104175
(Lesson Plan) You’re “The Wizard” Harry
For my lesson I will walk students through the process that the Chemical Mixture Methodology (CMM) Wizard and
Workbook use to attain information about the potential hazardous health impacts of the release of chemical mixtures into the atmosphere. This is a very interactive class and group activity that will teach students Common Core Practices
4-8. This lesson is best used at the beginning of the school year for any level of high school mathematics because it teaches practices instead of a specific standard. Furthermore it sets expectations in regards to students using those practices for the remainder of the year. The problem is set up as such: Harry Potter wants to test a mixture of chemicals and is only allowed to do so if there are no hazardous health effects. Because there are no computers at Hogwarts, Harry sends the chemical information to the students to work through. Students will be split into groups corresponding to different chemicals in the mixture, find Hazard Indices (HIs) for their group’s chemicals, and sum all of the HIs (during which summation notation will be shown briefly). Then the students will work in their groups to sort their chemicals’
Health Code Numbers and take target organ specific sums. Throughout the lesson students write their findings on their worksheet and the board. At the end of the lesson both the board and the students’ worksheets should be completed and mimic the CMM Workbook’s output sheet.
CSU East Bay
Amoret Bunn, Research Mentor
Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
Orchards
Subsequent to 1943, the use of Lead Arsenic was banned from the Orchards standing on the Hanford site. This use of Lead Arsenate pesticide was popular among the orchard owners and was dispersed over the site in a myriad of ways. The presence of the traces of lead and arsenic are found today, more than half a century later. Using a portable
X-ray florescence analyzer (XRF), the values of lead and arsenic are evaluated while determining the efficiency of the equipment itself. Samples from different decision sites were collected, with lead arsenic values in the low, high and medium range to the Standards provided by the Department of Energy (DOE). Using key operating procedures, an optimization study was conducted to evaluate the high performance of the analyzer. Each sample was evaluated for different count times, ranging from 15-180 seconds. The samples were also scanned in fixed and variable positions The optimal time observed was 60 seconds and a high variability of lead arsenic values in the soil was concluded.
(Lesson Plan) Human Activity And Its Effects
This lesson plan is designed for a high school biology class with the goal being to increase student’s understanding of consequences of human activity on the environment, its effects, and why it is important to monitor these activities closely. The students will be able to comprehend how certain human activity has compromised our own resources, how they can be managed, and what relationship they display with the sustainability of the environment. A real life example that students will be asked to analyze is the use of lead arsenic pesticide on the Orchards on the Hanford site. In a group activity, students will be provided with real life examples where misconduct via human activity has proven to be fatal towards our resources, and the wildlife. They will be asked to explain the context of the situation, explain its relevance in its time period, describe the possible or determined outcomes, what is being done and how can the harms be minimized for the humans and the wildlife.
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Pacific University
Tillamook High School
Brett Amidan, Research Mentor
Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
Reading In Binary Data And Creating An R User Interface
The Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) employs Phasor Measurement Units (PMUs) to measure variables such as
Voltage, Frequency, and Phasor Angles every sixtieth of a second. These measurements result in terabytes of data which are analyzed to detect abnormalities in the power grid. Recently BPA has switched the data file format from DST to
PDAT. A function does not currently exist to read in PDAT files in order to prepare the data for analysis. In order to do this the raw PMU data must be sorted and extracted to ensure its accuracy prior to analysis. This research worked to produce a method of reading in a PDAT file and converting it to an Rdata file that is used for analysis of the PMU data. Although the function is not working yet, when it is it will allow for BPA to have real time analysis of PMU data.
The historical prices of Mutual Funds and Exchange-Traded Funds (ETF) over their years of existence also create a large amount of data to analyze historical trends and predict future performance. The advancements in the R programming language allow for a more interactive User Interface (UI). This project worked on creating an interactive UI to be used in comparing Mutual Funds and ETFs using the R package “Shiny”. This allowed for interactive plots that provide additional information related to the desired fund. This investigation furthers the use of statistical anomaly detection analysis and plotting, such as that which is used in the BPA PMU analysis.
(Lesson Plan) Variable Correlation Based On Power Grid Data
One of the major goals of the Algebra classroom is to have a in-depth knowledge of variable connection, manipulation and graphing. My internship provides an introduction to these concepts for my students by highlighting the connection between voltage measurements and power grid performance. Using data from actual large scale power outage grids, I will provide graphs for students and ask them to make as many observations as the possibly can. Then they will draw conclusions based on their observations. Lastly we will compare as a class how their observations and conclusions relate to the observations data and available statistical data that we have. Students will develop and practice their skills of taking information and creating a related graph, and working in the reverse to view and graph and conclude as much information about the situation as possible. This will be the point at which students will be asked what other situations can be modeled this way. Following student’s clear introduction to the concept of correlation, variable assignment, and graphing, students will then be asked to pick two variables they are interested in studying whether a correlation exists between the two variables and how that correlation may affect them. (For example: Number of family members and amount of money spent on food) Finally, students will present their created graph and analysis of the presence or absence of correlation based on their mathematical analysis to the class.
CSU Long Beach
Vassiliki-Alexandra Glezakou, Research Mentor
Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
Determining Force Field Parameters Involved In MIL-101 Synthesis Using Gaussian 09 And Amber.
Metal organic frameworks (MOFs) are synthetic materials made of a cage-like lattice with consistently spaced pores. The size of these pores are the defining characteristic of a MOF, as it determines which gases are allowed to pass through and which can be trapped. Examples of their potential use can be greenhouse gas sequestration or storage. Currently, the synthesis of MOFs is based on trial-and-error, and the successes are not well understood. We are working on building the theoretical framework that describes how a particular MOF, MIL-101, comes together during synthesis. Our initial approach was to simulate the possible reactions with chemical kinetics through Cantera (a software suite that works through Python). To do this, a list of all possible intermediates with their thermodynamic properties is required.
Another approach is to calculate the chemical force field potentials, and simulate how the atoms themselves behave during the synthesis process. For both purposes we minimized the energy of the structure of one known intermediate, called ML3 (a metal core with three linkers) through Assisted Model Building with Energy Refinement (AMBER) and with electronic structure calculations through Gaussian 09. In the end, the parameters that defined this minimized structure of ML3 were found. These can be used further to build the MIL-101 mechanism for use in Cantera, as well as the force field simulations.
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(Lesson Plan) Simulating Physical Systems With Vpython
Students will use VPython (a visual extension of the Python programming language) to create simple physical systems from scratch. They will define objects, the rules that govern those objects’ interactions, and the effect those rules have on the motion of each object. Then VPython will advance their systems in time and students will observe what effects their rules have on the system. Students can easily modify anything in the script, and observe the differences the changes make in the system, if any. Students will be able to identify the system as approximations of real physical systems, and learn the usefulness and limitations of computational physics. In addition, students gain experience with programming, an extremely valuable skill even outside the physics classroom.
University of Southern California
Xiao-Ying Yu, Research Mentor
Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
The Effect Of Electrolyte Compositions, Concentration And Ph On The Electrochemical Redox Reactions
Electrolyte composition, concentration and pH have long been known to play a role in the interface of the electrodeelectrolyte. However, detailed studies are not sufficient. Cyclic voltammetry (CV) is a widely used electrochemical technique for obtaining qualitative information in electroanalysis. CV is often the first experiment performed in an electrode surface in an electrochemical study. It measures the number of electrons transferred and intermediates formed during oxidation-reduction (redox) reactions by observing its current, intensity and position of peak potential with applied voltage. This is accomplished by using a three-electrode system including working electrode (WE), counter electrode (CE) and reference electrode (RE). In this work, our system consists of gold (Au) We, platinum (PT) CE and silver/silver chloride (Ag/AgCl) RE. The potential relative to the reference electrode is forward- and reverse-scanned at the working electrode while the current flows through the counter electrode is observed in a solution. In this study, we investigate systematically the redox potential of the different analytes under various pH and concentration. Therefore, this study can be referenced for studies in exploring a variety range of biological samples, cells, tissues, lipids, and proteins on surfaces.
(Lesson Plan) Oxidation-Reduction Reactions On The Graph
This lesson plan is designed for a high school level biology class to instruct students on oxidation-reduction (redox) reactions. By the end of this lesson, students will be able to explain the basis of a redox reaction, identify the substances that are oxidized and reduced, provide real life occurrences, and understand the concept of cyclic voltammetry for testing redox reactions. In the beginning of the class, students will be broken down into groups of 4 or 5. Students will share their opinions and thoughts with their group members about real life occurrences of redox reactions in order to complete their graphic organizer. This will allow the teacher to assess students’ previous knowledge on redox reactions in real life through their discussion and discussion conclusions. Given examples of oxidation-reduction reactions in chemical formulas, students will learn how these reactions are measured in the lab by using a cyclic voltammeter and its concepts for measuring and graphing redox reactions. Finally, students will use their notes from the lesson instruction and group discussion to write a paragraph-summary of their learning in this lesson. This will be their exit-ticket to leave the classroom which will allow the teacher to assess their learning and understanding the concept of the lesson by doing this evaluation. The purpose of this lesson plan is to incorporate some of my research results and skills I learned in a laboratory setting which will help students to understand how redox reactions can be measured and observed in numbers and data.
CSU San Luis Obispo
Andy Chang, Research Mentor
Romberg Tiburon Center
Eradicating The Invasive Carcinus Maenas
The European Green Crab, Carcinus Maenas, is an invasive species that initially invaded the East Coast in the 1950’s.
This species migrated to the West Coast and was discovered in the San Francisco Bay in 1989. The European Green
Crab preys on and outcompetes native crabs, consequentially having a negative effect on the ecosystem in which it lives.
The Smithsonian Environmental Research Center has been working to eradicate this species since 2009. Trapping these crabs every summer has been a main effort put forth by the Smithsonian. To understand the habitat in which these crabs
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prefer I created an experiment to analyze the substrate these crabs are trapped on most often. Two treatments (algae and sand) and two controls were set up for this experiment. I hypothesize that more numerous amounts of crabs will prefer environments with algae as this creates protection from current and predators. This work is a first step to see if the
European Green Crab has a habitat preference based upon size, sex, and number of crabs. If a preference is discovered this will aid in eradicating efforts as well as help predict where the European Green Crab might spread in the future.
(Lesson Plan) Inheritance And Variation Of Traits
In this lesson, elementary school students will discover how organisms acquire specific traits and how the environment influences them. Students will learn how variation of traits help certain individuals survive, find mates and reproduce at a higher rate than others. First, the teacher will show pictures of the European Green Crab from their STAR experience.
The class will identify the crab’s physical characteristics and explain why these traits allow it to thrive in its specific habitat. After a brief introduction about how traits can be passed on and how the environment influences them, students will complete a worksheet on a specific animal. Students will share in groups about the traits their animal possesses and how they help it survive. In the final part of this lesson, students will create their own “made up” animal in its unique habitat. Students will write what traits their animal has and why those specific traits help it survive, find mates, and/or reproduce at a higher rate than other individuals of the same species.
CSU Long Beach
Lindsay J Sullivan, Research Mentor
Romberg Tiburon Center
Abundance Of Jellyfish In The San Francisco Bay Estuary
The San Francisco Bay Estuary is home to many species of marine and wildlife that create a delicate ecological balance.
Invasive jellyfish introduced to the bay though cargo shipping are believed to be competing with the endangered delta smelt for the same food source of copepods. Samples of zooplankton were taken from high and low salinity zones in the
San Francisco Bay over three years in months June through February to correlate with the peak of the jellyfish lifecycle.
The preserved samples are looked through and jellyfish are removed and recorded. The species of jellyfish is determined using features such as mouth shape, tentacle formation, radial and centripetal canal prominence, velum width, and presence of statoscyts and ocelli. There are major species being studied include the cnidairia Blackfordia virginica,
Maeotias marginata, and Moerisia lyonsi as well as the ctenophore Pleurobrachia bachei. Other species have been identified but are not as abundant. An image of each jellyfish is recorded and the bell height and diameter is measured using a pixel measurement ratio overlaid on an image taken of the jellyfish. Given that the jellyfish are zooplankton, they are most commonly sized at ± 1mm but can be found as large as 15mm. The purpose of this study is to track the abundance of jellyfish in the bay to provide data to compare with other studies to determine if the jellyfish are affecting the ecology of the bay as a threat to the delta smelt.
(Lesson Plan) Survival Characteristics Of Animals
3rd grade Next Generation Science Standard 3-LS4-2 addresses how characteristics of animals help them survive, and reproduce. To begin the lesson, students will build a jellyfish out of recycled materials (cups, newspaper, plastic bags, etc). Students will each share one characteristic they chose their jellyfish to have, why they chose it, and/or how it helps the jellyfish. Using the knowledge of jellyfish species from this STAR internship, I will share images of different jellyfish highlighting their different characteristics in connection with what the students shared about their jellyfish creations. As the characteristics are discussed, students will point to the corresponding parts of their jellyfish in order to incorporate total physical response for English language learners. Students will then choose their favorite plant or animal, research their living thing, and create a diagram labeling its characteristics with captions of each characteristic’s purpose.
Students will be informally assessed using anecdotal records while students share their findings and selecting one key characteristic they found to be important to survival.
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CSU Channel Islands
Lindsay Sullivan, Research Mentor
Romberg Tiburon Center
Functional Response Of Protected Larval Stage Delta Smelt
Delta smelt, Hypomesus transpacificus, is a slender and small-bodied fish, about 5-7cm, that is endemic to the San
Francisco Estuary. Historically, these fish were once abundant but began to show declines as early as the 1980s. By
1993 delta smelt were listed as threatened. With numbers declining rapidly, delta smelt were put under the California
Endangered Species Act in 2010. Many reasons have contributed to their decline, such as changes in their ecosystem, pollutants in the water, water diversions, and non-native species. This study aims to better understand the functional response of delta smelt when given different prey densities of the copepodite, Limnoithona tetraspina, under a controlled lab setting. Delta smelt at 132 dph were placed in buckets with different concentrations of prey, L. tetraspina. Larval stage delta smelt were given 2 hours to feed. When the experiment was over, fish were then dissected and analyzed to see how many prey were ingested. So far the data suggests that delta smelt may be prey limited. In the controlled lab conditions fish were given much higher prey densities than what would normally be available in the wild. Not having enough prey to feed on has negative implications for the future population of delta smelt.
(Lesson Plan) Should We Protect Delta Smelt?
This lesson addresses the importance of protecting and conserving those species that are listed as endangered. Often when young students are asked to think of species that are endangered they are quick to say, “Save the polar bears!”
They associate many charismatic megafauna, like polar bears , sea turtles, and pandas, as being endangered. Currently, and locally, there is a controversial issue about whether or not the delta smelt should be protected. This small fish may not be as well known to the youth of our community, but they are equally important and many people have a wide range of opinions. This lesson gives middle school students the outlets to watch local news video clips and read news and scientific articles from different perspectives. They can learn about arguments from scientists, politicians, farmers, and the community. The lesson includes individual research, small group discussion, and a half page written argument about whether or not delta smelt should be protected. Written responses are to be thoughtful and must cite evidence to support their argument. During this lesson students can better understand a local issue in their community and form their own opinions while integrating writing skills and backing up their argument with specific evidence. Just this past
March 2014, California appeals courts upheld federal guidelines that limit water diversions to protect delta smelt.
Columbus State University
Duluth High School (Duluth, GA)
Lindsay Sullivan, Research Mentor
Romberg Tiburon Center
Effect Of Salinity On Microplankton Distribution In The San Francisco Estuary
Microplankton are a diverse group of planktonic organisms ranging from 0.02 to 0.2 millimeters. Since the group is defined solely by size, it spans numerous taxonomic groups, including both heterotrophs and autotrophs. Microplankton are abundant in all aquatic ecosystems and are important prey for many organisms, including bivalves, crustaceans, and fish. The San Francisco Bay is truly an estuary as saltwater enters the estuary under the Golden Gate Bridge and freshwater flows in from the Sacramento and San Joaquin Rivers. Thus, there is a gradient of salinity from freshwater
(0) in the rivers to full strength seawater by the Golden Gate Bridge (>30). This research quantified the abundance and distribution of microplankton in the San Francisco Estuary from 2010 to 2013. Microplankton were collected from nine sites within the estuary and preserved with iodine. They were then identified, measured, and counted on an inverted microscope. The data was then evaluated to determine if the distribution of microplankton was related to the salinity levels.
(Lesson Plan) Ecological Organization (Examples From San Francisco Estuary)
This lesson introduces students to ecological organization. At the beginning, the students will draw a picture of where they live, those whom they live with (including pets), and the land around their home. After sharing their picture with a partner, the teacher will facilitate a discussion with the whole class in which the pictures are related to the various levels of ecological organization. Thus, the students may identify themselves as an organism in their picture, their family as the population, their family including their pets and any other animals that live on the land as the community, and all living
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and non-living things within their picture as the ecosystem. An example of how the San Francisco Estuary ecosystem is organized is also presented to the class using pictures of organisms such as ciliates and diatoms.
University of California, Berkeley
Sarah Cohen, Research Mentor
Romberg Tiburon Center
Estimating Genetic Exchange Between Subpopulations Of Zostera Marina In The San Francisco Bay
Eelgrass (Zostera marina) is a highly clonal marine angiosperm that can also reproduce sexually through flowering and seed formation. In a previous study, Fst values from six microsatellite loci suggested that a perennial San Francisco
Bay subpopulation at Point Molate (Richmond, California) was able to recover from a drastic 2006 die-off through seed recruitment from neighboring eelgrass subpopulations, changing its reproductive strategy from clonal to sexual.
Although Fst measures continue to be widely used in population genetics, the assumptions under which they operate are not always appropriate given certain circumstances, such small population sizes and/or asymmetrical migration rates.
