Here’s what’s going on at the NASA Earth Observatory, brought to you by Fred Beyer at EarthSciTeach.
What if global warming isn’t as severe as predicted?
It’s natural to question whether we and future generations will regret our efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions if it turns out global warming isn’t as bad as predicted.
Oil Slick, Mississippi River Delta, Gulf of Mexico
Ever wonder what it would be like to live the life of a wolf in the wild? Well, the free-to-play WolfQuest is about as close as you’re going to get. WolfQuest puts you in the role of a lonely wolf in the wild with two things on your mind: survive and start a family. Along the way you’ll learn about how a wolf perceives the world around him with “scent view” which shows trails of recent creatures and other territorial markers. You can hunt everything from bull elk down to hares (although I was never able to get my teeth around a hare — those little guys are fast!).
BY BILL FERRIS
Energy use feels like an amorphous concept — unlike a fast-food transaction in which I know that five dollars gets me a third of a pound of artery-clogging goodness, it’s tough to visualize just how much leaving the living-room lights on all nights will cost me. General Electric has created a slick energy-awareness app that shows you how much each appliance costs you. Not just in terms of money, either. It shows kilowatt consumption, gasoline consumption, as well as showing how much use you can get out of a single kilowatt.
What student doesn’t like to imagine what their life will be like in 25 years? Given the rate of technology advancements, it’s an interesting exercise in imagination to conceive the future. Amy Zuckerman and James Daly (along with illustrator John Manders) do just such an exercise in their picture book 2030: A Day in the Life of Tomorrow’s Kids, a fascinating glimpse into how they envision the world. This is not all fantasy either, as Zuckerman and Daly consulted scientists, engineers, technology experts, and “futurists” about what might be possible in a few decades, given the world as it is right now.
Not surprisingly, concepts like climate change play a role in some of the devices in the book (such as clothes that convert energy back to the grid and school buildings that can be pieced together like Lego units). In fact, I was struck by how some of the ideas in this book coincide nicely with the vision put forth in Thomas Friedman’s book, Hot, Flat and Crowded, which dealt with ways to change our thinking around energy.
Here’s what’s going on at the NASA Earth Observatory, brought to you by Fred Beyer at EarthSciTeach.
Acquired March 23, 2010, this natural-color image shows an agricultural area immediately south of the Betsiboka River, roughly 40 kilometers from the coast. The beige-and-green area filling most of the image is flooded. (more…)
Teaching ecology and environmental conservation principles from the classroom can be a tough job. It’s a subject that really requires that hands-on, in-the-field type of involvement to really engage the student and provide tangible educational concepts for reflection. Conservation Maven can help with this.
Here’s what’s going on at the NASA Earth Observatory, brought to you by Fred Beyer at EarthSciTeach.
Notes from the Field Blog: The Uphill Road to Measuring Snow
Not your typical weekend ski trip: scientists turn Colorado’s Steamboat Mountain into an outdoor lab for tests that will improve satellite estimates of snow.
Need some global statistics to emphasize a point you’re trying to make in an ecology or civics lesson plan? Trying to drive home the point in a health-related lesson about the spread of disease or the scope of our ever-growing obesity epidemic? Then check out Worldometers, a real-time online ticker that tracks statistics ranging from food consumption, to energy use, to how much people spend on video games.
BY DAVID BARGER
Classroom Earth is a dynamic website that synthesizes materials from numerous sources into a virtual cornucopia of useful environmental information. Are you an environmental news junkie and not getting what you need from the mainstream news media? The In the News section should be your first stop to see real-life stories of how the environment is affecting us all. Recent stories include how students in LA can attend environmentally themed classes and a look at America’s 10 most-endangered species.
Here’s what’s going on at the NASA Earth Observatory, brought to you by Fred Beyer at EarthSciTeach.
Acquired January 8, 2010, this true-color image shows part of Karachi, Pakistan, a city of over 12 million residents. Heavily urbanized areas mix with rivers and mangroves, especially near the Port of Karachi.
BY DAVID BARGER
I love the large, international sporting events that take place only once every four years. That means for me, 2010 is going to be a special year with the Winter Olympics in Vancouver and the World Cup this summer in South Africa. Nothing like competition to get the blood pumping!
How about a competition that’s not only exciting, but also engages the mind and helps the environment? The folks at the Canon Envirothon might just have the games for you. The Envirothon is a fast-paced, hands-on, environmental science academic event that engages students to think critically about our natural world and our role in it. (more…)
Here’s what’s going on at the NASA Earth Observatory, brought to you by Fred Beyer at EarthSciTeach.
World of Change: Yellow River Delta
Once free to wander up and down the coast of the North China Plain, the Yellow River Delta has been shaped by levees, canals, and jetties in recent decades.Water Watchers
In Idaho, NASA’s Landsat satellites are helping officials manage water resources and settle conflicts.
BY DAVID BARGER
As Mark Twain famously remarked, “Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness.” In today’s world of war and unrest, it is not hard to see that we all could use a little less of these things in our lives. Given the current economic climate, though, overseas travel is probably not making the cut in most family budgets. Although our wallets might be getting smaller, the world is not. It’s as big and wonderful as it has always been.
So how do we get out there and enjoy it? The folks at the EarthWatch Institute have a good idea. They have created fellowships for students, teachers, conservation professionals, and corporate employees to participate in research expeditions worldwide.
Ever since Charles Darwin published On the Origins of Species 150 years ago, the Galapagos Islands have always been of particular interests to scientist and environmentalist alike. Back then the diversity of species as they evolved in relative isolation formed some of the basis of Darwin’s ground-breaking and controversial scientific hypothesis.
Fast forward a century and a half and a new debate surrounds the famous archipelago and its renowned environmental treasure. Like the rest of the planet, the Galapagos is trying to deal with an ever increasing human population in relationship to a finite amount of resources locally available; it’s a delicate balancing act in an area with a fragile ecosystem.
In order to document and present the challenges the islands face, a website call Living Galapagos has been created with a wealth of information about the current situation in the Galapagos. (more…)
BY DAVID BARGER
If you live anywhere near me, you have probably heard the following during the last few weeks, “Yikes, is it cold out!” A month or so earlier, you probably heard “Yikes, is it wet out!” Preceded by “Yikes, is it hot and dry…” Okay, you get the picture.
Weather and climate conditions change constantly. Whether it’s global warming, el niño/la niña, or some other event causing climatic change (volcanic eruptions, for example), it would be helpful to find a reliable resource that covers the range of climate concerns and topics and synthesizes information from a variety of sources. This is exactly what Climate 1-Stop offers.
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