In this podcast, listen to a traditional Inuit tale about the seasonal light and darkness of the Arctic.
Explore stretching just a single strand of DNA using optical tweezers or fluid flow. Experiment with the forces involved and measure the relationship between the stretched DNA length and the force required to keep it stretched. Is DNA more like a rope or like a spring?
This module is about a particular effect of the frequency, which is the stroboscopic effect. The lesson discusses and demonstrates low frequency phenomena - less than 16 Hz - that can usually be observed clearly by the human eye, as well as high frequency phenomena - more than 25 Hz - that are difficult for the human eye to catch. This video also explores and demonstrates how high frequency phenomena can be observed by freezing the fast moving phenomena using a device called a stroboscope. The only prerequisite for this video is that students understand the definition of the frequency of a periodic phenomenon.
This article describes early studies of the auroras, including techniques used from 1960 when Henry Brecher first spent the winter at Byrd Station in Antarctica.
What happens when sugar and salt are added to water? Pour in sugar, shake in salt, and evaporate water to see the effects on concentration and conductivity. Zoom in to see how different sugar and salt compounds dissolve. Zoom in again to explore the role of water.
This article provides elementary school teachers with background knowledge about science concepts needed to understand the first of seven essential principles of climate literacy--the sun is the primary source of energy for our climate system. Graphs, diagrams, and oneline resources provide more background for the teacher. The article appears in a free online magazine that focuses on the seven essential princples of the climate sciences.
The Technical Services Group (TSG) at MIT's Department of Physics provides technical and teaching support for undergraduate courses at MIT. Our many rooms of physics demos, accumulated over the past century, display subtle physics concepts ranging from electromagnetism, to kinematics, to optics.
The Take Action column in the free, online magazine Beyond Weather and the Water Cycle suggests actions young people (K-grade 5) can take to reduce the impacts of climate change. The magazine examines the recognized essential principles of climate literacy and the climate sciences as well as the guiding principle for informed climate decisions.
In this activity, learners explore center of gravity, or balance point, of stacked blocks. Simple wooden blocks can be stacked so that the top block extends completely past the end of the bottom block, seemingly in a dramatic defiance of gravity. A mathematical pattern can be noted in the stacking.
This article describes energy efficiency as it relates to home and school energy use and provides ways that children can help.
This article provides an overview of energy education curriculum materials available from the National Energy Education Development (NEED) Project. Teachers may become a member, or use free online resources.
This article provides lesson plans about natural resources and energy sources for elementary teachers.
This article discusses the importance of teaching students to reflect on text through direct instruction and modeling. The article includes a template that can be used with elementary students.
This interactive activity produced for Teachers' Domain shows the relationship between tectonic boundaries and the locations of earthquake events and volcanoes around the world.
Watch the ZOOM cast discover which insulator -- newspaper or aluminum foil -- is better at keeping an ice cube frozen longer.
In this video segment adapted from ZOOM, cast members show you how to make your very own electroscope. You can use it to find out if an object is electrically charged.
This interactive activity from the NOVA Web site challenges you to think like Einstein and understand how time travel might be possible.
This video from NASA explains the process by which gamma-ray flashes associated with storms produce matter/antimatter particle pairs.
This illustrated essay from the NOVA Web site answers questions about irregularities in the tides.
In this activity learners explore the connections of digital time displays with numeric and geometric properties. Students look for times that have bilateral or rotational symmetry, or have a certain digital sum, etc. Ideas for implementation, extension and support are included.