RED LETTER SCIENCE NAME: INFOSHEET DATE: MAIN: A Red Letter Day is an important day, one that you circle on your calendar so you don t miss it when it comes. That s the idea behind our Red Letter Science Project. You can pick any person, event, discovery, or scientific theory in history, educate yourself through independent research, then share what you have learned with the class. You can share what you learned in a variety of ways: Notebook page: everyone must prepare this. It is a one page synopsis of your topic. Everyone in the class will get a copy to keep. We will build up a class collection throughout the year. Examples are attached. Project: You should choose a product based on your own interests and skills. Whatever you choose to do should teach the class (including your teacher) about your topic. You will be asked to introduce us to your project and it will become part of our classroom. Here are a few suggestions: Write a paper or a children s book Make a poster Create a cartoon or graphic novel Develop a museum exhibit/3d display Design a webpage or PowerPoint Create an interactive/board/card game Prepare a demonstration Deliver an oral presentation Come up with your own idea! You will also be asked to turn in a NoodleBib bibliography. This must include at least 4 sources, including 1 print source. You will also have to check in with me prior to your due date. The due date for this assignment will be spread out through the school year, with one group of 4 or 5 students sharing each quarter. We will determine the due dates within the first few weeks of school. TOPIC: FINAL PRODUCT: DUE DATE: TEACHER S INTIALS: You must meet with Samira to approve your topic!!! Notes:
RED LETTER SCIENCE NAME: SCORING CHECKLIST DATE: MAIN: MINOR PRODUCT: NOTEBOOK PAGE DOES NOT MEET MEETS EXCEEDS Includes relevant information: name(s), date, location, etc Presents person s achievements or explains the discovery / theory / invention Description of topic s importance to science and society Explains why you chose this topic Page is neat, well organized, concise, and colorful. Includes interesting graphic(s) MAJOR PRODUCT: DOES NOT MEET MEETS EXCEEDS Introduces topic to audience in a thoughtful way. Teaches topic s place in science history Teaches importance of topic to society Is interesting and informative Shows obvious effort and thought BIBLIOGRAPHY: DOES NOT MEET MEETS EXCEEDS Is complete with proper heading Uses NoodleBib formatting Has at least 4 sources, with 1 print COMMENTS: TOPIC: DUE DATE:
Rachel Carson 1907-1964 Silver Spring, Maryland Environmental Activist Achievements: Under the Sea-Wind 1941 The Sea Around Us 1951 The Edge of the Sea 1955 Silent Spring 1962 Testified before Congress in 1963. This led to laws protecting the environment and people. Contributions to Science & Society: Ms. Carson s books started the modern environmental movement. Her research and writings showed how pesticides and related chemicals, especially DDT, adversely affected all of nature, including humans. She is one of my heroes. She wasn t afraid to let people know how bad these chemicals could be. She didn t back down when the big chemical companies ridiculed her and attacked her work and reputation. Because of her I believe we all live in a healthier world.
The Phonograph Thomas Edison Invented in 1877 Menlo Park, New Jersey, USA How Does it Work: The phonograph is also known as the record player or turntable. It has a center disc, the turntable, that spins at adjustable speeds. A flat disc, the record, sits on the turntable and spins. A long arm, the tonearm, with a needle at its end rides grooves in the record and picks up vibrations. These vibrations are the music, which is played through the speakers. Contributions to Science & Society: Phonographs were the first devices to play and store recorded sound. While the most obvious impact is through music, we can also preserve educational material, people s stories, and make historical records that are first hand sources. I love music. I think phonographs were the first devices in a long line of music players. We all enjoy listening to music. You can find music in so many aspects of everyday life. From records, to tape recorders, to CD players, to mp3 players, to the future, it all started with Edison s invention.
Sue the T-Rex Summer of 1990 Sue Hendrickson, Fossil Hunter Discovery Info: Found in rocks near Faith, South Dakota. Most complete T-Rex skeleton ever found. Sue was found by accident when the dig team stopped to fix a flat tire. Sue was sold at an auction in 1997 for 8.4 million dollars. Sue can be found in the Field Museum in Chicago. Contributions to Science & Society: Despite the fact that T-Rex fossils are very well known and widely recognized there are very few skeletons that are more than half complete. Most of what we know comes from bits and pieces. But Sue in more complete than any other T-Rex skeleton. Not only that but she is very well preserved. Scientist can even see impressions of tendons, ligaments, and muscles on her bones. Because this skeleton is so well preserved and complete, it told scientists that the guesses they were making about the structure of real T-Rex from less useful fossils were correct and helped prove some of their theories about dinosaurs in general. I have always liked dinosaurs. I have very vivid childhood memories of going the Museum of Natural History in Manhattan with my dad and being totally amazed by the dinosaur skeletons. They came in so many shapes and sizes. And, of course, the T-Rex was the most incredible and exciting. As an adult I
am still interested in dinosaurs; they teach us so much about how life on Earth evolved over time and how living things adapted to changes in their environments. Finally, dinosaurs are just cool and T-Rex is a great example.
Newton s Laws of Motion Proposed by Sir Isaac Newton, 1687 Appeared first in Philosophiae Naturalis Principia Mathematica Laws of Motion: Lex I: Corpus omne perseverare in statu suo quiescendi vel movendi uniformiter in directum, nisi quatenus a viribus impressis cogitur statum illum mutare. 1st Law: An object in motion tends to stay in motion unless acted on by an outside force. Also known as the Law of Inertia Lex II: Mutationem motus proportionalem esse vi motrici impressae, et fieri secundum lineam rectam qua vis illa imprimitur. 2nd Law: The change in an object s state of motion (momentum) is related to the size of the force acting on it. Force = mass X accleration. Also known as Law of Accleration Lex III: Actioni contrariam semper et æqualem esse reactionem: sive corporum duorum actiones in se mutuo semper esse æquales et in partes contrarias dirigi. 3rd Law: For every action there is an equal and opposite reaction. Also known as Law of Reciprocal Actions. Contribution to Science & Society: The Laws of Motion allow us to VERY accurately measure and predict how objects will move; even complex sets of objects, like our whole solar system, all at once! ALL moving objects obey the Laws of Motion. I think Newton created the Laws from watching nature. Even if we have not studied them we carry the Laws of Motion around in our heads all the time. We use them in everyday events from driving to playing sports.