Our summer research goal was to re-analyze the microsatellite data with the program MIGRATE, which uses coalescentbased analyses to estimate posterior probability distributions for genetic parameters such as effective population size and migration rates. With MIGRATE, we employed a Bayesian approach to infer migration rates between three Point Molate subpopulations (2005, 2007, and 2008) and its neighboring subpopulations at Point San Pablo, Point Orient, and Keller
Beach. To add to an ongoing study of its temporal genetic variation, we collected 46 vegetative shoots from Point Molate for future genotyping. We also collected 50 vegetative shoots from Tomales Bay (Marshall, California) for a future study on genetic connectivity of inner and outer SF Bay eelgrass subpopulations. Results from MIGRATE analyses are still in preliminary stages and require further manipulation before a conclusive interpretation can be reached.
(Lesson Plan) Quantifying Genetic Connectivity
Students will generate allele frequency data from an in-class activity and calculate population genetics statistics to determine the genetic connectivity between all class subpopulations. Students will use this data to address ecological questions/issues in future lessons, keeping in mind that Fst values are just one measure used to represent population statistics, and that they are not always appropriate.
CSU San Luis Obispo
Lindsay Sullivan, Research Mentor
Romberg Tiburon Center
Abundance And Distribution Of Jellyfish In The San Francisco Estuary
Jellyfish are generally characterized by their jelly-like bodies and internal lining (two tissue layers). They found both in the phylum Ctenophora and the phylum Cnidaria. Ctenophores differ from cnidarians primarily due to the rows of “combs”, or cilia, which are used for transportation. Additionally, ctenophores possess sticky cells while cindarians possess stinging cells. Jellyfish depend on zooplankton (small floating aquatic animals) as a food source; as a result, they are potential competitors and predators to plankton-eating fish and may negatively impact fish populations. As recently as 1950, jellyfish have entered the San Francisco Bay from the Mediterranean Sea (probably in water carried by ships as ballast), becoming an invasive species in this delicate ecosystem. Among the varieties of jellyfish found, the most common include: P. brachei, (native) B. virginica (invasive), M. marginata (invasive), and M. lysoni (invasive).
Little is known about the jellyfish community in the San Francisco Estuary, and information on their abundance and distribution will help scientists better understand their role in local food webs. In order to obtain this information, samples were regularly taken from 9 different stations in the delta over the course of 3 years (2010-2012). Jellyfish were isolated from these samples, identified based on their characteristic morphological features, measured by diameter and height, and counted.
(Lesson Plan) Impact Of Invasive Species On Food Webs
The focus of this lesson is to review components of the food web through an in-depth inspection of the organisms in the
San Francisco Estuary. In addition, it introduces students to the concept of invasive species and their potential impacts, including an alteration in: niche, reproduction rate, food sources, and population density of native species. To reach these objectives, students will be given key information on select organisms of the San Francisco Estuary and work in groups to create food webs. Afterwards, students will participate in an interactive, kinesthetic activity, which models the
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impact of jellyfish, an invasive species of the bay, on the food web they created. In order to gage the understanding of these concepts, students will be expected to orally share their conclusions during a classroom discussion as the teacher leads with guiding questions.
CSU San Francisco
Anna Butterworth, Research Mentor
Space Sciences Laboratory at UC Berkeley
Data Mining For Calcium-aluminum-rich Inclusions In Cometary Dust.
NASA’s Stardust mission (1999 - 2006) returned physical samples of the particles ejected by the comet 81P/Wild 2, collected in ultralight and extremely low density aerogel. These samples have been extensively analyzed using X-Ray
Fluorescence (XRF), among other techniques, to determine the elemental, chemical and mineralogical composition of
Wild 2. Because comets are thought to be formed in the icy outer regions of the solar system, billions of years ago, the
Stardust data gives us details of the composition of the ancient solar system and its subsequent evolution. One of the surprises to come out of the data is the presence of Calcium-aluminum-rich inclusions (CAIs). CAIs are composed of exotic minerals that form at very high temperatures, in stark contrast to the icy conditions beyond the orbit of Neptune.
To date, only a small handful of CAIs have been found in Wild 2. My summer research has been to organize some of the
Stardust XRF data into a “datamine-able” format, in order to search more efficiently for the presence of additional CAIs.
(Lesson Plan) We Are All Stardust!
The purpose of the lessons is to introduce/remind students of the elemental composition of everything, and introduce the physics of spectroscopy. The introductory set will include giving students apples of different varieties (Fuji,Granny
Smith etc). They will then be scaffolded through the questions of “What is it made of?” and “Where did it come from?”, written on paper in groups, in order to start having conversations about elemental compositions. Next students will be given orbital charts, and an activity that will be related to energy released in the form of photons for electrons moving between orbital levels. Sample spectra will be shown, and based on absorption lines students will identify elements; This will introduce spectroscopy, to be worked on more in future lessons. This will answer the broad question of “What is it made of?”. To answer the other broad question, “Where did it come from?” there will be a lesson on the lifetime of a star, and the creation of elements in the core of the star, and the enrichment of the solar system from supernovae. The
Stardust data will then be used to compare to the elemental composition of the human body, so as to draw profound connections.
CSU East Bay
Juan Carlos Martinez Oliveros, Research Mentor
Space Sciences Laboratory at UC Berkeley
An Analysis Of The Location Of White Light Flares In The Sun’s Atmosphere
This summer I have researched where in the Sun’s atmosphere white light flares occur. White light flares are the visible electromagnetic emission created during a solar flare. Solar flares are violent release of energy in the Sun’s atmosphere.
They occur as a result of the Sun’s magnetic field becoming twisted as the Sun’s equator rotates faster than it’s poles. As the magnetic field twists, magnetic loops emerge out of the Sun. The plasma in the Sun’s atmosphere are magnetically attracted to the loops and travel up the loop. Eventually the loop breaks because it can’t stretch anymore. When it breaks, particles are accelerated out into space and back towards the Sun. As a result of a change in density between two layers of the Sun’s atmosphere the particles that were accelerated back toward the Sun slam into the denser layer called the Photosphere and emit x-rays. Sometimes white light is emitted along with the x-rays. According to the standard flare model, all electromagnetic radiation should be emitted where the loops emerge from the photosphere, called the footpoints. A white light flare analyzed by Dr. Juan Carlos Martinez Oliveres, showed the white light flare occurring below the footpoints. This summer I have made a catalog of all flares of 12-25 ev energy emission from 2011 to 2013.
From this catalog I have analyzed these flares to determine whether white light emission normally occurs below the footpoints, meaning the standard flare model is incorrect, or if that occurrence was an anomaly.
(Lesson Plan) Magnetic Fields And How They Relate To The Sun
Students will work in pairs and trace the magnetic field lines using the compass arrow on a piece of paper. This activity will lead to a discussion about how compasses are attracted to magnets and why a compass’ needle always points North.
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I will ask the students if they knew the sun has a magnetic field too. I will then ask the students to discuss with their partner if they think the magnetic field of the sun is similar to the Earth’s. I will ask what state of matter they think the sun is made of. I will tell them that the sun is made out of plasma, but that it acts a lot like a liquid. Then, I will demonstrate how liquid acts when it is rotated by spinning a bucket of water then I will spin a globe . I will ask them to make a list in of two things that were the same and that were different. We will then discuss what we noticed between the two objects rotating. I will then ask, if the sun spins like the water did, how does that affect the magnetic field. I will demonstrate what happens by twisting a rubber band over and over until it snaps. I will explain that the magnetic field lines on the sun are the same way but when they cause solar flares when they snap. I will then instruct them to write down a question or fact from what we learned today.
CSU San Francisco
Matt Fillingim, Research Mentor
Space Sciences Laboratory at UC Berkeley
Magnetic Fields And Currents At Night And Terminator Sides Of Mars From Mars Global Surveyor Data
We present results using magnetic field and current observations from the Mars Global Surveyor data. We determine the currents from the magnetic field profiles on the ionosphere through the 1000 orbits around Mars. By establishing the radial component of the magnetic field to be relatively zero, we extrapolate good data that provides current density profiles, from which we infer that Joule heating could occur.
(Lesson Plan) Electromagnetism And The Mars Atmosphere
How is electromagnetism relevant to the Mars atmosphere? In this lesson, we shall discover the wonders of electromagnetism and how it relates to the climate of Mars. Unlike the Earth, Mars has no global magnetic field. A global magnetic field drives currents that affect climate and deflect harmful solar wind interactions with the atmosphere of a planet. A moving charge is current. Current produces a magnetic field. In turn, a moving magnetic field provides current. A current is produced when a bar of magnet is moved in and out of a copper coil. Observed magnetic field profiles produce current profiles. The atmosphere if Mars is dominated by ions. Ions are excited atoms. An atom is excited when it reaches a higher energy level. An atom is also excited when the number of electrons does not match the number of protons. Since these ions are driven by the solar wind, which carries a magnetic field, current is produced. It is stipulated that currents contribute to Joule heating, which drives climate. Students will be introduced to these concepts and would hold a “conference” as if having done the research and produce conclusions to their observations.
Other
Central Coast New Tech High
Hazel Bain, Research Mentor
Space Sciences Laboratory at UC Berkeley
Probing The Alfvén Speed Profile Using Type II Radio Bursts
Type II radio bursts are produced when a coronal mass ejection (CME) shock is traveling faster than the local plasma speed of the ambient medium. From the drift rate of type II bursts it is possible to calculate the velocity of the CME.
By performing a statistical survey covering events during 2012-2013 using radio observations we determine speeds of CME shocks as a means of setting limits on the Alfvén speed profile of the interplanetary medium as a function of distance from the sun. These observations come from the WAVES instruments onboard the twin Solar TErrestrial
RElations Observatory (STEREO) spacecraft, as well as onboard the WIND spacecraft during. We pay special attention to normalization of the density models used to fit the Type II bursts through the use of in-situ measurements, polarized brightness images, and 3D reconstructions when possible.
(Lesson Plan) Developing Computing Tools To Support Scientists
Using scientists at Berkeley’s Space Science Laboratory as contacts, students will be given the opportunity to design, create, and test a set of tools that can be used by scientists to help analyze data. Based on asking questions directly from the scientists, students will identify problems that scientists face in analyzing data, and help design solutions that will meet their specifications. These solutions will then be implemented using Java and will be evaluated with feedback from members of the scientific community.
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2:20 – 3:10
CSU Fresno
CSU Sacramento
National Ecological Observatory Network
NOAA Boulder
SETI Institute
SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory
CSU Fresno
Mara Brady, Research Mentor
CSU Fresno
San Joaquin River Grain Texture Analysis
The purpose of this research in the bigger picture is to better anticipate future river flow of the San Joaquin River.
By studying the sediments transported from the Sierra Nevada into different formations of rivers such as Turlock,
Riverbank and Modesto, we hope to know more about what caused different river flow, sediment transportation and why. Samples from different outcrops in the Fresno quary have been collected and documented by another Fresno State
Student. The samples were sieved and measured by phi size then classified by lithofacies. Lithofacies are grouping of rock units with similar lithologic (texture, composition, sed. structures) features. Those used for this project are clast supported massive gravel (GCM), gravel stratified (GP), and clast supported crudely bedded gravel (GH). The GCM lithofacies is one that is more gravity driven instead of stream driven. Lithofacies GH and GP are more water or stream driven. In order to easily view trends and patterns amongst the sample’s roundness, shininess and roughness, the information has been organized on graphs that group similar lithofacies to compare to those that are not similar. Since facies GH and GP are both water driven versus GCM which is more gravity driven, data from lithofacies GH and GP are graphed together to compare to GCM. Through this process it is possible to see if the processes acting on sediment transport and deposition influence textural features of the sediments.
(Lesson Plan) Rock Samples And Where They Came From
In small groups, students will observe 4 different rocks and will document their observations on post-it notes that they will stick onto big chart paper (1 per rock). Teacher will then lead a classroom discussion as to why students believe certain rocks have certain features and where they may expect to find those types of rocks. Students will chose which rock they would like to work with and teacher will show students 4 pictures of environments where the rocks were collected from. Students will make a written prediction about where of those 4 environments their rock came from.
Teacher will form small groups according to rock and prediction similarities and will send students to gather a small sample from the four environment bins. Once students collect their samples they will go back to their groups and will document observations of the new samples. Students will document their process for gathering the samples as well as how these compare to their original rock. Students will then, as a group, decide if their sample matches their original rock enough to infer that their prediction was accurate or not. To close the activity the class will come back together and teacher will have visual representations (PowerPoint) of environments and their rock samples that they hold. Students will discuss why certain features are seen in different environments while the teacher serves to clarify information and guide discussion.
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CSU Fresno
Alejandro Calderon, Research Mentor
CSU Fresno
Growing Conditions For Algae
With the growing demands of water in California and the increasing cost of fossil fuels to operate water-cleaning equipment, Algae was cultivated in different concentrations of Nitrogen, Phosphorus, and Potassium (NPK) during different trails to identify the best growing conditions for the removal of water contaminates. Before testing algae in waste water, the Algae: Dunaliella Primolecta, Chlorella Vulgaris, and Scenedesmus Dimorphus were cultivated in four different media containing distilled water and plant vitamins. The different mediums used include: Orchid Grow More
(20-20-20), Miracle Grow (30-10-10), Murashige & Skoog, and Orchid Bloom Boster (11-35-15). As a result of the investigation, the algae, Scenedesmus Dimorphus, had the best growing conditions of the three algae species. In order to find out if Algae can be used to remove contaminants from waste water, further experiments must be completed. These experiments will include acquiring waste water from different locations in California and growing the three different types of algae species in waste water as well as the waste water with the different media.
(Lesson Plan) All About Algae
My lesson plan involves learning in depth about the importance of the ocean organism algae. Before starting the lesson, the teacher will introduce students to important vocabulary used throughout the lesson as well as take part of an interactive lecture on the background of algae. The teacher will involve the students in the lecture by asking inquiry questions and having students answer them in their lab notebooks. Soon after, students will be broken down into groups of four. Students will learn more about algae by rotating in stations every 5 minutes with their group members. In the stations students will learn about algae, identify the two different types of algae, learn how they grow, the environment they grow in, what they eat, how pollution affects their living environments, what are some of the uses of algae, and lastly draw an image of an algae cell. Students will use an Algae Station Packet to record their findings and observations.
Students will be informally assessed during different times of the lesson to check for understanding. At the end of the lesson, students will write a one-page paper answering the following: “How do algae contribute to our society? What did you learn about algae? Using what you learned as a basis, what is something new you would create using algae?”
CSU Fresno
Mara Brady, Research Mentor
CSU Fresno
Textural Feature Analysis From Turlock Lake And Riverbank
The research will be focusing on sediments from Turlock Lake and Riverbank. My focus is to analyze the sediments to know if there are any correlations between the textural features of the sediments between Turlock Lake and Riverbank based on their size. It is expected the environment of the lakes and the rivers has an effect in the changes and if the energy of the water flow also affects the different textural features. The textural features will focus on; roundness, shiny vs. dull, rough vs. smooth, and their shape. The shape is calculated by the three dimensions of the sediment; the longest point, shortest point, and the middle point. A chart was used to determine the measurement. Depending where the measuring land we get their shape. All the textural features will be compared with the different sizes of the sediments. Different histograms will be used to compare the different sizes of the sediment with their textural features.
By comparing the textural features based on their sizes some correlations between the sizes and their features will be identified. Once again the research is focusing on analyzing the sediments from Turlock Lake and Riverbank to see some correlations between the different sizes of the sediments. The differences will be expected to be based on the environment of the rivers and lakes and the energy of the water flow. The energy of the water flow will affect how round a rock will be. Stable rocks are rounder because it requires higher energy flow.
(Lesson Plan) Rocks And Minerals!!
During the lesson the students will be working in groups of four or five students per group. Each group will be given a set of different rocks and mineral to analyze and observe. Each student in each group will have a magnifying glass to carefully look at each sample and discuss with the group members what differences they noticed in each of their samples. They will write their observations on their science journal. Once they have had few minutes to observe their samples the class will share their observations and the teacher will write the students’ response on the board. After the
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class discussion the discussion the students will go back to their groups and characterize their samples based on their similarities and differences. There could be some samples that have overlap characteristics. The groups’ members will cooperate with each other to decide on the characteristics of the samples. They will also create a Venn diagram to show to how they characterize their rock samples. Once the students have had a chance to share their Venn diagrams the teacher will go over some material so the students to get a background of the rocks and minerals. As a closing individual assignment the students will write a paper describing what process they did when analyzing the samples. They will also include what they did to classify their samples based on the characteristics they observe. They will also include what they learned in both analyzing the samples and from the lecture.
CSU Fresno
Beth Weinman, Research Mentor
CSU Fresno
Using Stratigraphic Colmuns To Anylize The Sequence Stragraphy Of Glacial Feed River Deposites
The sedimentary deposits of the ancient San Joaquin River tell the story of river flow through three glacial periods. A stratigraphic column shows vertical changes in deposition throughout an outcrop. It can be used to extrapolate the energy level of the flow, and other features of the river at different depositional environments. By looking at trends through the column it is possible to determine how the river’s flow changed through time. Variances in the gravel size and whether it supports itself or is held together by the surrounding sand matrix give clues as to the rate of flow and how likely the sediment is to settle out of suspension. Finer grains settle out in lower energy flow. A stratigraphic column shows cycles of these trends that may potentially correlate with global climatic cycles. Dates from OSL (optically stimulated luminescence) testing are the final step needed to tie these cycles together. OSL dates are based on measuring electrons trapped in band gaps. The radiation given off by trace amounts of radioactive elements causes electrons to enter band gaps. Band gaps are caused by impurities in the structure of minerals such as quartz. Exposure to light resets these electrons. Therefore the amount of electrons in band gaps is proportional to the time the mineral has been buried and the number of radioactive elements present. OSL processing will not be finished by the end of this project, but samples were taken and are being prepared in a dark room for testing.
