This is a long-term inquiry activity in which students investigate locations they …
This is a long-term inquiry activity in which students investigate locations they believe harbor cellulose-digesting microbes, collect samples, isolate them on selective media, and screen them for cellulase activity. These novel microbes may be useful for the production of cellulosic ethanol. In the process they learn about plating techniques, serial dilutions, symbiotic relationships and enzyme specificity. Two methods are provided, one focusing on isolation of pure microbial strains, the other focusing on finding symbiotic communities of microbes. The companion activity is here: https://www.glbrc.org/outreach/educational-materials/bioprospecting-cellulose-degrading-microbes-filter-paper-assay
A weekly bioregion homework assignment exploring for the student local landscape changes. …
A weekly bioregion homework assignment exploring for the student local landscape changes. What were the past natural conditions and native uses to todays uses, as well as projected changes in the coming decades.
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Students are given data for three unidentified hypothetical environments and asked to …
Students are given data for three unidentified hypothetical environments and asked to determine the relative effects of mixed layer thickness, sediment accumulation rate, and bioturbation rate based on a simple diffusion-based model of bioturbation. Students are asked to identify the three unknown environments based on the data. Students are then asked questions regarding the effects of the model on temporal resolution and porewater chemistry and the resulting fossil assemblages.
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In this activity, students construct "flying birds" (pollution collectors) from paper and …
In this activity, students construct "flying birds" (pollution collectors) from paper and wire hangers. Students hang up their birds to see how they react to air pollution, and compare and make observations about the differences in the birds.
Cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin rely on blockchain technology and crypto mining, which consume …
Cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin rely on blockchain technology and crypto mining, which consume massive amounts of electricity and have significant carbon footprints. The lack of transparency and regulation in the industry raises concerns about the economic, social, and environmental costs associated with crypto mines.
Charleston County School District Nutrition Services and the Green Heart Project are …
Charleston County School District Nutrition Services and the Green Heart Project are excited to be partnering this year for Harvest of the Month with their friends from The Bee Cause Project providing delicious honey. Enjoy this fun and easy demonstration of Roasted Sweet Potatoes with Honey and Cinnamon! Simple and delicious foods from Mother Nature are always a winner with your students!
In this series of activities students investigate the effects of black carbon …
In this series of activities students investigate the effects of black carbon on snow and ice melt in the Arctic. The lesson begins with an activity that introduces students to the concept of thermal energy and how light and dark surfaces reflect and absorb radiant energy differently. To help quantify the relationship between carbon and ice melt, the wet lab activity has students create ice samples both with and without black carbon and then compare how they respond to radiant energy while considering implications for the Arctic.
This video explores the affect on seabirds of a three year ocean …
This video explores the affect on seabirds of a three year ocean warming event (2013-16) in the NW Pacific. With ocean warming, a massive die off occurred based on the decline of food resources.
In this activity, students develop an understanding of the relationship between natural …
In this activity, students develop an understanding of the relationship between natural phenomena, weather, and climate change: the study known as phenology. In addition, they learn how cultural events are tied to the timing of seasonal events. Students brainstorm annual natural phenomena that are tied to seasonal weather changes. Next, they receive information regarding the Japanese springtime festival of Hanami, celebrating the appearance of cherry blossoms. Students plot and interpret average bloom date data from over the past 1100 years.
Storms can have devastating impacts on coastal communities. Typically, tropical storms like …
Storms can have devastating impacts on coastal communities. Typically, tropical storms like hurricanes get the most attention, but there are other types of storms that occur at more northern latitudes that can be just as destructive. For example, in January of 2018, Winter Storm Grayson caused more than 300,000 power outages and $1.1 billion in damage, and resulted in 22 confirmed casualties along the eastern seaboard. In this module, students will learn how barometric pressure changes during a storm, analyze the effect of storms on oceanographic variables, classify a storm as a bomb cyclone, and compare a bomb cyclone to a hurricane. Ultimately students will use their quantitative reasoning skills to manipulate and visualize data during storms in the northeastern United States.
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Question Suppose that you are building a new house. It will take …
Question Suppose that you are building a new house. It will take about 90 kg (198 pounds) of copper to do the electrical wiring. In order to get the copper in the first place, someone needs to mine solid rock that contains copper, extract the copper minerals, throw away the waste rock, and smelt the copper minerals to produce copper metal. Rocks mined for copper typically contain only very small percentages of copper -- about 0.7% in the case of most of the big porphyry copper deposits of the world. How much rock would someone have to mine in order to extract enough copper to wire your new house?
