Think Like a Scientist and EARN A REWARD !

Pesticides are designed to kill insects, mites or nematodes. But, they can also poison other critters, including bees or even people.  Kids are exposed to a wide variety of pesticides every day. Shoes track these chemicals into our homes. The wind spreads them beyond the field or garden. Some bug or rodent killers are even designed for use in homes. And traces of pesticides may be on our foods.  Even low levels of pesticides can cause behavioral problems, trouble concentrating or even cancer, notes the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP).

We can take steps to reduce pesticide exposure. One way is to eat organic foods. Another is to take a natural approach to pest control.  For instance, gardeners or farmers may release ladybugs or other natural predators onto their plants. There, the good bugs munch on the pests. Or growers can plant things that attract birds.  The birds will patrol a yard or field snacking on caterpillars, grasshoppers and other animals that may pose a threat to plants. 

Fewer pesticides means a safer environment for people, pets and welcomed wildlife — including bees.

This post based on information on the StudentScience webpage.  Click here for more info: Student Science Webpage

Think Like a Scientist and Earn a Reward!

 

Ask your parents if you have any pesticides in your home and ask them to help you answer the following questions.  (Do not handle any pesticides without adult supervision.)

• What is the name of the pesticide?
• Does the front of the can or bottle have a warning label?  If so, what does it say?
• Where does your family use this pesticide?
• Has the person who uses the pesticide read the warnings (so they can use it safely)?
• If you did not use the pesticide to kill bugs, what would happen?
• What are three other methods you might use to control the bugs (instead of using pesticide)?

WASH YOUR HANDS WITH SOAP AFTER HANDLING THE PESTICIDE CAN OR BOTTLE!

Write your answers on a sheet of paper and give to Mrs D by Friday, March 28^th to EARN A REWARD!  You can also email your answers to: annedurrance@gmail.com

How Do You Win Olympic Gold? Talent, Hard Work, and SCIENCE!

Dr. Dan Durben, Black Hills State University associate professor of physics, and member of the 1988 U.S. Olympic rifle team, recently spoke about science and Olympic gold medal winners.  Durben said. “Elite athletes have a whole team behind them. One critical area is sports science.  We study the actual physics behind what the athletes are doing… to get an understanding of what is happening.”

Sometimes You Think You Know the Answer.....

His first study involved determining why male figure skaters could do triple jumps and women could not. Coaches and athletes concluded that figure skaters use their legs; therefore, women must not have the leg strength that men do. They put the female figure skaters on a lower body program, but results did not change.

But You Really Need Science to Solve the Problem....

When the sport science team looked at the problem, they analyzed the physics to see what was going on when the figure skaters jumped. To generate a lot of angular momentum, figure skaters need to have their arms spread wide which in turn increases their moment of inertia. However, the tighter a skater is, the faster they can rotate so during a spin they want to pull their arms in. When spinning fast, the arms tend to fly back out, Durben said.

“The women didn’t have the upper body strength of the men to be able to go into a jump but snap those arms in fast enough to get around three times.” This research resulted in coaches putting their female skaters on upper body programs enabling them to complete triple jumps, Durben said.

This blogpost contains info from an article in the Black Hills Pioneer Newspaper, 2014.Thanks very much BHP.

To get a better understanding of how this works, click on the video below! In the first spin, the skater holds her arms out and spins slowly.  In the second spin, she must pull her arms in tight - this makes her spin much faster!

How Did Auburn Beat Alabama in the Iron Bowl? - SCIENCE !

If you live anywhere close to Alabama, you know that the Iron Bowl is BIG!  Whether you are an Auburn fan or you cheer for the Tide, the game is a lot of fun.

Football coaches really do use SCIENCE to develop plays and to determine how best to scheme against their opponents.  The closing seconds of the 2013 Iron Bowl are a good example of how SCIENCE played a big role in a win for the Auburn Tigers.   (I have a hunch that Coach Saban is reviewing his Science books right now as he plans for next year.)