(Lesson Plan) Using Stratigraphic Colmuns To Understand The History Of River Systems.
Students begin by learning the basics of sediment deposition, specifically how grain size varies with the energy level of the river. They are then presented with two simple stratified outcrops in a container with clear sides. After splitting the class in two, each half will use graph paper to draw a representative stratigraphic column of a different out crop. The stratigraphic column symbolically shows whether that section of the out crop is clast or matrix supported or just sand without gravel. The stratigraphic column also shows the change in grain size on the horizontal; the further the symbol used extends along the’x’ axis, the larger the grain size. After sufficient time to complete the representative drawings, they switch papers with a student that drew the other outcrop. Now they can attempt to write a basic interpretation of the changes in depositional environments at different vertical points along the outcrop based on the stratigraphic columns of another student. It is important for them to understand that a stratigraphic column drawn in the field should be interpretable by a colleague who has not seen the original outcrop.
CSU Fresno
Beth Weinman, Research Mentor
CSU Fresno
Geochemical Analysis Of Pleistocene Deposits From Turlock Lake Formation, Cemex Quarry Fresno, CA
Nineteen bags of Pleistocene Age river deposited samples were taken from the Cemex Quarry in Fresno, CA. There are three formations in the area, deposited from rivers derived from glaciers, consisting of the Modesto, Riverbank, and Turlock Lake; youngest deposited to oldest respectively. Phi sizes refer to each of the individual grains diameter, larger sized grains are in the negative spectrum while smaller grains are positive. Each sample has phi size bags that range in sizes from -5 to 4+, excluding phi size -2. For the phi sizes of -3 to -5, each individual rock was measured on its three axis and that data was compiled into an excel sheet. This was used to determine the textural maturity of the samples which was derived from a number system for the following categories: roundness, rough/smooth, shiny/dull and grain shape. QLF (Quartz, Lithic, and Feldspar) tests were conducted on the phi size 0, -1, and -2. This determines the geochemical weathering and its compositional maturity. The QLF graphs indicate that as the phi size increases the
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grains become more compositionally mature, consisting of mainly quartz while having minute amounts of lithics and feldspars. Respectively, as phi size decreases the grains become less compositionally mature and consist upwards of 90% lithics. OSL samples were taken from the quarry. These samples give the exact dating to the given areas sampled from the different formations. Due to the month long process, per sample, these results will be included in future publications of this research.
(Lesson Plan) Acquisition Of QLF Data To Determine Compositional Maturity In Sands From Various
Localities
Students will be broken up into groups of two. Groups will be assigned a dissecting microscope and an experimental set which includes: three bags of varying sands, three weigh boats, and a dental tool. As one student uses the microscope and counts out; the other student should keep a tally. Students should switch jobs between samples. Students are to set up their microscopes under the instruction of the teacher. After the microscope tutorial has been given, go over the sets that have been described above. Each bag of sand is to be poured into its own respective weigh boat. Only one weigh boat of sand is to be examined at a time under the microscope. Students are then tasked to count the quartz, lithic, and feldspar grains until the desired number of grains in total has been achieved(i.e. 100, 200, 400.) This experiment is best to be done after the students have already gone over these types of rocks, pictures will be provided showing the different types of grains for visual examples. Upon completing the experiment the students data will then be entered into an excel sheet where it will be turned into a QLF Diagram. This will then be shared with the class as a whole. After this experiment students will have learned the skills of categorizing rocks, while also implementing information into graphical context. Students graphs will convey their samples compositional maturity, which can then be juxtapose to real world areas such as rivers, lakes, etc.
CSU Fresno
Alejandro Calderon, Research Mentor
CSU Fresno
Growing Algae
Over the course of nine weeks, three different types of algae were cultured and grown. These species include Dunaliella primolecta, Chlorella vulgaris, and Scenedesmus dimorphus. Media was prepared according to the needs of each species. For example, Dunaliella primolecta had to contain salt; therefore, Instant Ocean was added to the media needed to culture Dunaliella primolecta. The media used for the three species had varying ratios of nitrogen, phosphorous, and potassium (NPK). In order to see which ratio worked best to grow these algae four different solutions were prepared.
These include, Orchid Bloom Booster, Orchid Grow More, Miracle Grow, and Murashige & Skoog. Four different trials were done to determine the best method of growing the algae. It was concluded that Scenedesmus dimorphus was the fastest growing algae in the Orchid Grow More media, which contains an NPK level of 20-20-20. Knowing this result, the algae can now be placed in different wastewater samples along with the best growing media in order to observe if the algae can clean out the samples.
(Lesson Plan) Getting Familiar With Algae
Students will learn the significance of algae and be introduced to a set of vocabulary that helps categorize different types of algae. Their activities will include Dunaliella primolecta, Chlorella vulgaris, and Scenedesmus dimorphus. Students will be given background information about the environments that are best suitable for these types of algae and will also learn about the different media they are grown in. The varying NPK levels and the significance of each element, nitrogen, phosphorous, and potassium are discussed. Pictures of each type of algae and their growth process will be shown so that students will become familiarized with them. The microscope and its parts will also be explained so that the students know what they will be working with. After lecture, a jeopardy game will be used as a way to verify the students’ understanding. For the hands-on activity, students will be provided with slides containing the three different types of algae and will be given a handout where they can draw and describe the characteristics of the cells that they see.
Different types of media will be prepared for the students, and they will be asked to inoculate their media with algae
Hypotheses will be made based on the knowledge that they have obtained thus far. Throughout the following weeks they will be given handouts where they can count the number of cells and graph their results. The different groups will report their results to the class. This will confirm the lecture topics with their hands-on experience.
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CSU Sacramento
Dudley Burton, Research Mentor
CSU Sacramento
Aquaponics And Basil Plant Density
Aquaponics is the use of water from a fish tank to provide nutrients to plants in a soil-less environment. The rocks cultivate the bacteria that turns the ammonia into the nitrates that the plants need, and the plant bed functions as a filter for the fish tank. In this study, with the guidance of Doctor Dudley Burton, Doctor Brook Murphy and the help of the student interns (fish feeding and monitoring of the system) from the environmental studies department at Sac State, I researched the optimal plant density for Basil in an Aquaponics system. We attempted to control and measure all the other variables to consider, as to isolate the variable of distance between plants. The water flow was spread through the plant bed through a manifold and placed on the opposite side as the bell siphon to attempt to evenly spread the nitrates, and plants were selected from 5 or 6 different plants and variously placed in the sample sets. Plastic sheeting was used to hold the distance between plants constant, and net pots were used to place the plants. A light sensor was used to measure the light hitting the plant bed to account for that variable, and a water chemistry kit was used to check the certain chemical levels weekly. The plants were all cut down to have two nodes remaining and started all about the same size. Photographs throughout the study and biomass measurements at the end were the primary forms of data collection.
(Lesson Plan) Aquaponics In The Classroom
My lesson plan will include the use of an Aquafarm in the classroom, which teachers or schools can purchase online for about $60 and supplemental cost will include fish, fish food and seeds or other plants to grow. Every teacher can have this in their classroom and teach students responsibility by rotating fish feeders, and do studies of different plants and how fast they grow, and if plants grow better with more or less fish in the tank. In my lesson plan I will focus on
Kindergarten, since this is the foundation of a child’s education, and children are never too young for science. My lesson will include several of the Next Generation Science Standards as well as overlap into other disciplines such as reading, writing and math. This ongoing project in the classroom could and probably will incorporate all of the NGSS except for the Motion/Stability and Engineering Design Standards. Students will choose different plants to grow in the Aquafarm and measure and document their growth. They will collect, compile and compare the data over the course of several months or the entire school year. They will observe, collaborate and draw conclusions about what plants grow best in an
Aquafarm. There will be an introduction on how Aquaponics works to the students and a mini lesson on fish and fish care. Most importantly the students will engage in hands-on learning and with the purpose of creating adults who are environmentally conscientious.
CSU Sacramento
Ron Coleman, Research Mentor
CSU Sacramento
Parental Care Aggression Of Female Cichlids In Alternating Temperatures
Convict cichlids (Archocentrus nigrofasciatus) have developed to be extremely good parents by protecting their brood under any circumstance to extend their survival rate. Parental care leads to aggressive biting, chasing, and gill flaring to intimidate known predators. This experiment details my findings of whether environmental factors, such as the changing of temperature in this case, affect a female convict cichlid’s aggression toward caring for her offspring when an intruder is introduced.
(Lesson Plan) Protective Adaptations
Students will be able to analyze data collected from my research of discovering convict cichlids’ parental care aggression differences in alternating temperatures. Through this data, students will formulate ideas as to why aggression differences had varied and apply those findings to human behavior, as well as animal and plant protective adaptations, under similar circumstances. This lesson commands the knowledge of interpreting data sets, displaying the provided data through a visual medium, understanding steps associated with the scientific method, and composing a well-structured research paper; which will be an accumulation of what each student had personally gathered throughout the lesson.
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CSU Sacramento
Ben Fell, Research Mentor
CSU Sacramento
Buckling Induced Fracture Behavior Of Round Steel Tubes Subjected To Axial Reversed Cyclic Loads
This project will investigate the local buckling induced fracture behavior of round steel tubes subjected to axial compressive loads, representative of observed failures in buried pipelines during seismic events. Nine initial tests will be conducted across three lengths of round steel tube: 8”, 12”, and 20”. Another twelve tests will be conducted on the lengths of 12” and 20” to test varying initial compressive force upon the round steel tubes. Three D/t ratios will be considered for each length of round steel tube: 52.6, 78.9, and 121.2. To verify the material properties of the test specimens an ancillary tensile coupon test will be conducted. Nine tensile coupons will be taken from the specimens, three from each D/t ratio.
The coupons will be tested for hardness, ductility, stress capacity, and strain capacity. While the pipe experiments are designed to provide relationships between the geometrical parameters and the cyclic ductility to fracture initiation, the results of these tests will also inform the critical buckling capacity, and its relationship to the D/t ratio, specimen length and material properties. It is expected the study will result in empirical equations for fracture ductility, critical buckling strain, and the buckling wavelength as a function of the D/t ratio and length. The experimental results will be used to inform a physics-based fracture model utilizing stress and plastic strain demands from finite element analyses.
(Lesson Plan) Field Applications Of Steel Pipes
The introductory day will allow the students to perform an experiment using paper that they craft into cylinders and rectangular tubes. The students will be able to see the superior strength of the cylinder and use the data that they acquire through the experiment to compare and contrast structural strength. The lesson will be focused on using data to create equations, inequalities, and discuss patterns. The second lesson will be centered on a scenario of building a barn. The barn will be supported by steel tubes and will be required to support a certain amount of weight. The lesson will focus on the relationship between diameter, thickness, and applied force as a means of solving equations for a variable. Part of the lesson will also pertain to the need to work within a confined budget. The students will be required to calculate the amount of materials they can buy under constraints such as limited funds and time. The students will be required to argue why their course of action is the most logical one to undertake. The final lesson will be looking at how material properties are ascertained for the kinds of materials we wish to use. The students will be given a scenario where nine experiments were conducted and they need to analyze the data. The lesson will focus on estimation, generating equations based on data, and analyzing graphs.
CSU Sacramento
Jamie Kneitel, Research Mentor
CSU Sacramento
The Effects Of Predators And Competitors In The California Vernal Pool Ecosystems
California vernal pools are temporary ponds that support high levels of species diversity and endemism: over 60 species are only found in California vernal pools. Since vernal pools experience an inundation and desiccation every year, species that occupy the ecosystem have adaptations to this cycle. Some are passive dispersers creating dormant cysts or seeds, which allow survival through dry stages. Others actively disperse to permanent water bodies; these tend to be predators in the ecosystem. Little is known about how these various species interact in California vernal pools. A microcosm experiment was conducted that manipulated predator and competitor density and measured the response in the passive dispersers (invertebrates, plants, and algae) and water quality (phosphorus, dissolved oxygen, conductivity, and turbidity). Thirty vernal pool microcosms were established with inundated vernal pool soil collected near Sacramento, California. The experiment was a 3 x 2 factorial design with 3 levels of predator density (none, 1, and 3 Corixidae) and 2 levels of competitor (none and 1 Gastropoda). Treatments were implemented two weeks after inundation with biweekly sampling. Few effects on measured variables were observed. A predator/competitor interaction was found with plant densities. The presence of snails had no effect, but high predator densities resulted in decreased plant density in the absence of competitors. These results suggest predators have indirect effects on vegetation that may be mediated by their effects on prey and algae. Future studies should assess the details of predator-prey and competitive interactions in this ecosystem.
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(Lesson Plan) Becoming A Vernal Pool Expert!
This lesson integrates mathematics, social studies and scientific processes to allow students to explore and report on the biological factors and interactions that occur in a vernal pool ecosystem by studying a specific species population.
Students are introduced to the concepts with graphs and statistics gathered from real research conducted around vernal pools and a short informational session. Students attend a field trip to visit a local vernal pool (if available) and collect three separate samples from the pool. Samples are studied and sketches and counts for each species are recorded.
Students choose an organism to further research, and using their data and mathematical concepts such as volume and averages, can estimate the population of their organism in the visited vernal pool. Students also conduct research in which they look at scientific papers that report on previous studies in order to compose their own research paper.
Their paper addresses the role of their organism in the vernal pool ecosystem, how the organism is introduced to the system during the wet phase, and how the organism survives the flowering and dry phases. This lesson includes a class discussion of the students’ results where we analyze the probable cause and effect of certain vernal pool populations, and practice thinking critically during a discussion of the ebb and flow of ecosystems. An understanding of the data, research, and discussion will be assessed upon completion of each students’ research paper.
CSU Sacramento
El Camino Fundamental High School
Seth Hillbrand, Research Mentor
CSU Sacramento
Updating And Revising Star Camera For Future Flights Of Balloon Borne Experiment.
The BLAST (Balloon-borne Large Aperture Submillimeter Telescope) experiment surveys the galaxy from altitudes of 100,000 ft in order to answer important cosmological questions, such as how stars are formed. This experiment is conducted above Antarctica to minimize unwanted noise. Two star cameras are used in the navigation systems to identify known stars. The cameras take pictures and match stars in the image to known star positions from a catalog stored in the star camera’s computer. This is done using code written in C++, a computer programming language. In order to modernize the system, the code needs to be updated. A camera that has flown multiple missions was switched from a legacy codebase that was used in past missions, to the star tracking and attitude reconstruction (STARS) code, designed for the E and B Experiment (EBEX), a similar, balloon-borne experiment. This switch required cataloging the parts of the camera, testing the camera with the legacy code, and adapting the new code for this particular camera.
The result is that the camera takes pictures and identifies stars using the new code. The next step is to suggest physical changes to the camera’s hardware to improve performance using the new code. The updated camera will be utilized in the next BLAST experiment in Antarctica, scheduled for winter 2016-17.
(Lesson Plan) Follow A Star Experiment, And Clestial Navigation Currently Used By Scientists.
Stars act as more than pretty objects; humans have been using them as navigational tools for a long time and scientists still use them for this purpose, including in the BLAST experiment. Students will learn how and why stars are useful for navigation by performing two experiments. They will measure the position of a chosen star relative to the horizon over one evening and over a two week period. After analyzing their data, students will come to the conclusion that stars and star patterns move in a predictable path over an evening and remain relatively fixed night to night. I will show students pictures from the BLAST star camera and explain how the camera is used for navigation. This lesson ends with an inclass activity on the North Star and the students will brainstorm how scientists can use it in their experiments today.
CSU Sacramento
Timothy Horner, Research Mentor
CSU Sacramento
Assessment Of Salmon Habitat Restoration In The Feather River
Human activity in central valley streams has had a significantly negative impact on salmon habitat (Williams 2006). The presence of dams impedes sediment transport which is critical to salmon spawning (Williams 2006; Kondolf 1997). As part of an effort to enhance salmon spawning, the California Department of Water Resources added 7000 ft3 of gravel to Cottonwood Hatchery, Upper Auditorium, and Auditorium riffles on the Lower Feather River below the Thermalito
Dam Complex in July of 2014. Stream conditions at Cottonwood Hatchery riffle were assessed by conducting analysis
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of sediment grain size, water depth and velocity, gravel permeability, and dissolved oxygen content. Grain size analysis of the surface layer was conducted via the Wolman pebble-count method. Subsurface bulk samples were collected, weighed, and then separated using rocker sieves to determine grain size distribution. Water depth and velocity measurements were collected according to USGS stream gaging procedures (1980). Gravel permeability measurements were taken using the Barnard-McBain standpipe method. Dissolved oxygen data was collected using mini-piezometers.
These results were compared to data from Heffernan (2013) which were taken prior to the addition of gravel. The measurements taken in 2013 before the addition of gravel reflect hyporheic conditions that are poor for salmon spawning. Data collected after the addition of gravel in 2014 suggest that conditions in the Cottonwood Hatchery Riffle will be much more suitable for spawning salmon.
(Lesson Plan) Statistics With Salmon
This Algebra I Unit consists of several lesson plans that use data from salmon habitat restoration projects, as well as data gathered by the students themselves, to introduce students to Statistics. By following this specific scenario, students are familiarized with an example of Statistics being used in the real world. As motivation for this lesson, students will be given background information on the salmon life-cycle, as well as current habitat restoration projects in order to give an example of real-life application of statistics. Students will follow instructions for gathering particle size data by conducting a pebble count of a specified area in small groups. Students will represent that data with a graph or histogram in small groups, and combined data from other groups. Students will be asked questions regarding the data with the goal of encouraging the students to think about the significance of different data points in the context of their given scenario. They will also be given additional supplemental information regarding the geological processes that one would be concerned with when studying salmon habitat. How to calculate and when to use various data points will be explained, as well as others that did not come up in discussion, followed by review, further discussion of general applications, and sharing out. This also show students how different fields, such as biology, geology, and statistics, can complement each other. This satisfies California CCSS for Mathematics, S-ID 1-9. This lesson can be expanded to satisfy Algebra II standards if desired.