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In the activity students learn about the properties of solutions, acidity and …
In the activity students learn about the properties of solutions, acidity and pH, electrolytes versus non-electrolytes, and solution concentration. Hopefully, this activity will also dispel common misconceptions about tap water and bottled beverages.
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Utopia or dystopia? It’s up to us. In the 21st century, powerful …
Utopia or dystopia? It’s up to us. In the 21st century, powerful technologies have been appearing at a breathtaking pace—related to the internet, artificial intelligence, genetic engineering, and more. They have amazing potential upsides, but we can’t ignore the serious risks that come with them. Brave New Planet is a podcast that delves deep into the most exciting and challenging scientific frontiers, helping us understand them and grapple with their implications. Dr. Eric Lander, president and founding director of the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, is a geneticist, molecular biologist, and mathematician who was a leader of the Human Genome Project and for eight years served as a science advisor to the White House for President Obama. He’s also the host of Brave New Planet, and he’s talked to leading researchers, journalists, doctors, policy makers, activists, and legal experts to illuminate how this generation’s choices will shape the future as never before. Brave New Planet is a partnership between the Broad Institute, Pushkin Industries, and the Boston Globe.
In this activity, students conduct a short hands-on demonstration that simulates ocean …
In this activity, students conduct a short hands-on demonstration that simulates ocean acidification resulting from excess atmospheric carbon dioxide and discuss potential implications of increases in ocean temperatures and acidification due to climate change.
In association with rock and mineral ID tables, this lab introduces students …
In association with rock and mineral ID tables, this lab introduces students to basic rocks and minerals via grouping and comparison, rather than as individual samples. I use this lab in my environmental geology course, where we don't have enough lab time to examine each set of rocks and minerals separately, but students need a basic familiarity with these materials and a context in which to place them. I find these groupings teach them how to look at rocks and minerals and give them the cursory experience identifying geologic materials necessary to go on successfully in the course.
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Responding to Climate Change & Ecosystem Disruption Word Count: 97221 (Note: This …
Responding to Climate Change & Ecosystem Disruption
Word Count: 97221
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This assignment, depending on the level and depth of implementation, seeks to …
This assignment, depending on the level and depth of implementation, seeks to challenge students by asking them to look beyond "greenwashed" advertisements and buzzwords to grapple with what sustainability means, whether it can be achieved, and what kinds of questions communities must confront in a search for sustainability.
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Module 3: Collaboration Short Description: Collaboration is the third module in this …
Module 3: Collaboration
Short Description: Collaboration is the third module in this course, Building Sustainable Communities: The Impact of Engagement, and highlights the importance of collaboration or working together, in relation to sustainable community building. The first lesson within this module will introduce you to the different terminology associated with collaboration and we will explain why it is so imperative when it comes to navigating the contemporary problems our communities face. In the second lesson we will examine how collaboration occurs and then explore the qualities that are important for collaboration. Lesson three will help to answer questions such as, what makes some collaboration efforts fruitful and fun, while others are painful and unproductive? Lastly, in the final lesson we will provide you with three real-world case studies that address the benefits and challenges of collaboration. Overall, this module will provide with you additional building blocks required to navigate along the path of this course through the remaining two modules.
Word Count: 8346
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Module 5: Creating Connections for the Future Short Description: The fifth module …
Module 5: Creating Connections for the Future
Short Description: The fifth module in this course Building Sustainable Communities: The Impact of Engagement connects the building blocks you’ve learned about throughout Modules 1 to 4.presents building sustainable communities and provides a conclusion to the course. Lesson one highlights ‘making connections to engage’. This lesson discusses how connections between previous core components help to build sustainable communities in the real world and how different types of community engagement are appropriate in different settings. The final lesson of the course presents future considerations for building sustainable communities and how to move knowledge into action for a sustainable future. At the end of this module you will have naviaged the full course pathway.
Word Count: 6211
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Module 2: Information Gathering and Sharing Short Description: Information Gathering and Sharing …
Module 2: Information Gathering and Sharing
Short Description: Information Gathering and Sharing is the second module in this course, Building Sustainable Communities: The Impact of Engagement, and highlights the importance of gathering and sharing information in order to engage with communities. The first lesson discusses why you may consider collecting community data and ethical considerations that need to be made when consultation occurs within a community. In the second lesson we will dive into methods to consider when collecting important information about community sustainability. In the third lesson we will describe Knowledge Mobilization (KMb) for you and the roles it plays in building sustainability communities. Lastly, lesson four provides case study examples of successful knowledge mobilization efforts within communities pertaining to both health and environmental research. Overall, this module will provide with you additional building blocks required to navigate along the path of this course through the remaining three modules.
Word Count: 6301
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