CSU Sacramento
Thomas Peavy, Research Mentor
CSU Sacramento
Detection Of Microbial Catecholamines In A Model Wound Environment
Chronic wounds are defined as an injury that does not heal in a predictable pattern or time frame, and previous studies suggest that catecholamines can impair wound healing when catecholamine presence is sustained excessively in the wound site. This project focuses on the bacterial component of an infected wound, specifically on the catecholamines influencing the bacteria in the wound site. An in vitro model wound environment was developed to test the hypothesis that bacteria respond to the catecholamines involved in wound healing by expressing a biofilm to sequester themselves from the host immune system. The assay developed in this experiment is designed to optimally grow bacteria in a simulated eukaryotic wound environment, and evaluate biofilm expression and catecholamine production of the bacteria. Bacteria used in this study are Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa. These bacteria are commonly found expressing a biofilm phenotype which protects them from the host immune system. Catecholamines, such as dopamine and epinephrine, are quantified by HPLC-ED, while biofilms will be analyzed by confocal microscopy.
Cell growth and viability are determined by absorbance reading of live/dead cells by a spectrophotometer. From this data, we will be able to characterize the host/pathogen relationship in regards to catecholamines in-vitro. Results of these finding would allow for further experimentation into disrupting biofilms within wound beds, potentially preventing further infection.
(Lesson Plan) What Makes Bacteria Grow?
This lesson plan targets introductory biology high school students. The students will be tasked with proceeding through the scientific method including preparing a structured experiment, gathering data, drawing conclusion from data, creating hypotheses based on observed phenomena, designing a unique experiment to test hypotheses, and present their finding in a clear scientific manner. This type of lesson would take place over the course of two weeks, with presenting final data due a little after the completion of the experiment. Generally regarded as safe (GRAS) strains of bacteria would be used in this experiment. Four different growth media would be available for the students to test. The four media would include DMEM eukaryotic media, tryptic soy broth (tsb), water, and a solution of the previously mentioned media with the addition of glucose. After incubation, either myself or the students would spread the bacteria on agar plates and wait for colony forming units (cfus) to form. This would reflect how well the bacteria grew in the media.
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Students would then attempt to logically discern what components of the media would promote the growth seen in the positive control group (tsb) and attempt to replicate that growth in another media supplemented with the chosen ingredient. The experiment would be repeated, data gathered and conclusion would be made by the students to go on a final presentation. During this project students will learn laboratory techniques, deductive reasoning skills, data analysis techniques, and how to work with bacteria in a safe and sterile manner.
University of New Hampshire
Sarah Newman, Research Mentor
National Ecological Observatory Network
Comparison Of Common Lilac Phenology Timing Between Historical Data And Project BudBurst Data
Observing the timing of plant phenology provides a way to monitor and predict effects of ecological change on plants.
This study compared historical data for common lilac dating from 1956-2003 with recent lilac phenology data collected by Project BudBurst citizen scientists from 2007-2013. Due to the lack of accessible growing degree day data, it was not possible to directly examine climate effects on phenology timing. Instead, we compared geographic distribution patterns between historical and Project BudBurst data to explore what factors might contribute to the timing of phenophase dates between data sets. T-tests were performed on latitude, longitude, and day of year of observation (Julian date) for first flower and first leaf between the two data sets. Differences between latitude were not significant for first flower and first leaf (p = 0.789, p = 0.489, respectively) but there was a difference between longitude for both variables (p<0.001).
Mean observation dates for Project BudBurst were 9.5 days earlier for first flower (significantly different, p = 0.0001) and
2.3 days earlier for first leaf (no significant difference, p = 0.063) but the difference in longitude and the small sample size of the Project BudBurst data set makes these findings questionable. Because of the effect of longitude, we suggest future analyses of data by regions. Additional Project BudBurst observations in the western U.S. would allow better comparisons in that region and encouraging observations near historic sites would take advantage of a long, rich data set.
(Lesson Plan) Developing And Executing Scientific Investigations Using Real Project BudBurst Plant
Phenology Data
In this lesson, students will be grappling with and analyzing data. They will be challenged to build a question and investigate it given a real data set in this two day lesson. Project BudBurst is a program that compiles plant phenology observations that are collected by citizen scientists. These data are readily available to the public and are used by students in this lesson. To begin with, students will participate in a short activity dealing with the collection of data, averages, and outliers. Following this, they will complete a worksheet about the National Geographic program, FieldScope, a program that displays Project BudBurst observations on a map and allows for easy comparisons between data (from climate zones, land use, etc.). The culminating activity will take place on the second day and will challenge students to create a question about the Project BudBurst data. Once this question is created students will go on to investigate and create graphs. They will also respond to prompts to demonstrate data literacy. Students will then present their question and findings to their peers as if in a professional community of scientists.
CSU San Francisco
Tom Oda, Research Mentor
NOAA Boulder
The Power Plant Mapping Student Project: Bringing Citizen Science To Schools
Emissions inventory (EI) is a conventional tool to monitor changes in anthropogenic emissions and can visually show geographical patterns of emission changes. The EI community is aware of significant errors in the geographical locations of point sources, including power plants. The Power Plant Mapping Student Project (PPMSP) is a platform designed for students in 4th through 12th grade classrooms to improve the geographical location of power plants indicated in existing datasets to benefit international EI research. Using the VENTUS platform (http://ventus.project.asu.edu/), students view supposed power plant coordinates on Google Maps. Students either verify the location of a power plant or search for it within a designated radius using various indicators, an e-guide, and a power plant gallery for assistance. If the plant cannot be found, students mark the plant as unverified. While participating in meaningful research that directly benefits the EI research community, students are engaged in relevant science curricula designed to meet each grade level’s Next
Generation Science Standards. Through accessible and integrative curricula, students study energy, climate science,
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mapping and various computer programs. With PPMSP, students are empowered to participate in relevant research and become future leaders in mitigating climate change.
(Lesson Plan) What Is Energy?
My two day lesson plan serves as an introduction to energy, connecting to the 4th Grade Next Generation Science
Standard “energy and fuels are derived from natural resources and their uses affect the environment.” In this two day lesson plan, students explore the concept of energy. What is energy and where does it come from? What forms does energy take? How do we, as humans, use energy? The day one lesson opens with an exploration of energy, both as fuel for humans (food) and as fuel for cars (gasoline). By comparing two relateable energy sources, students look at the path of energy transfer and trace it back to the source of energy (sun), exploring the concept that energy changes forms but is not created or destroyed. The day two lesson dives further into types of energy, transfer of energy, and sources of energy.
Formal names are finally introduced for the types of energy (e.g. kinetic energy). We also begin to explore the concept of electricity, and where it comes from. Through this lesson, students explore the different types of energy through kinetic movement and artifacts to explore and discuss. Students write creative nonfiction stories about the transfer of energy, beginning with the sun as the source and ending with any form of work they choose (e.g. a person climbing a mountain or a truck driving to Colorado).
Wittenberg University
Brant Liebmann, Research Mentor
NOAA Boulder
Assessing Kenya Climate Variation Through Rainfall Anomaly And Sea Surface Temperature Analysis
The diverse and varied climate of Eastern Africa’s Kenya is home to an agriculturally-dependent populace, in which farmers and other related economic sectors make up the majority of livelihoods and gross domestic product. Recurring droughts and severe flooding are major concerns for local farmers and governmental entities. The purpose of this study is to identify and categorize differences in rainfall trends over Kenya and to examine relationships between seasonal rainfall anomalies of sea surface temperature (SST), with an ultimate goal to improve predictions of wet season rainfall amounts. The analysis began with data from 27 national and cooperative weather stations. Several of these records were short and incomplete; therefore, a gridded and complete alternative data set was obtained with data dating back to
1901. Graphical comparisons of seasonal cycles within the country presented two distinct climate regions: Rift Valley and Eastern Kenya. The gridded data for each region was used to observe correlations with SST values in the Indian and Pacific Ocean. During March – May, there are weak positive correlations in the equatorial western Pacific that are unlikely to be of much value to forecasters, while a strong relationship exists during the short wet season. Interannual trends show a decrease in rainfall during the long rainy season (March-May) in both regions, while an increase in rainfall is observed during the short rainy season (October-November). These results ultimately confirm a large drying trend for the long wet season in both climate regions, a problematic result for an agriculturally-dependent nation.
(Lesson Plan) The Data Dilemma: What Can Data Tell Us About Climate?
Students will be asked to critically analyze a compiled data set representing daily and monthly rainfall statistics of a particular weather station in Kenya, Africa. While the location of the weather station will be unbeknownst to students, students will be encouraged to draw conclusions about location and climate of the depicted region using any statistical measure they see helpful in forming conclusions on region location. Students will be given a series of questions to guide them through the analysis process and be required to write a statement of purpose before beginning the activity.
Evidence-based conclusions will be made through an exploration process of presenting, comparing, and collaborating final conclusions with peers to formulate a single inference of data origin. To finalize the lesson, groups of students will present their concluding statements to a NOAA employee through a digital webcam. The described lesson assumes that students have been introduced to basic analysis skills, specifically methods of calculating averages. Furthermore, a brief summary describing the characteristics of a climate will be provided for students before the data set is explored. All students will be expected to work in groups and use scientific language, as well as professionalism, for the duration of the activity. Ultimately, the goal of this lesson is to blend nature of science concepts, specifically the skill of working with real-world data, with a distinct content standard looking at the biosphere/climate.
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CSU Fresno
Fort Miller Middle School
Ben Miller, Research Mentor
NOAA Boulder
A Comparison Of Carbon Dioxide And Methane Levels At Four Tower Sites Across The United States
Looking at seasonality and overall trends for different greenhouse gases allows scientists to make predictions for the future, and also look at areas where humans can lessen the negative impacts they are having on the Earth’s atmosphere.
Carbon dioxide (CO2) and methane (CH4) are greenhouse gases that have been documented to be steadily increasing over time due to anthropogenic sources. Here we present the results of an investigation of the overall temporal trends and seasonal variations of both gases using NOAA Programmable Flask Package (PFP) data. PFPs are automated sampling packages that can be sent anywhere and sampled by aircraft, towers, or mobile laboratories. All PFP air samples are analyzed at the central analytical lab at NOAA, Boulder by spectroscopy or chromatography. While PFP data has been collected at 17 tower sites since the early 2000s, this study makes use of 4 specific tower sites in the contiguous United States (San Francisco, CA; Walnut Grove, CA; Boulder, CO; and Park Falls, WI). Sites were chosen in order to sample a variety of tower environments and to ensure a healthy sampling of data from 2006/2007 to the present.
Carbon dioxide and methane both show distinct seasonal trends at all locations, although methane generally shows less variability.
(Lesson Plan) The Composition, And Layers Of The Atmosphere
My lesson plan is geared towards an 8th Grade Physical Science class. This lesson will take up two 55 minute class periods and may involve students spending a small amount of time outside of class to finish the activity. For the first day of the lesson, it will revolve around students becoming familiar with the air that we breathe, and the atmosphere as well. Students will be attempting to answer some big questions about life on Earth and the atmosphere using small brainstorming groups. Full class discussions will follow small group discussions and I will write all of the student’s ideas on the whiteboard for reference later on in the lesson. Students will be shown a visual aid that represents the composition of the tropospheric air by using different colored candies in a glass jar to represent the different compounds. Students will be asked about what they they know is in the air, and what they think the different colors represent before being shown a table with the actual contents. We will make a 3-column table comparing the atmospheres of Earth, Venus, and Mars. On the second day, we will focus on the layers of the atmosphere and the temperature changes that occur as distance from the surface of the Earth increases. Students will create a foldable that shows the layers of the Atmosphere, explains the temperature changes, and where things happen in our atmosphere (ex. weather, planes flying…).
Michigan Technological University
Washington Island Schools
Joshua Schwarz, Research Mentor
NOAA Boulder
Laboratory Assessment Of Black Carbon Dry Deposition Onto Snow And Transport Via Melt
Black carbon (BC) is an aerosol material produced by incomplete combustion of fossil fuels and biomass. BC has been shown to be the second most important anthropogenic climate warming agent after carbon dioxide due to its ability to absorb solar radiation, influence cloud behavior, and accelerate snow melt. BC in otherwise clean snow can significantly reduce its reflectivity. In order to learn about the significance of BC contamination in snow, we explored the deposition of BC onto snow and the transport of BC in snow during snowmelt. A Single Particle Soot Photometer (SP2), was used to measure the concentration and size distribution of BC in an airstream drawn through snow to determine the rate at which the snow trapped BC. BC concentration in meltwater was measured to determine if the BC was left in the snow or was removed during melting. SP2 testing showed a significant drop in BC aerosol concentration after contact with the snow. This implies that naturally occurring snow is a highly efficient absorber of BC from the atmosphere. Meltwater samples had a lower BC concentration than the snow, suggesting that the majority of the BC is left behind in snow during partial melting. This accumulation of BC could potentially cause a positive feedback to the rate of snowmelt.
Better understanding the behavior of BC in snow will help scientists describe the impact of BC on climate and help policymakers predict the benefits of reducing BC emissions.
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(Lesson Plan) Positive Climate Feedback Effect Of Black Carbon Contamination On Snow
Microscopic Black Carbon, (BC) is one of the chemicals released during combustion. BC is the second most important climate warming agent after carbon dioxide. It warms the climate by absorbing solar radiation, influencing cloud behavior and accelerating snow melt. Diesel engines, industrial processes, wood burning and forest fires produce most atmospheric BC pollution. Scientists study BC to understand where it comes from and how it impacts the environment.
Engineers design systems to reduce BC emissions. Climate scientists are concerned about BC contamination in snow because a small amount of BC in snow can cause a significant reduction in the reflection of solar radiation, or albedo.
This reduction in albedo causes a positive feedback loop. Scientists use satellites to measure the amount of light reflected from snow. They compare BC contamination found in snow samples with the reflectance seen in the satellite data to understand the impact of BC pollution. The research you do today will help us understand the relationship between
BC contamination and the reflectance of snow. In this lab you will investigate the relationship between the reflectance of visible light and energy absorption. You will use this relationship to predict how materials in the environment such as soil, leaves, water, ice and snow will absorb different amounts of energy from the sun. We will then test how
BC contamination affects reflectance of clean snow. Your investigation should help you explain the positive feedback relationship between black carbon impurities in the snow and climate warming.
CSU Dominguez Hills
Julian Nava Learning Academy
Friedemann Freund, Research Mentor
SETI Institute
Detecting Non-Seismic Precursor Earthquake Signals Using Tree Antennas
Forecasting earthquakes has yet to be achieved. However, there are numerous non-seismic precursor signals, which become detectable weeks to days before major events – for instance, changes in Earth’s electrical surface potential. These changes are due to the arrival of positive electronic charge carriers, known as positive holes, stress-activated deep in the Earth’s crust, in the hypocenter of the future earthquake. Trees can be used as antennas for detecting the surface potential changes due to these mobile charges. A pair of stainless steel screws were vertically spaced 1 meter apart in the trunk of a redwood tree, connected to a millivolt meter and a data acquisition system. This configuration allows for the detection of diurnal variations of the ground potential and ultralow frequency (ULF) pulsations, which are emitted by telluric currents of stress-activated charge carriers in Earth’s crust. ULF’s are commonly recorded using expensive and elaborate magnetometers. In our study we show that trees may also be used as receiving antennas to these sensitive frequencies. Our data analysis confirm earlier published observations of a diurnal pattern, most likely associated with the activation of positive holes during Earth’s tides. Although we only had 107 days worth of data, our preliminary analysis helps us conclude that tree antennas can detect ULF’s and may help identify surface potentials created by positive hole stress activation weeks before an earthquake.
(Lesson Plan) Antenna Model
The central focus of my learning segment addresses how digitized signals can be transmitted and received through antennas. Students will arrive at these conclusions by first exploring and comparing the properties of digitized and analog signals. Through this exploration, students will arrive at the conclusion that digitized signals are more reliable in transmitting information than analog signals. In addition to this, students will explore the properties of a tree antenna and how it is used to detect sensitive frequencies. From their understanding, students will work in groups to design a model of an antenna that displays how waves are used for communication. This multi-day lesson will be presented through the incorporation of the 5E instructional model where students learn through a hands-on, inquiry based approach.
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CSU San Jose
Amador Valley High School
Virginia Gulick, Research Mentor
SETI Institute
Remote Exploration And Understanding Of The Martian Surface
Earth and Mars share many similar physical features, including canyons, valleys, craters, volcanoes, ice, and gullies. My research focuses on two distinct projects. The first concentrates on the formation of gullies, which are channel networks generally formed on mid-latitude crater walls on Mars. Debated gully-forming processes include the melting of snowpacks, sublimation of accumulated CO2 frost, melting of snow-rich dusty mantle material, and groundwater flows.
Using High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) images of gullies and working with Digital Elevation
Models (DEMs) in ENVI, we are able to perform detailed studies of gully morphology, including volume calculations using slope, distance, and elevation. The second topic focuses on determining the mineral composition of Martian rocks. Using Raman spectroscopy, I am testing the mineral composition of igneous rocks and recording spectral peaks for key rock-forming minerals, such as olivine, plagioclase, potassium feldspar, quartz, and pyroxene. Raman spectroscopy is an inelastic light scattering technique that measures the change in energy of a photon. These samples and spectra will be used to help create an automated computer mineral identification algorithm that might be used on future Mars rover missions. Both projects contribute to scientific studies of remote exploration and understanding of the Martian surface.
(Lesson Plan) Using Trigonometry And Technology To Calculate The Volume Of A Martian Crater
Over the course of three lessons, students will calculate the volume of a Martian crater. First, students will learn how to use Google Mars and the HiRISE website in order to navigate the regions of Mars and learn where to find geographical information. Students will do some background research on the geologic history of Mars in preparation for the second lesson. For the second lesson, students will use trigonometry to calculate the height of a crater wall. In order to do these calculations, students will also learn how to use an image processing software, which allows them to take measurements of regions and features in the image. Students will use information from the HiRISE website in order to get the solar incidence angle and calculate the height of the crater wall. Using these pieces of information, students will calculate the volume of the crater, and discuss possibilities of error in their calculations. The third lesson consists of having students build scale models of their crater using modeling clay. Students will then fill their crater with water, measure the water, and compare the volumes calculated and modeled. Students will then discuss why differences between their model and calculations occurred. Students will be challenged to design a mission to more accurately calculate the volume of the crater. The lesson will culminate with a discussion on calculating volumes of other regions, such as gullies, and the methods used in those calculations.
York College, City University of New York
Sharon Bone, Research Mentor
SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory
Reduction Of Uranium (IV) By Sulfide And Iron (II) In Biomass
The Old Rifle Mill Processing site at Rifle, CO, contains uranium contaminated groundwater. The presence of uranium in the aquifers poses as a problem to human and ecological health. There is an initiative for attenuation of Uranium by the Department of Energy. Uranium undergoes oxidation/reduction reactions with the substances at the site. As
Uranium is reduced, it’s in an insoluble form that accumulates at naturally reduced zones. The oxidation reduction pathways at this site have mineralogical, microbial and geochemical components. Understanding the oxidation/ reduction pathways of these components will allow us to better predict the changes and movement of Uranium and other biogeochemical elements (Carbon, Nitrogen, Sulfur, and Iron). What is known is that Sulfide [S2- ] and Ferrous
[Fe2] ions are products of microbial activity. These ions can reduce Uranium [U(VI)], but Bicarbonate ions [HCO3-
] slows down the reaction down in the environment. However, we believe that organic matter in the environment enhances U(VI) reduction by Fe2 and S2- in the absence of microbes. To address this, U(VI) was mixed with Fe2 or S2- in autoclaved biomass from Rifle and artificial groundwater for seven to eleven days. Aqueous samples from the vials will be analyzed for Uranium presence using ICP-MS [Inductively Coupled Plasma- Mass Spectrometry]. The biomass from each of the samples will be analyzed using XAS [X-Ray Absorption Spectroscopy] to determine the ionization state of Uranium.
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(Lesson Plan) Toxins In Water
Groundwater contamination has been a rising problem in the United States and in developing countries. Human and natural events cause contamination to occur leading to many environmental and social problems. Following the five E model, this lesson will address how contamination can spread in the environment, particularly in aquifers. To engage the students, we will first look at a model of an aquifer that contains sand and rocks that have food coloring placed on it. Water will be added and the color change will occur to with the water. One question that will be asked is why is there a color change? Can this represent the result of dumping waste? To explore this deeper I will give the students the opportunity to design their aquifer model and manipulate with it. They will determine what structure in the aquifer allows the toxins to stay in the environment? Also, what ways can they remove the color from the environment? Students will then take this time to explain their model and show their methods of removal.
University of Arizona
Betty H. Fairfax High School
Jeff Corbett, Research Mentor
SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory
Characterization Of Polarized Synchrotron Light
During my fellowship at SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, I worked in the Stanford Synchrotron Radiation Light
Source (SSRL) which accelerates ultra-relativistic electrons in a 234 meter ring to produce electromagnetic radiation. My project involved characterizing the polarization state of the 532 nanometer wavelength of the visible section of the light beam as a function of vertical position. To do this, the beam was passed through a slit which can move up and down the beam, focused through a lens, then through narrow band pass filter which filters through only 532 nanometer light.
The intensity of this light was then measured by a power meter. A polarizer mounted on a rotating platform was used to measure the vertical, horizontal, 45°, 135°, and right and left hand circular polarization with the help of a quarterwave plate. This data was analyzed in MATLAB to produce the Stokes’ parameters and plot the polarization ellipse of the beam. This data will be used in combination with further study of the beam polarization state at other frequencies to create a complete picture of the polarization of the beam. This research also has implications in the study of the chirality of molecules using polarized x-rays.
(Lesson Plan) Polarized Light & Expensive Sunglasses
In my lesson, students will learn about polarized light by addressing the questions “how do polarized sunglasses work?” and “why are they useful?” The lesson addresses the middle school standard for waves and their applications:
“Develop and use a model to describe that waves are reflected, absorbed, or transmitted through various materials.” This lesson uses the 5E learning cycle and modelling methods to explore and model light waves and polarization. Students experience the polarization phenomenon through a familiar object, a pair of polarized sunglasses rotated in a projected beam. Then students create index card models of light waves and pass their light waves through a “polarizer” made from a sheet of poster board with thin slits cut into it. Finally, students conduct a qualitative experiment using a light source, two polarizers and a screen to obtain the desired result of reducing the intensity of the light in increments. Students can be assessed orally during this experiment or by a written explanation of the phenomenon of polarization and why polarized sunglasses are useful and related to this experiment.
University of Houston
Jefferson Davis High School
Michael Schaefer, Research Mentor
SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory
Characterization Of Organic Carbon In Sediments From Old Rifle, CO, A Former Uranium Mill
Over 34 million gallons (~129 million liters) of groundwater are contaminated with uranium at Old Rifle, Colorado – a former uranium-processing site that operated until 1958. The original Department of Energy strategy for remediation, involving natural flushing of U from the groundwater through mixing with surface water, has not been as successful as predicted. The uranium plume is replenished when insoluble U(IV) is oxidized to more mobile U(VI). Relatively thin pockets of silt-, clay-, and organic-rich sediments contain reduced uranium, iron and sulfur and are referred to as naturally reduced zones (NRZs). There is a correlation between organic carbon (OC) and U concentrations; thus it
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can be inferred that OC is controlling U distribution and speciation. Sediment samples representing five depths from the JB-02 well at Old Rifle were collected; two depths are above the NRZ, two are within the NRZ and one is below the
NRZ. Sub-samples were then extracted using deionized water, NaCl and NaOH. The extractions were analyzed for nonpurgeable organic carbon (NPOC) concentrations. Base extractions produced the highest concentrations of dissolved organic carbon (DOC) at all depths. Sediments within the NRZ produced more DOC than sediments outside the
NRZ. Further analysis by X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS) is expected to give key information on which organic functional groups are present within the sediments and their extractable carbon fractions, which will inform uranium management strategies. Additionally the amount of permanganate oxidizable carbon will be determined to further compare the carbon pools in and out of the NRZ.
(Lesson Plan) Groundwater Pollution Lesson
Groundwater is an often overlooked water resource, even though it is an important source for agriculture and drinking water. Disregarding its importance can lead to pollution. For example, there are more than 34 million gallons of uranium-contaminated groundwater at Old Rifle, CO, completely unusable by its local community. ENGAGE: One student waters a potted plant. Students then answer the question, where does the water go? What about non-potted plants? A class discussion follows. EXPLORE: Students create their own groundwater model, using a large beaker, peagravel, sand, peat moss, topsoil, food coloring (soluble pollutant), beads of the same color (insoluble pollutant), a screen
(to create a well), and water. Students hypothesize where the polluted water will go and how long it will take. Using a timer, they will then test their hypotheses and create a time-line indicating when the polluted water reached various points. Students draw their model to scale and answer questions like, how long does it take after pouring the pollutant to contaminate the groundwater? The well? Would it be easier to clean up a surface water pollutant or a ground water pollutant? EXPLAIN: Students share their results and watch a short video of ground water. ELABORATE: Often times, water pollutants are undetectable by sight, taste or smell. Students collect and chemically test drinking water samples from different sites and present their data. EVALUATE: Students submit a lab report, complete with model drawn to scale, time-line of polluted water, and the results of their water quality tests.
CSU San Luis Obispo
Yreka High School
Josef Frisch, Research Mentor
SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory
Creating A Proof Of Concept Microwave Cavity Control Circuit For Use In LCLS-II FEL
One of the current programs at SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory is the Linac Coherent Light Source, or LCLS.
Using the existing hardware of the last third of their linear accelerator (or “linac”), SLAC has created one of the most energetic X-ray free electron lasers (or “FEL”). Since 2009, LCLS has used this FEL to perform a wide range of experiments across all sciences, most notably ultrafast filming at the molecular scale. As requests for beam-time with this laser increases, SLAC is purposing a linac upgrade to better match this demand. This upgrade, named LCLS-II, will replace existing copper radio frequency (or “RF”) cavities with superconducting Niobium RF cavities in the middle third of the linac. With superconducting RF, the power requirements are far lower to fire each laser pulse, and can be fired thousands of times faster, thus speeding up data-gathering and thus speeds up science. Superconductors are inherently unstable, however. Due to the pressure waves of the liquid He needed and the extremely narrow bandwidth of the
RF cavities’ resonance, peak performance can never be maintained without intervention. To prove that off-the-shelf hardware can be constructed to counter all of these instabilities, our team built a proof-of-concept electronic model of a control circuit. With this model, we found that by using a circuit board to accurately represent the nature of a new Nb
RF cavity, we could perform all the prerequisite operations to keep the cavity in check and always at peak resonance.
(Lesson Plan) Body Of Knowledge Catapult Design Lab
At SLAC, one of the workshops was how to write a better scientific paper. While most of the hour was spent on old information, one part of the presentation hit home with me. The presenter, who edits peer reviewed articles, spent a good 10-15 minutes on the importance of background research and keeping tidy works cited. While I have the same message in the classroom to combat plagiarism, the presenter had additional reasons. She was extremely adamant about the collective “Body of Knowledge;” scientific understanding accrues with time and should always be additive. If an experiment is repeated needlessly, the findings are frivolous and unacceptable in scientific reporting. This really struck me, for I feel this component of writing is missing in my classroom: students always write in a vacuum (even in small groups), rarely making works that interact with each other, and usually are only used as literacy tests. To better emulate the type of scientific writing this workshop inspired for me, I choose to modify an existing inquiry-based catapult lab
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and make its reporting multi-generational. Namely, with a little saving over 3-5 years, students will have an added
“research” step where they have to design their catapults in reply to past student designs, and must present their own wrinkle or addition to the classroom’s “Body of Knowledge” on catapults. This way, students will get the sense they are producing meaningful work, and have potential to influence future student research for years to come.
CSU San Luis Obispo
Jeff Corbett, Research Mentor
SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory
Vertical Beam Size Measurements In The SPEAR3 Accelerator At SLAC
Synchrotron radiation is a powerful tool used in many fields of science ranging from materials characterization to structural biology. Each year thousands of scientists travel to SLAC to use high-resolution x-rays emitted from a relativistic electron beam circulating in the SPEAR3 synchrotron light source. To characterize the beam size in SPEAR3, we constructed a visible-light interferometer capable of measuring the 22um vertical beam size. The interferometer is located 17m away from the source point and consists of two vertically separated slits. Visible light emitted from the synchrotron passes through the two slits and interferes on a CCD camera to produce an interference pattern. The contrast of the interference pattern is then numerically fit to a model and mathematically translated into a measured value for vertical beam size. For this STAR project, we constructed the interferometer, measured the contrast of the interference pattern as a function of the vertical slit separation, and measured changes in the vertical beam source size while keeping the slit separation fixed.
(Lesson Plan) Waves Outside Of The Classroom
This lesson plan is designed for a High School Algebra II class, placed at the end of a unit on trigonometric functions.
The purpose of this lesson is to take what the students have recently learned about trigonometric functions (specifically the waves of sine and cosine) and placing it in a real-world context. The students will see a specific example of the role mathematics plays in science by exploring how sine and cosine waves are how light travels. The lesson begins with the students using a 20-foot nylon rope to create a continuous wave on the floor like that of a sine wave. Students then calculate the wave’s velocity by measuring its frequency and wavelength. This introduces the idea that because light travels at the constant speed of light, the wavelength and frequency of a color must be inversely proportional. Given either the frequency or wavelength of a color, students calculate the other for all colors of the rainbow. Students will then have roles designing a single graph consisting of all the colors’ waves. By exploring the properties of light waves and creating this graph, students will see a real-life application of sine (and cosine) waves.
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3:10 – 4:00
Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory
Menlo-Atherton High School
NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory
National Optical Astronomy Observatory
Sandia National Laboratories
NOAA Southwest Fisheries Science Center
Mills College
Katherine Heckman, Research Mentor
Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory
Assessing The Influence Of Mineral Surface Chemistry On Soil Stability In Response To Climate Change
Soil C stocks represent a significant pool of carbon storage and sequestration. Previous experiments have suggested that some mineral compositions may be more effective in preserving soil organic matter (SOM) from microbial degradation.
Due to climate change, it is important to quantify differences in SOM stability among soil types and mineral assemblage.
One way to do that is by differentiating the SOM stabilization mechanisms in different soil types at various depths. This study focused on examining the distribution of soil mass and C among different mineral density classes and estimating differences in C stability by measuring radiocarbon abundance. The United States Geological Survey, University of
Arizona and the Environmental Protection Agency collected the soils in Oregon, Mississippi, Alaska, and Arizona. The four different soil types were separated by density using density fractionation. Radiocarbon analysis of the soil density fractions was conducted at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Center for Accelerator Mass Spectrometry to determine the 14C/13C ratios. The ratios were used to determine the average age of the carbon in the samples. To determine the SOM composition of the soil fractions, the soils were processed at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory using Fourier Transform Infrared-Attenuated Total Reflection spectrometry. Results confirmed that the amount of carbon, radiocarbon abundance and composition varied among the density fractions, suggesting that SOM may respond differently to climate change depending on soil mineral assemblage.
(Lesson Plan) Density Inquiry Lab
On the first full day of research in the lab, I noticed one idea that was the core concept was density. Density is one of the topics that are drilled in a student’s head throughout their K-12 education. It is a concept that applies to a lot of the sciences and is crucial in lab when deciding things such as “which layer is the one I want to keep and which layer is the one I want to discard?” When designing the lesson plan, I wanted to keep in mind the new science standards,
Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS). One of noticeable differences in the NGSS is the notion of “Science and
Engineering Practices” where students practice the subject matter by developing and using models and obtain, evaluate and communicate information to others. With these two ideas in mind, I wanted to plan a lesson that delved into the
NGSS practices while teaching a concept as simple as density. This will allow not only me to practice with the new standards, but with the students as well. The density lesson can be covered in one day (or two) and allows for students to do something hands on with their peers in the classroom. It requires the students to practice with designing their own experiment with some guidance and practice conveying their results to their peers in a scientific manner.
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University of California, Davis
Livermore High School
Maxim Shusteff, Research Mentor
Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory
FEA Investigation Of Microfabricated Structural Variation In Acoustofluidic Devices
Microfluidic chips utilize acoustics to separate particles of differing sizes for applications such as separating components of blood. A piezoelectric transducer is attached to the silicon chip and produces an ultrasonic standing wave in the channel of the chip. The overall width of the chip is 900μm and has a thin wall 300μm from one side. As a sample passes through the chip, the larger particles are concentrated at the low pressure node of the standing wave while the smaller particles are not affected by the wave. The stream of large particles is directed into a separate output than the rest of the sample. When the chips are fabricated, there are small variations in the dimensions of the wall. This leads to each chip acting slightly differently in laboratory tests. The goal of these simulations is to determine the effect of the wall shape and dimensions on the focusing frequency and position. Two dimensional simulations were done in COMSOL Multiphysics using four different wall shapes over a range of 10μm around the actual dimensions of 13μm and 6μm measured from a sample chip. The wall dimensions are taken as the lengths of the top and bottom of the wall. It was found that the shape of the wall does not affect focusing frequency and that as the difference in the wall dimensions increases, focusing frequency increases and focusing position moves farther from the wall.
(Lesson Plan) Applications Of Standing Waves
My research this summer was mainly an application of standing waves. My lesson is for the Engineering Physics class of sophomores I will be teaching this year and will be taught after an introduction to waves. The students will do a lab using Slinkys to create standing waves and analyze how the amplitude and location of the node changes when they apply different forces and frequencies. They will be required to use the correct academic language, including the words node, antinode, frequency, amplitude, transverse wave, and longitudinal wave. After analyzing their data, they will be asked to think of several ideas of where they have seen standing waves and of how standing waves can be applied to problems outside the classroom and discuss with their lab group how these might be used. Several of the groups will share their ideas with the class. I will then show them the application of standing waves that I worked on this summer and point out the importance to engineering and science of this concept and the ideas that the students came up with themselves.
CSU Stanislaus
Greg Brown, Research Mentor
Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory
Calibrating And Characterizing A High Resolution Spherically Bent Crystal Spectrometer
A high resolution spherically bent crystal spectrometer has been developed at LLNL for use at AWE’s Orion laser facility.
The spectrometer uses a spherically bent crystal to provide high collection area and both spectral and spatial resolution of laser produced plasmas. Before being used at AWE, the HiRes spectrometer is tested and characterized at LLNL’s
Jupiter Laser facility and Electron Beam ion Trap. The Jupiter Laser Facility uses high energy lasers to irradiate materials and is able to detect the radiation to determine various interactions that occur in high density plasmas. The EBIT facility allows us to trap ions, choose the charge state of the ions, and measure the X-rays emitted from these ions using several spectrometers simultaneously. This makes the EBIT an ideal source for measuring and identifying X-ray emission from complex highly charged ions, for calibrating and characterizing grating and crystal spectrometers. Here we describe the characterization of the high-resolution spherically bent crystal spectrometer. Measurements at LLNL include spectral bandwidth and relative response. This characterization insures that the spectrometer is used efficiently to its fullest diagnostic potential once at Orion.
(Lesson Plan) Seeing In The Rest Of The Electromagnetic Spectrum
I hope to help the students understand the origin of electromagnetic waves and ultimately how, in physics, we use these electromagnetic waves to probe into the furthest reaches of space and even map out the smallest atomic interactions. I would have the students imagine a world where you could look at an object and could know instantly what elements it is comprised of, see through walls, determine the movement of an object light years away, and find dangerous material hidden away from view. These are all things that I can say that they don’t have to imagine because they exist in this world today. I would like to have an open discussion about examples of the things that spectrometry allows us to do.
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With this knowledge, the students should see how useful it would be able to observe controlled electron excitations in the lab. What good is a spectral graph if you have nothing to reference it to? I could share my experience at the LLNL
EBIT facility, which has been mapping out spectral lines for the some of the hardest elements to identify. As the atomic number increases, the number and complexity of the transitions increase. It would make a very powerful activity to have the students be able to calibrate a spectral graph by using a known spectrum provided to them in class and identify which element the lines belong to.
CSU San Bernardino
Greg Brown, Research Mentor
Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory
Measuring K-Shell Transitions In L-Shell Ions Of Aluminum Using LLNL EBIT
LLNL’s EBIT (Electron Beam Ion Trap) is used to measure and identify the X-ray spectrum lines from highly charged ions such as Aluminum. Due to Aluminums low abundance in space it has been difficult to detect its spectrum. We are measuring K-shell transitions in L-shell ions of Aluminum. These transitions are measured by ionizing aluminum to a
Helium-like charge state. Excitations caused by an electron beam bumps the electrons to a higher energy level (L-shell) and, when the electron falls back down to it’s lower energy level (K-shell), it emits an X-ray. ECS (EBIT Calorimeter
Spectrometer) and Crystal Spectroscopy are used to accurately make these measurements. Grating spectrometers are being used in satellites such as Chandra and XMM-Newton. Astro-H is currently being designed to detect X-rays within a broader energy bandwidth using a Soft X-ray Spectrometer (SXS) increasing the chances of ions, such as Aluminum, of being detected.
(Lesson Plan) Electrons Reaching An Excited Energy State And Photon Emission
Students will learn the difference between electrons being at a ground state energy level and an excited state. The process of an electrons going from a higher energy state to a lower one will also be discussed. During this transition a photon is emitted. This lesson will help the students learn why photon emission is important and how it applies to their everyday life.
CSU Bakersfield
Wasco High School
Matthew Coleman, Research Mentor
Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory
Measuring Radiation Exposure In Human Blood Using Gene Expression
Mammalian cells are known to express genes that are associated with repairing damaged DNA. The transcript CDKN1A is one of several cell cycle regulator genes expressed in response to cell damage by ionizing radiation (IR). In this study, male and female lymphocytes; previously exposed ex vivo to IR, were used to demonstrate linear gene expression responses that may vary between genders. We used qRT-PCR to generate response curves for CDKN1A. No differences were identified for the endogenous control gene GAPDH. CDKN1A expression demonstrated average fold changes well above three fold for three of the four healthy patient donors at 24 hours after 2, 3, and 4 Gy exposures. Doses 2 and 3 Gy were significantly upregulated at 24 hours. No significant difference was seen between genders for CDKN1A. Our data confirms that genes involved in DNA repair, cell cycle arrest, and apoptosis can be used as biomarkers of exposure to
IR. Because of growing concern of IR exposure through different mechanisms; either by nuclear catastrophe or medical radiation, gene expression analysis is a promising method for identification and estimation of IR exposure.
(Lesson Plan) From DNA To Proteins
Students will participate in a whole class activity to grasp the concept of the central dogma of cell biology. They will be provided with a unique card that contains a vocabulary term and they will need to work together to find their appropriate location and their specific role in the protein synthesizing process. When the class is ready to present, each student will be required to say their vocabulary word and role in the central dogma in order. Prior to this activity, students will have been introduced to the concept through a PowerPoint presentation. In addition to entailing information about the protein synthesizing process, the PowerPoint presentation will also discuss how proteins have specialized functions, some of which repair damaged DNA after exposure to ionizing radiation. I will also use my poster to demonstrate how up-regulation of particular genes will result in a proteomic response to repair the damaged DNA.
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The purpose of the whole class activity is for students to be able to problem solve, build communication skills, and have hands-on experience in order to better grasp the concept. Finally, I will have students write a paragraph explaining the concept of the central dogma as well as complete a worksheet that requires for them to translate several DNA codes into proteins.
Menlo-Atherton High School
Kevin Coulombe, Research Mentor
Menlo-Atherton High School
The Experimental Production Of Quark-Gluon Plasma And Its Implications For Matter In The Universe
Quark-gluon plasma (QGP) is a theoretical state of matter thought to exist at 10^-37 seconds after the supposed Big
Bang. The theory of quantum chromodynamics (QCD) describes hadrons as particles comprised of sub-atomic particles, quarks, held together by other sub-atomic particles, gluons, which carry the strong force. Baryonic matter remains stable at normal temperatures; however, under circumstances of extremely high temperature (4 trillion degrees Celcius) and density, hadrons are supposed to deconstruct into free quarks and gluons, thought to behave with the properties of a liquid with extremely low viscosity, termed quark-gluon plasma. In experimental collisions of heavy relativistic ions at
CERN’s Large Hadron Collider (LHC)and Brookhaven Laboratory’s Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider (RHIC), physicists seek to deconstruct hadrons into their sub-atomic particles in pursuit of the hypothesized QGP. At velocities just below the speed of light (3 m/s less, at 299,792,455), individual nucleons (referred to as participants) are magnetically guided to create atomic collisions, freeing the quarks and gluons to briefly exist in a dismembered liquid amalgam of sub-atomic particles within the overlapping collision space: the supposed QGP. Attempted recreation of the state of matter that comprised the universe just after the Big Bang gives further insight into physical laws that govern matter in existence today.
Menlo-Atherton High School
Kevin Coulombe, Research Mentor
Menlo-Atherton High School
ALICE Its Inner Tracking System, And Plans For Upgrades
ALICE is a very unique and complicated machine that performs extraordinary tasks. It uses some of the most advanced technology that the world has to offer in order to perform the tasks it needs to. In this project I will explain how ALICE detects particles using the Inner Tracking System, or the core of ALICE, during an experiment. I will also discuss the modification and renovations that are being made to ALICE in its state of long shutdown because of the upgrade of several key components as well as the installation of improved detectors.
Menlo-Atherton High School
Kevin Coulombe, Research Mentor
Menlo-Atherton High School
Quantum Field Theory: The Not-So-Quirky Ways Of Quarks
Quantum Field Theory (QFT) explains the behavior of the most elementary particles and fundamental forces in the known universe. QFT uses the Standard Model of particle physics to mathematically explain the Weak, Strong, and
Electromagnetic forces as we as predict how the particles that transmit these forces behave and what effect they will have on more massive particles. The theory relies on many sub-atomic particles that surpass the familiar proton/neutron/ electron configuration, which the poster will address. A key element to the existence of QFT and the standard model is the Higgs field, which gives mass to particles in the universe, and is the reason the universe is not simply a soup of loose particles suspended in space. The postee explains quantum chromodynamics, quantum electrodynamics, and the background knowledge necessary to understand these concepts, including subatomic particles and the Higgs field.
Menlo-Atherton High School
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Kevin Coulombe, Research Mentor
Menlo-Atherton High School
Quantum Chromodynamics: Color Charge, Particle Interactions, & The Bizarre Building Blocks Of Matter
Quantum Chromodynamics (QCD), a theory of the particle interactions of the strong nuclear force, exhibits some extremely unusual characteristics at the quantum level. With non-integer electromagnetic charge, confinement, the concept of color charge, and their inability to exist alone, quarks and their interactions are fascinating and are only just becoming better understood. Over extremely small distances, the strong nuclear force can even pull protons very close to each other despite their usual fierce repulsion from one another. Although many of the characteristics of the strong nuclear force are unusual, scientists have arrived at some basic rules and properties that quarks and gluons follow. This research approaches QCD from a few different perspectives, including the rules that govern quark color and particle interaction of the strong nuclear force, the six known types of quarks’ relationship with the Standard Model of Particle
Physics, the properties of baryons and mesons, and “quark matter” such as neutron stars and Quark-Gluon Plasma.
These perspectives attempt to make sense of the idiosyncrasies of the strong nuclear force.
Menlo-Atherton High School
Kevin Coulombe, Research Mentor
Menlo-Atherton High School
100 Seconds Of Glory: 4 Types Of Supernovae
My project explores the different types of supernovae in the universe: Type I and Type II supernovae. It starts with a description of the lives of different types of stars and the process of fusion, culminating in the event of a supernova. I describe the different conditions necessary for Type I and Type II supernovae, as well as such concepts as accretion, electron degeneracy pressure, and “implosion-explosion” events. Further, I expound upon delineations between the two supernova types, which may be observed through their spectra, as well as respective luminosity curves. I will also explore the 1a, 1b, and 1c sub-types of Type I supernovae. Finally, I will discuss the existence of heavy elements in the universe, as well as the possible creation of new stars from supernovae explosions.
Menlo-Atherton High School
Kevin Coulombe, Research Mentor
Menlo-Atherton High School
The Darkest Mystery In The Universe
The universe is expanding at an accelerating rate. The expansion is due to a new phenomenon called dark energy. This is what makes up about 70% of our universe, yet we do not know much about it. We can see it happening due to the redshift in the stars. The fate of our universe, still unknown, can be one of three scenarios. An ever-expanding universe would result in an open universe. If the universe were flat, it would also expand forever, but the expansion rate would slow to zero after an infinite amount of time. If the universe were closed, it would eventually stop expanding and collapse within itself.
Menlo-Atherton High School
Kevin Coulombe, Research Mentor
Menlo-Atherton High School
Stephen Hawking And The Black Hole
After Jacob Bekenstein proved that black holes must have entropy, and that the entropy they had was proportional to the surface area of the horizon, in 1972, famed theoretical physicist Stephen Hawking reasoned that they must also obey some of the other laws of thermodynamics. By 1975 he was not only able to prove that black holes emit thermal radiation but also that their radiation is exactly like that of a black body. He explained the radiation as being a result of quantum fluctuations, virtual photon pairs that flash in and out of existence in accordance with the Heisenberg
Uncertainty Principle that could be separated and made real in the presence of an event horizon. The radiation of
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photons indicates a loss of energy and thus a loss of mass meaning that black holes are continually evaporating until they, and whatever information or entropy they contained, cease to exist. This theory didn’t violate any fundamental laws of relativity but it did violate the law of Unitarity, one of the most fundamental components of quantum mechanics, creating a paradox. The incompatibility of the two theories had been a long running issue and this new paradox served to highlight this, throwing scientists into an intellectual battle and calling many theories once thought to be accurate into question. The focus of this project is that clash and the several new ideas and theories that came of it.
CSU San Luis Obispo
Andrew Sutton, Research Mentor
NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory
Laser Interferometry For Precision Metrology
Our group works in the area of precision laser metrology, from pure research and development to design, integration and testing of hardware and software for flight missions. We are presently involved in the Laser Ranging Instrument for the GRACE Follow-on mission, working on the flight laser and laser frequency stabilization, as well as the associated electronics and phase measurement system. We are leaders in time-delay interferometry, laser communications, laser ranging and phasemeter development for the LISA gravitational wave mission. In addition, we are developing wavefront sensing for LISA, alternative interferometric laser frequency stabilization techniques, optical phased-arrays, and other research and development work. We heavily employ digital signal processing and control techniques, primarily using FPGAs and LabView. With a diverse array of work areas, a number of opportunities exist for the student. These include: 1) Developing, measuring and analyzing data from a wave-front measurement experiment. Using quadrant photoreceivers, laser wavefront measurements will be performed on a heterodyne Mach-Zehnder laser stabilization system. This will include closing the loop and controlling the relative phases of the laser wavefronts, as well as measuring the improvement in the laser frequency noise at relevant Fourier frequencies. 2) Developing experiments, performing measurements and analyzing results from our LISA testbed, where we will be performing experiments that can demonstrate some of the laser interferometric and data acquisition techniques required for a gravitational wave mission, that can be flown and demonstrated in orbit on the GRACE Follow-on mission. 3) Furthering and refining our optical phased-array design and testbed.
(Lesson Plan) Photon Obstacle Course
In this unit introduction to ray optics, students will direct a beam of light through a pre-built obstacle course and onto a target using an iterative process of design and testing. Small teams will use mirrors, lenses, and various office supplies to compose a method to solve the problem at hand. Before any construction begins, the class will have two minutes to examine the items and get a sense of how they work. When time is up, the teams will begin to create their project plans. Students will decide how to divide the labor of planning; for example, one group member may submit a schematic of the proposed beam path, another may draw a diagram of how to get the mirrors and lenses to stand up and stay put, and a third may write an outline of design and iteration procedures the team must follow. Once plans are complete, students will begin to construct their solutions, following their self-generated iteration procedures when their design is unsuccessful. Students will record each step of their design process in their lab notebook. After all the designs are successfully built, the whole class will discuss what insights were gained. In addition to reflecting on design and testing strategies, students will debate and construct a basic operational model of ray optics based on their experiences.
Specifically, they will generate two rules for the behavior of light: the way the path changes after striking a mirror, and what effect various lenses have on the beam.
CSU Long Beach
James Kohel, Research Mentor
NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory
Cold Atom Laboratory
The Cold Atom Laboratory (CAL) is a new multi-user facility being developed for the International Space Station (ISS) at JPL. The facility will study ultra cold quantum gases in the microgravity environment of space leading to temperatures as low as 10 picokelvin, a regime where matter stops behaving as particles, and instead as macroscopic matter waves.
CAL will conduct ground-breaking atomic physics experiments on the ISS. The facility is currently in the design development phase with an anticipated delivery date of December 2015. The instrument is scheduled to be launched
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in April of 2016. The facility will be installed inside the ISS in an express rack by the space station crew. The facility will then be remotely operated by a team of scientists at JPL for a period of at least one year. The purpose of CAL is to study microgravity-cooling processes of ultra-cold quantum gases, including evaporative cooling, adiabatic cooling and sympathetic cooling with a multi-user facility inside the International Space Station (ISS). CAL will study the properties of both Rb87 and K40 quantum gases loaded into optical lattices, in the presence of external magnetic fields tuned near interspecies and single species Feshbach resonances. CAL will also study the propagation of matter-waves in a microgravity environment and the coherence properties of macroscopic matter waves. This summer student project will be to aid in the design of the CAL instrument by the development magnetic field models and magnetic field design to contain the ultra-cold gases in a laboratory version of the instrument.
(Lesson Plan) “I Was Tearing My Hair Out!” Measuring Hair Strand Thickness With Lasers
During this lesson middle/high students examine some of the amazing and useful properties of laser light. To begin, students observe the pattern created on the wall when a laser pointer is shone through a single strand of hair (as demonstrated by the teacher). Students write down and then share their predictions about how this pattern is created.
The teacher then reveals the brilliance of laser light and Young’s equation (and how to use a simplification of it to calculate hair thickness). Students write down their predictions about the thicknesses of their classmates’ hair, and after receiving safety instructions, in small groups they measure the distances between the bright bands of diffraction patterns created by their classmates’ hairs. With these (and a few other) measurements students calculate the widths of the hairs and compare them by thickness. They can perhaps organize their findings by color/sex/age and hair thickness. Using these and other groups’ data students generate and justify a conclusion about both hair thickness and the properties of light, such as its wave-particle duality. Groups compare and contrast each other’s conclusions and, as a class, construct an overall interpretation of their findings that they are prepared to defend. Lastly, the teacher performs demonstrations that extend these new concepts, including how to measure the groove spacing of a CD. As end-of-class work or homework students complete enrichment and synthesis questions and readings/videos that introduce additional light properties like the law of reflection.
Western Washington University
Tolt Middle School
Parag Vaishampayan, Research Mentor
NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory
Metagenomics Approach to Predict Functional Capabilities of Microbes in Clean Room
Metagenomics approach provides a comprehensive microbial census as well as the functional potential of a microbial community surviving in a given habitat. We will adopt well-developed Metagenomics approaches to Predict Functional
Capabilities (MPFC) of the microbial community present on spacecraft and associated surfaces. The MPFC team will utilize next generation sequencing technologies and advanced bioinformatics capabilities that have been developed and implemented by the Joint Genome Institute (JGI), a co-investigator institution. Metagenomics is a cultureindependent genomic analysis of entire microbial communities inhabiting a particular niche. The principal objective of the MPFC project is to establish functional traits by exploring the entire gene content of the microbial community. This investigation will aim at understanding “what these microbes are capable of doing,” which will provide new insights into the genetic variability and functional capabilities of unknown or uncultured microorganisms of spacecraft associated surfaces. Such knowledge will promote NASA’s ability to gauge the probability of spacecraft transfer of organisms with functional attributes relevant to microbial survival in extraterrestrial environments. The MPFC project will detect genes that are responsible for the ability of the organisms to survive space conditions (physical, chemical and biological). These conditions include low temperature, desiccation, and exposure to cosmic radiation, ultraviolet radiation, and reactive oxygen species and physiological state of the microbes (i.e. sporulation, anti-freezing, etc.).
(Lesson Plan) Looking For Life
Students will begin by providing their initial thoughts about what habitability means and where life might most likely exist in our solar system. They will then share their answers with a partner using think-pair-share. Students will create a grid worksheet by matching a variety of earth organisms (including humans and extremophiles) and the conditions they require to survive to major bodies in our solar system (planets and selected moons) that have a variety of conditions suitable for life. Students will analyze provided information sources to determine the likelihood that each organism could survive on each solar system body. After students complete the grid they will sort the solar system bodies from most likely to support life to least likely to support life. Students will then compare their results to those of another group and determine if revisions should be made. Finally, students will revisit their initial thoughts on habitability and write a
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recommendation to scientists on where they should look for life, supporting their recommendation with data from the activity.
CSU Long Beach
Erika Podest, Research Mentor
NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory
Soil Moisture Research Project for the Classroom
The Soil Moisture Active Passive (SMAP) satellite mission will be launched in Nov. 2014 and will acquire global measurements of soil moisture. The mission has partnered with the GLOBE program to engage students from around the world to collect soil moisture and help validate SMAP measurements. The objective will be to develop different classroom research projects that GLOBE students can do using soil moisture. These projects will be developed using the suite of measurements or protocols available through the GLOBE website. Correlations will be investigated between the different variables available in order to determine how soil moisture influences or is influenced by them.
(Lesson Plan) The Dirt Is Alive! Soil Carbon And Respiration
Soil plays an important role in the carbon cycle. Carbon held within soil, known as Soil Carbon, is the largest terrestrial pool of carbon containing about 2,200 gigatons. With so much carbon found in the soil, something that humans continually manipulate, it is no wonder that soil carbon plays a role in climate change. Carbon-centered industries play an increasingly important role for life on Earth and students with a deep understanding of the carbon cycle may make better decision with regard to management of resources and conservation of natural habitat. Students will explore soil respiration in this lesson by designing a research experiment that models the rate of carbon exchange from soil to the atmosphere. This guided inquiry experiment will provide students the opportunity to pose a research question about soil respiration and then attempt to answer their question by designing an experiment on soil respiration. Students will propose a research plan including a research question and hypothesis, metrics for observing change, and defined variables such as pH, temperature, saturation of water, etc. Students will also submit a drawing of their proposed experiment demonstrating their hypothesis. With approval students will build and conduct their soil respiration experiment over a two to five day period and record observations. Students will collect and analyze data in order to make statements about the observations, summarizing their research in an informal write up.
CSU San Luis Obispo
Windsor High School
Wayne Schubert, Research Mentor
NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory
Microorganisms Residing on Mars-Based Spacecraft
Mars is considered a likely place to look for extraterrestrial life, given its proximity to Earth, the presence of carbon and other essential major and trace elements, and the presence of water. Energy sources on Mars that could support microbial growth include sunlight, iron, sulfur, H2/CO2 and perchlorate. Of current debate is whether microorganisms can inhabit Mars by surviving the intense radiation, high oxidation potential and extreme desiccation present on the
Mars surface. Knowing if microorganisms survive in conditions simulating the Mars surface is paramount because it addresses the issue of whether microorganisms from Earth, traveling on spacecraft, pose a risk to future life detection missions. The objectives of the proposed project, are to i) identify cultivable microbes collected from spacecraft surfaces dating back to the Viking missions, ii) distinguish those microorganisms that can utilize electron acceptors known to be available on Mars, and iii) determine microbial survival after exposure to Mars-like conditions. The Biotechnology and Planetary Protection Group at JPL (BPPG) invites applications to understand the ecology and evolution of microbes living on spacecraft and to assess their potential for survival in a myriad of extreme environments. The student will join an established group of researchers focusing on molecular systematics/population genetics of microbes isolated from various extreme environments. The student will also be involved in the maintenance and enhancement of various microbial collections. Students will be exposed to state of the art molecular microbial techniques, sequencing, bioinformatics, etc.
(Lesson Plan) How Clean Is Clean?
In this lesson, students will learn about micro-organisms and the fact that they can live on surfaces that have already
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been cleaned. Students will learn to extract and culture microbes from various surfaces and compete to find the
“cleanest” surface in the room. In groups of four students will develop a hypothesis stating where and why they believe they will find the cleanest surface as well as design an experiment to test their hypothesis. Together they will carry out their experiment, recording data and summarizing results in a written group report. Students will use their findings to brainstorm possible cleaning regimens for rooms that need to be “sterile” and explain why not all life will die given certain cleaning regimens. Students will then retest their location after cleaning to determine if they were able to make a difference.
CSU San Luis Obispo
High Tech High Chula Vista
Benjamin Holt, Research Mentor
NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory
Archival and Analysis of Sea Ice Thickness in the Arctic Ocean Based on On-Ice In Situ Historical
Measurements
The Arctic sea ice cover has undergone profound changes, including reductions in extent and mean thickness, related to recent shifts in climate patterns over past decades. Less well known are related changes in sea ice mass balance and thickness distribution. Observations of extent and thickness come from a variety of sources. Since the late
1970s, estimates of changes in ice extent have been made using satellite-based instruments. However, until the recent development of satellite-borne altimeters, there was no single platform to provide estimates of basin-scale thickness distribution. The most notable set of large-scale ice thickness estimates are derived from submarine-based upward looking sonar measurements, but these are limited to the central Arctic region. The objective of this proposal is to improve the understanding of changes in arctic sea ice thickness and related changes in ice mass balance of the entire
Arctic basin, by including analysis of ice thickness records that extend further back in time and include a broader regional sampling of the Arctic. This will be accomplished through the compilation, synthesis, and analysis of historicalto-present on-ice in situ sea ice thickness measurements. The compiled measurements, quality estimates, and metadata will be collected and eventually made available in a central archive for distribution. This archive will be a valuable resource for future analyses, including comparison, validation, and integration with satellite sensors, for development of climatological records and assimilation into models. It is also the goal of the task is to provide an analysis of the records and compare these results with submarine and satellite records of thickness.
(Lesson Plan) Mystery Box Design Challenge
Students will explore the differences between scientific and engineering practices through a five-week unit. Students will begin the unit by being faced with an engineering problem that they will work in small groups to solve while uncovering engineering design principles in the process. Students will then be confronted with a mystery box puzzle that they will be challenged to test through scientific experimentation. Specifically, they will be able to select the input (a measured volume of water) to pour into the box and then must try to understand the output (which will vary in volume and color compared to the water poured in). After a brief case study on the scientific method, students will be asked to examine the different roles of scientists and engineers through role plays, case studies, video interviews, and real life examples.
Finally, students will be presented with the challenge of designing and constructing their own mystery box that can function in the same way as the puzzle they explored earlier in the unit. Students will defend their understanding of engineering design principles and the scientific method by presenting how the refinements on their mystery box allow it to function exactly like the puzzle.
University of Massachusetts
St. Joseph’s High School
Erika Podest, Research Mentor
NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory
Exploring Correlations Between Remote Sensing Environmental Variables and Vector-Borne Diseases
Vector-borne diseases such as dengue and malaria are a major cause of illness and claim hundreds of thousands of lives every year. In addition, climate change may increase the domain of these diseases. Surveillance of the disease is key for mitigation strategies. This project entails using a machine learning software called Random Forests to explore correlations between a suite of remote sensing derived environmental variables (e.g. air temperature, humidity, land
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cover, ndvi, precipitation) and disease incidence data. These correlations will help determine which variables are strongly associated with disease outbreaks and will allow for identification of areas at risk.
(Lesson Plan) Malaria Outbreak!
Engage: Students in AP Statistics will role play as scientists in a country that just had a serious malaria outbreak.
They must warn the government and people about where and when the next outbreak may take place so precautions
(spraying, mosquito nets) can be taken. Students will take notes during a short video on malaria. Explore: Students will analyze mosquito population and environmental data (including real data from NASA satellites) in spreadsheet form and see if they can tell which variables (temperature, precipitation etc.) affect the presence of this mosquito (almost impossible by eye). Students will then brainstorm ways that they could better analyze this data to look for relationships between the variables and malaria outbreaks. Students will out brief their ideas. Explain: If the students do not suggest graphing the data, the teacher will lead the students to this idea. After learning how to graph using Excel the students will produce graphs. In groups, they will list the advantages of examining raw data vs. graphs and the pluses and minuses of different types of graphs. Elaborate: Students will learn that data is used to help find answers to important problems in many fields (ex. science, business). They will also learn how statistics, which commonly includes collecting data and putting it in a form so trends can be seen helps find answers to problems. Evaluate: Teacher will evaluate student’s graphs for correctness, and whether the graphical representation shows the relationship between the variables clearly.
CSU Northridge
James Benardini, Research Mentor
NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory
Assessment of the Bioburden Accounting Tool and Revised Statistical Analysis to Support the InSight
Planetary Protection Campaign
The InSight Project is a Discovery mission that consists of a single spacecraft that will be launched from Vandenberg
Air Force Base (VAFB) during the March 2016 time period on a Atlas V 401 rocket from Space Launch Complex 3E. As a Mars lander mission without life detection instruments, the InSight mission has been designated PP Category IVa by the NASA PPO. Therefore, planetary protection bioburden requirements are applicable to this mission and will require microbial reduction procedures and biological burden reports of launched and landed hardware. The NASA Standard
Assay verifies these bioburden requirements by quantifying any aerobic, heterotrophic, heat-shock resistant isolates.
These isolates are directly enumerated, statistically treated and resulting bioburden densities applied to the representative hardware surfaces within a bioburden accounting tool. InSight is the first current mission to beta-test a new bioburden accounting tool and statistical tool suite. The impacts of using the new bioburden accounting tool and statistical treatment on meeting InSight’s bioburden requirements need to be assessed. For research purposes it is also important to update the microbial archive by providing additional biochemical data and sequence data for each isolate collected from the InSight spacecraft. The objectives of the proposed project, are to i) begin to characterize the bioburden impacts of the new bioburden accounting tool for the InSight mission, ii) characterize the bioburden density impacts to the InSight baseline bioburden density values, and iii) identify cultivable microbes collected from InSight spacecraft surfaces.
The Biotechnology and Planetary Protection Group at JPL (BPPG) invites applications to understand the ecology and evolution of microbes living on spacecraft and to assess their bioburden densities for the InSight spacecraft.
(Lesson Plan) Microbe Mayhem
The lesson, titled “Microbe Mayhem”, invites students to explore the effectiveness and practicality of cleaning surfaces.
The lesson begins with students learning about Planetary Protection and its work on past, current, and future NASA missions. After students have developed a basic understanding of Planetary Protection they will devise the best method to clean a surface in the classroom using three treatments. Students will determine their own treatment method after learning two standard treatment methods (UV light and hand sanitizer). Prior to sampling students will predict which method of cleaning will be most effective and support their claim using prior knowledge. Students will treat their selected surfaces with the treatments and then collect samples using cotton swabs provided by the instructor. The swabs will then be spread on agar plates using standard microbial practices (students should already know standard microbial practices). After a class period of sampling and plating, students will record observations for 3 consecutive days (24 hours, 48 hours, and 72 hours). After the final colony counts are completed after 72 hours, students will present their findings to the class. They will explain and defend their conclusions on the most effective treatments by supporting their claims with data. After the group presentations students will compare and contrast their results with the results of other groups.
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North Carolina State University
Gabriel Udomkesmalee, Research Mentor
NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory
Space RACE
Space Rendezvous And Capture Experiment (Space RACE) is a newly proposed robotics competition currently being considered as a potentially new NASA Centennial Challenges technology prize competition. Space RACE could allow future planetary sample return missions (Mars, Lunar South Pole-Aitken Basin, Venus, Mercury, Comets, etc.) to share a common mission architecture of capturing on-orbit a sample container (collected from the surface of a planetary body and launched into space) and transferring it into an earth return/entry capsule. A small mobile robot platform traversing along a race track attempting to detect/capture a mock-up orbiting sample moving along the same track would provide similar technical challenges of performing autonomous spacecraft rendezvous and sample capture – demonstrated solutions could potentially have a direct technology infusion path into future flight missions. This project will design/ experiment with mobility/robotics platforms needed for the Space RACE competition and generate the required
ConOps and Competition Rules/Guidelines.
(Lesson Plan) Solving Nasa Engineering Challenges With High School Geometry
Engineers at NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory are constantly modeling with mathematics to aid their decisions about engineering design challenges. In this lesson, students will assume the role of an engineer and apply their knowledge of geometry to model Mars Rover engineering design problems. Students, arranged in teams, will assess given problems by identifying the objective, restraints and constraints of each problem. Then students will select appropriate modeling techniques from previous lessons on geometry and determine possible solutions to their engineering challenges.
Engineering challenges include the following: At what angle should the camera be mounted on the Mars Rover so it can process images and navigate before running into an obstacle? In this task, students will use their knowledge of right triangles and trigonometric ratios to calculate and determine an appropriate mounting angle for the camera on a Mars Rover. How much suspension line was needed to attach the supersonic parachute to Curiosity’s lander? In this task, students will use their knowledge of circles and triangles to estimate the amount of suspension line used by NASA engineers to attach the supersonic parachute to Curiosity’s lander. This lesson is designed for high school geometry students and embraces the Common Core Standard for Mathematical Practices – Model with Mathematics.
CSU San Marcos
Mission Vista High School
Robert T. Sparks, Research Mentor
National Optical Astronomy Observatory
Maximizing Precision Of Variable Star Photometry With Digital Cameras In Suburban Environments
Photometry is the measure of the brightness of an object. When making such measurements on stars, it is done is units of magnitude, which is on a logarithmic scale with a base of ~2.512. Variable star photometry using a commercially available digital camera is not going to be as accurate and precise as equipment used by astronomers, and because of the logarithmic scale of magnitude used, determining how much of an effect different error reduction strategies have is not straightforward, and is best done experimentally. My research is conducting photometry on variable stars (changing brightness) with a digital camera, and testing both the limits in terms of how faint of a star can be reliably detected, but also which methods for recording and processing data have an effect on the measurement in the first four digits of a photometric measurement. Examples include whether taking dark frames, in which a picture of darkness is taken with the same camera setting as the night sky image, and subtracted from the first image to reduce in-camera noise, has an effect, and if so, how many dark frames before no significant change is seen. Other error reduction strategies
I’m examining include accounting for the drop off in brightness towards the edges of an image due to camera optics, canceling out the brightness of the sky to correct for light pollution, and calibrating the target star against other known stars.
(Lesson Plan) Variable Star Tracking
This lesson will have students recording and analyzing data on the brightness of a target star. (Ideally this will be a relatively bright star with a short period that is high in the sky during the school year, such as Delta Orionis, Lambda
Tauri, and Beta Persei.) Students will also have to consider how to work with data that is on a logarithmic scale, a skill
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that applies to other science topics such as measuring sound and earthquake intensity. Due to the nature of variable stars, this lesson would span several days or even weeks in order to make the necessary observations, but it would largely be night time observations. (Groups of students could come in shifts throughout the week, the teacher can simply supply the raw files, or other arrangements as works for that teacher and school site.) Students will utilize digital equipment (DSLR cameras) and software (DeepSkyStacker and Aperture Photometry Tool, both free) to take images, process images to improve accuracy, measure brightness, and track the brightness over time. Then they will try to determine the type of variable their target star is, whether it is cause by a binary star pair periodically rotating in front of each other, or the star is pulsating, causing fluctuations in brightness.
CSU Sacramento
Leroy Greene Academy
Constance Walker, Research Mentor
National Optical Astronomy Observatory
Light Pollution Research Through Citizen Science
Light pollution (LP) can disrupt and/or degrade the health of all living things, as well as, their environments. The goal of my research at the NOAO was to check the accuracy of the citizen science LP reporting systems entitled:
Globe at Night (GaN), Dark Sky Meter (DSM), and Loss of the Night (LoN). On the GaN webpage, the darkness of the night sky (DotNS) is reported by selecting a magnitude chart. Each magnitude chart has a different density/ number of stars around a specific constellation. The greater number of stars implies a darker night sky. Within the
DSM iPhone application, a user must put the iPhone above his/her head, orient the camera up towards the sky, while ensuring the phone is level, before telling the application to take a snapshot of and measure the DotNS. LoN is an
Android application, which asks the user to try and locate at least seven different stars in the night sky. The stars vary in magnitude of brightness. Once an observer specifies whether or not they can see the stars, then the LoN application calculates the DotNS. All DSM, LoN, and GaN measurements were juxtaposed against handheld and stationary night sky quality meter readings, which are scientifically calibrated to exhibit minimal error. Nevertheless, all three applications offer Dark Sky conservationists a window into an extraordinary future. With students, teachers, and community members recording LP data internationally, more sites can be identified as either: Dark Sky certified or in need of night sky conservation/education/legislation.
(Lesson Plan) Light Pollution Research Through Citizen Science
The goal of this lesson is to put secondary students in the theoretical “driver’s seat” of light pollution research. Students can be as autonomous as the teacher allows. Once they are introduced to the definition of light pollution and the anthropogenic degradation of the biosphere, then they can begin to determine: what locations in their community they want to analyze, how they are going to get to those locations, how to conduct and record authentic/credible research, how will/has this research impacted their view of their community/state/country, and what they are going to do with their results. Possible outcomes from this lesson may include: participating in local/state/national environmental health competitions, contacting local government and school board officials for lighting improvements/policies, developing a community project and awareness, and maintaining a vital/cutting-edge data flow to the “United States national research
& development center for ground-based night time astronomy” – National Optical Astronomy Observatory. Finally, this lesson addresses multiple standards within the Common Core State Standards (CCSS), as well as, the Next Generation
Science Standards – mainly focusing on the organization, presentation, and implications of data analysis within the
Microsoft Excel program. With light pollution’s correlations to obesity, diabetes, sleep disorders, and some forms of cancer, the time to act is now.
CSU Sacramento
Da Vinci Charter Academy
Bernice Mills, Research Mentor
Sandia National Laboratories
Water Capacity Of Tuffoam
TufFoam is a Sandia-developed, closed cell polyurethane foam designed for insulation and impact force dispersion.
Unlike similar commercially available foams, TufFoam does not require the carcinogenic compound toluene diisocyanate in the production process. Since properties of foams can change with moisture content, this study examines
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the capacity of TufFoam to absorb water. Samples of TufFoam were created in two different thicknesses, at three different densities, and with two different exteriors and were weighed to the microgram. Weights were tracked from ambient conditions until the disks had finished drying in ovens and then while being moistened in airtight canisters held at three different temperatures. TufFoam takes about two weeks to dry from ambient conditions of around 24°C and 50% relative humidity and loses approximately 1% of its mass. Samples can subsequently gain water quickly, with one set gaining 3% of the dry mass in the first day. Weight gain is fastest at high temperature and with low density. There is not yet data to draw conclusions about skin and thickness, nor to compare total eventual weight gain. By the final poster’s presentation more data will be available. In later experiments, after the total saturation point has been found, samples can be fully saturated and their various mechanical and electrical properties can be determined and compared to their properties at ambient conditions.
(Lesson Plan) Lab Notebooks
This lesson plan will introduce the students to appropriate lab notebook protocol. It will be used in a physics and chemistry classroom, but could be used for any science. The nominal assignment will be for each student to determine their own best homework setting, with the students left in charge of determining what “best” means and how they will find it over the given two week time period. They will be given a notebook to help them as they accomplish this research task. Throughout the two weeks, a small period of time each class period will be devoted to discussing how their research is progressing so that students can share ideas and ask questions. By the second week students should note that some of their peers are better able to draw meaningful conclusions because they have collected more relevant information and organized it effectively in their lab notebooks. The final day will be spent discussing what things were helpful to record. The list should include time and date, personal thoughts, observations, motivations for testing a particular set of conditions, procedures used, problems noted, and possible interpretations. At this time I will also address the formatting I want so that students will be prepared to use their lab notebooks as a regular part of class experiments.
CSU Bakersfield
Bernice Mills, Research Mentor
Sandia National Laboratories
TufFoam Density Variation Through Radiography
TufFoam is a low density, high impact tolerant polyurethane foam with good high voltage breakdown developed at the
Sandia National Laboratories. Identically shaped samples have been produced with various formulations and production conditions. Eight different variables were studied. Our aim is to compare the density variation of the material when produced and processed under distinct conditions. The density of TufFoam is determined using radiographic imaging.
We extract the foam density by fitting the radiographic density of each step in a plastic step wedge with 10 steps from 0.1 to 1.0 inches and applying the resulting equation to convert each pixel in the radiograph to an image based on inches. A total of 28 samples were radiographed with a source to sample distance of approximately 53 inches. The 28 samples were separated into 12 different groups; each group of samples was produced under identical conditions. The results varied depending on the variables in which the samples were produced. We observed that when samples were fabricated under certain conditions the resulting images and histograms showed a uniform density distribution. When made under other conditions samples were produced with a non-uniform density distribution. Furthermore, certain variables resulted in samples with distinct and thicker skin layer compared to the interior portion of the sample. We will discuss the effect of the variables on the homogeneity and density of the samples.
(Lesson Plan) Line Of Best-Fit
The focus of this lesson is for students to be able to run an experiment. In groups of 4 students, they will come up with a question of common interest. The question that students will produce must meet certain requirements. Such requirements will facilitate the process of coming up with a question. Students will go to at least 4 other classes (to do this, I will arrange things with the other teachers so that students won’t have any problems) and have students answer the question. At this point students will collect the information obtained and graph it in a scatter plot. The scatter plot will help students obtain a line of best fit. The purpose of this lesson is for students to determine if there is a connection between the two variables that students have come up with. Furthermore, the scatter plot will help them visualize the concepts. Students will prepare a presentation to show the entire class their results. Students will be free to create either a poster or a power point presentation of their findings. It will be up to the students to decide the media of their presentation, but they will have to meet the requirements, show the question, the graph, results and conclusion.
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CSU East Bay
Bernice Mills, Research Mentor
Sandia National Laboratories
Radiographic Image Quality Enhancement By The Use Of Copper Filters
In x-radiography, filters are often used in order to improve the overall image quality. Filters achieve this by making the x-ray beam have less energy spread, resulting in a cleaner image. Step wedges of different materials were used to compare radiographic density with and without a copper filter to identify the effect of the copper filter at different energies and exposure times. The step wedges used were CRS 1018 (cold rolled steel), Stainless Steel 304L, Al 1100, Al
6061 T6, titanium, copper, PTFE (polytetrafluoroethylene or Teflon), brass, carbon, magnesium, phenolic, tungsten, and tantalum. Out of the 14 step wedges tested, only 12 produced useful data, as tungsten and tantalum were both too dense to produce any useable images and data points. In the given time, we were able to run a total of 6 different series of tests at the following parameters: 130kV for 15min, 130kV for 5min, and 70kV for 5min; all with and without a copper filter.
From the resulting data we were able to identify certain trends and patterns of the copper filter that held true across all materials. In every case the use of a copper filter lowers the radiographic density of every step on every material under any conditions.
(Lesson Plan) Why The Electromagnetic Spectrum Matters
In this lesson, students will be introduced to the electromagnetic spectrum. First, students will be shown which wavelengths/frequencies characterize each type of wave. Also, I will go over what kinds of materials are needed to block the harmful types of waves (lead, concrete, foil, etc.). Then I will bring their attention to the poster that I completed during the STAR program, as I was dealing with X-rays for my project. I can explain to them the different uses of
X-rays, from medical purposes to applications in material sciences. Then I can transition into elaborating more on the different uses of infrared, microwaves, radio waves, gamma rays, visible light, etc. This can be done through short video presentation for each type of wave, so that the students can get a good grasp as to how each type of wave is used in the real world. A simple but fun activity could involve using prisms to diffract different types of wavelengths in order to see what happens. The students can then draw their own conclusions as to why some types of lights diffract differently than others based on their range of wavelengths/frequencies.
CSU San Luis Obispo
Kelly Stewart, Research Mentor
NOAA Southwest Fisheries Science Center
Effects of Using Stick Markers for Leatherback Turtle Hatched Nests on Avian Predators Ability to Locate
Nests
Bird predators may often be a concern on sea turtle nesting beaches. At Sandy Point National Wildlife Refuge, St. Croix
(USVI), sticks with masking tape flags are used to identify leatherback turtle nests that have hatched. Here there is concern that yellow crowned night herons (YCNH) might be attracted to the sticks because they have learned that the sticks mark the site of a nest. We compared YCNH nest visitation to real nests, as well as to decoy nests marked with sticks. We counted the number of heron tracks within a 2 x 2 m area at the nest marker and measured the closest set of tracks to the marker. We also noted whether the tracks through the area deviated from their initial path toward the marker or continued on a straight path, with the heron walking past the marker. Each decoy nest was paired with an actual nest within 20 - 40 m, in a similar habitat on the beach. We monitored 10 real and 10 decoy nests from 7 July to 19
July 2014. Preliminary results from our study show that YCNH are attracted to the nest stick markers. We discuss some important conclusion and recommendations.
(Lesson Plan) Endangered Species, Human Impacts: Is It Worth Protecting Endangered Species?
In this lesson, students start the day with a short warm up that looks at species survival percentages of sea turtles.
Students will first give a prediction of the survival percentage, then move on to actually calculate the survival of sea turtles from eggs, to hatchlings, to juveniles and ultimately to breeding adults (percentages reflect with and without human impacts). Students will then reflect on their prediction versus the actual percentage. This leads into a Prezibased lecture about what type of impacts humans have on wildlife and what are some of the main species that are being affected, what are the different types of recovery efforts taking place across the planet and who are the people, groups, and institutions that are trying to help. After the lecture, a couple articles/data sets about species management will be
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passed out to small groups (3-4 students). The groups will read and analyze the information presented to them in their groups and come up with a personal stance on species management to present to the class. Each group will present to the class in a mock species management forum. Class will end with students reflecting on their stance about species management prior to and after the lesson.
CSU San Jose
JLS Middle School
Kelly Stewart, Research Mentor
NOAA Southwest Fisheries Science Center
The Path To The Sea: Leatherback Hatchling Orientation At Sandy Point National Wildlife Refuge
Once sea turtle hatchlings emerge from their nest, they must find their way to the ocean by using cues such as a bright horizon and the slope of the beach. While moving toward the water, hatchlings often must navigate past predators and through vegetation, sticks, footprints in the sand, and other dangers such as ghost crab holes. Sometimes hatchlings become confused (or disoriented) and turn in circles to find the right route to the water. Sea turtle hatchlings also may become disoriented as a result of human impacts such as town lights or trash. The purpose of our experiment was to evaluate the path hatchlings took from the nest to the water and to record if they became disoriented because of human impacts. We took 10 leatherback hatchlings each from 11 nests that naturally emerged at Sandy Point National Wildlife
Refuge (St. Croix, USVI) and released them from their nest location between 14 July and 27 July 2014. We recorded the time it took for each of them to reach the high tide line, compass direction of their travel, distance from the nest to the water, distance and compass direction of the most direct route to the water, time of the experiment, and weather conditions. Our results show that the majority of hatchlings were not drawn toward town lights or disoriented by trash.
In conclusion, town lights and trash are not a major concern at Sandy Point except on nights when there is a lot of sky glow from town.
(Lesson Plan) Surviving Against The Odds: The Effects Of Humanity On Leatherback Sea Turtle Survival
The objective of the lesson will be for students to understand human impacts on certain species and on the Earth’s systems. It will focus on data collected from a research project studying leatherback sea turtle hatchling journeys from their nests to the ocean and how they are affected by impacts such as lights from nearby towns and trash along their route. The lesson will start by asking students to think about why certain species are endangered and why people should care. They will brainstorm with a partner about how people can impact sea turtles. The class will view “The survival of the sea turtle” by Scott Gass, http://ed.ted.com/lessons/the-survival-of-the-sea-turtle. In the video, students will be exposed to survival data for turtle hatchlings and will get an appreciation for most of the challenges they face.
Next, the class will role-play as a nest of leatherback sea turtles and ultimately calculate how many survived their obstacles. Outside, each will receive a role card indicating the stage where they perished. All would remain standing as eggs and successive groups would be asked move forward but sit down as their cards are announced, with the surviving turtles left standing. Afterwards, students will be asked to brainstorm in pairs on ways to determine whether humans are impacting the species and to suggest ways to limit those effects. This will help students model human impacts on other species and will illustrate the value of research projects such as the orientations data development on leatherback sea turtle hatchlings.
CSU Stanislaus
Camryn Allen, Research Mentor
NOAA Southwest Fisheries Science Center
Sex Ratio Assessment Of Endangered Kemp’s Ridley Sea Turtle Foraging Populations
Currently all species of sea turtles are listed as threatened or endangered with extinction under the U.S. Endangered
Species Act. In order to effectively construct management approaches we need as much information on various sea turtle populations as possible including demography, genetic origin, and critical habitat. One demographic piece of data that is lacking is the sex ratio of turtle populations in foraging habitats, as this information is integral in determining overall population abundance. Because secondary sex characteristics (i.e. males have longer tails) are not evident until turtles start to reach sexual maturity, the sex of juvenile turtles cannot be easily determined externally. The least invasive way to determine the sex of juvenile turtles is through hormone analysis (testosterone) of the blood plasma. There are several methods for determining hormone concentration in turtle plasma; we used enzyme-linked immunosorbent
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assays (ELISA), which are the most cost effective and user friendly technique available. The testosterone ELISA has recently been validated for use with green sea turtle Chelonia mydas plasma but has yet to be validated for the other sea turtle species. My project focused on the endangered Kemp’s ridley sea turtle Lepidochelys kempii that is only found in the Gulf of Mexico and U.S. Atlantic seaboard. We validated the ELISA testosterone technique through demonstrating’parallelism’ to prove that the assay is measuring the same antigen (i.e. testosterone) in the plasma extracts and the standard controls (provided in the testosterone assay kit). We then determined the sex of approximately 140 juvenile turtles.
(Lesson Plan) Sea Turtle Ecology: What’s The Sex Ratio?
The lesson will be ecology based and involve the Next Generation Science standards HS-LS2-1: Use mathematical and/or computational representations to support explanations of factors that affect carrying capacity of ecosystems at different scales and HS-LS2-6: Evaluate the claims, evidence, and reasoning that the complex interactions in ecosystems maintain relatively consistent numbers and types of organisms in stable conditions, but changing conditions may result in a new ecosystem. The students will have some prior knowledge of interactions in ecosystems and examples of changing conditions that affect an ecosystem. The objective is that students will be able to identify the changing conditions that affect a specific ecosystem and defend their choices based on available evidence and prior knowledge.
Additionally, students will interpret data sets and work together to formulate ideas. I will use my research experience as an anticipatory set by sharing some of the related work that I have done through pictures, stories, and perhaps my STAR poster. The students will then be assigned to groups to analyze data sets of turtle testosterone levels. They will be tasked with determining sex, calculating the sex ratio of the population, and interpreting the meaning of the data. Students will note all their ideas on personal whiteboards so I can easily check for understanding by walking around the classroom.
At the end of the lesson each group will be asked to present and defend their ideas. Students will be assessed solely on participation for this lesson.
2014 STAR Closing Conference
63

Akinleye, Adesanya, B21
Allen, Camryn, C29
Alston, Jeffrey, A03
Amidan, Brett, A12
Anderson, Lesley, C18
Arreguin, Erika, B03
Bain, Hazel, A24
Bargas, Ray, B05
Bass, Sarah, B20
Baxter, Carey Louise, C14
Bell, Samantha, A04
Bemowski, Brooke, A16
Benardini, James, C20
Bone, Sharon, B21
Brady, Mara, B01, B03
BradyLong, Kyla, C17
Brown, Greg, C03, C04
Bunn, Amoret, A11
Burton, Dudley, B07
Butterworth, Anna, A21
Calderon, Alejandro, B02, B06
Carey, Michelle, A22
Ceballos, Anallely, B01
Chang , Andy, A15
Choi, Sea, A14
Cohen, Sarah, A19
Coleman, Matthew, C05
Coleman, Ron, B08
Contreras Esquivel, Sergio, C25
Corbett, Jeff, B22, B25
Costello, Dano, C27
Coulombe, Kevin, C06 – 12
Daum , Brittany, A15
Davenport, Dominique, C03
Delp, Britny, B22
Downs, Janelle, A09
Dutta, Devan, C10
Engelbrecht, Christian, A21
Eshelman, Mimi, C11
Fell, Ben, B09
Fillingim, Matt, A23
Fong, Carrie, A17
Forliti, David, A04
Freund, Friedemann, B19
Frisch, Josef, B24
Fuller, Kristina, C24
Glantz, Cliff, A10
Glezakou, Vassiliki-Alexandra, A13
Griffin, Erin, A10
Gulick, Virginia, B20
Gutierrez, Elizabeth, A19
Heckendorf, Jesse, B08
Heckman, Katherine, C01
Hendrickson, Ryan, C20
Hendryx, Korena, B10
Hergesheimer, David, C22
Hermanson, Larry, B18
Hillbrand, Seth, B11
Hilton, William, C29
Holt, Benjamin, C18
Horner, Timothy, B12
Huynh, Trisha, A20
Jacquemet, Ryan, C07
Jaffe, Gary, A07
Jarrett, Christopher, C12
Johnston, Amanda, C02
Kanemoto, John, C23
Khan, Madani, A03
Kneitel, Jamie, B10
Kohel, James, C14
Kuzmich, Kayla, A02
La Liberte, Stephanie, C21
LaRosa, Natalie, B25
Liebmann, Brant, B16
Lightfoot , Malissa, A01
Lopez, Jacqueline, B19
Lykens, Kimberly, B16
MacMaster, Danika, B07
MacMillan, Christina, C28
Martinez Oliveros, Juan Carlos, A22
McFarland, Erik, C15
Melkonian, Tamar, B06
Miller, Ben, B17
Mills, Bernice, C24 – 26
Moore, Joseph, B09
Mora, Angeles, B02
Naranjo, Krystal, C05
Newman, Sarah, B14
Oda, Tom, B15
O’Donnell, Mary Ellen, C19
Onstad, Malika, A12
Parker, Andrew, C13
Peavy, Thomas, B13
Plante, Zach, C09
Podest, Erika, C16, C19
Ponce, Nicole, A23
Ramirez, D. Priscilla, A06
Ramos, Grecia, C04
Rana, Komal, A11
Reid, Georgia, C06
Reisweber, Eric, A09
Rojas, Ilian, A01
Sakogawa, Timothy, C26
Salami, Nurdeen, A08
Schaefer, Michael, B23
Scharton, Kyle, B04
Schofield, Robert, A05
Schubert, Wayne, C17
Schwarz, Joshua, B18
Sharitt, Carrie Ann, A18
Shaw, Caleb, B14
Sherman, Lacee, B17
Shusteff, Maxim, C02
Smith, Garrett, C16
Smith, Shaun, A06 – 08
Soriano, Wesley, C08
Sparks, Robert T., C22
Stewart, Kelly, C27, C28
Sullivan, Lindsay, A16 – 20
Sullivan, Peter, A24
Sutton, Andrew, C13
Sweem, Nathan, B12
Sy, Krystle, B11
Tayne, Kelsey, B15
Tee, Francis Michael, B23
Thompson, Josh, B24
Toledo, Alexandra, C01
Tsai, Jesse, A02
Tubbs, Marcus, A13
Udomkesmalee, Gabriel, C21
Vaishampayan, Parag, C15
Vidrio, Margarita, A05
Walker, Constance, C23
Wasurick, Ryan, B13
Weinman, Beth, B04, B05
Yu, Xiao-Ying, A14
64
August 16th, 2014

STEM Teacher and Researcher Program
Center for Excellence in STEM Education
California Polytechnic State University
San Luis Obispo, CA 93407 www.StarTeacherResearcher.org