Author Archive
Blending In With Nature
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A Great Horned Owl blends in with the trees it lives in.
This Grey Squirrel also blends with the trees where it lives.
One of things I find fun and educational is spending time in the outdoors, observing and photographing the marvels nature has to offer. In the animal kingdom are those which are brightly colored as well as those which are subdued or camouflaged.
In nature, survival is crucial for the continuation of the species. Being unseen in plain view is nature’s way of achieving just that. Whether it is birds, squirrels or deer, each has been given a color scheme uniquely their own that provides them protection.
Animals that spend a great deal of time in the open use both their color and the time of day to better protect themselves from detection. Owls hunt at night; during the day they perch in trees, where their feathers have a similar texture and coloration to that of tree bark. Deer love to graze in open meadows and fields, yet this makes them vulnerable to predators. Deer depend on their color as well as the time of day to protect them. Evenings offer the best protection; When the sun is low their tan-gray coloration lets them blend in well with their grass and woodland habitat.
A herd of Deer emerge from the woods and onto the prairie as the sun sets.
Take this turkey (left) as it makes its way through the brush, trying to elude me as I try to capture its picture. Its dark color blends in with the shadows as well as the trees and bushes. An animal that continues to feel threatened in the shadows, will escape by running or like the turkey on the right, take flight.
So, the next time you take a walk through the woods or an open field, take a few minutes to look around to see what is really there. You might be surprised at the wildlife hiding in plain sight, wildlife that you’d never notice with just a casual glance.
Aviation Lures Kids Of All Ages
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Lindberg's Spirit of St. Louis is displayed over the City of Paris made from Legos.
It takes team work to fly...err peddle JETS!
There is more to aviation than just airplanes and helicopters. Not only is it steeped in science, mathematics and history…but it’s also a FUN hobby! This past weekend was the Experimental Aircraft Association’s annual Family Flightfest.
Family Flightfest is an event geared to the whole family. For many this was their first experience to get close enough to touch an airplane. Activities included puzzles, flight simulators, coloring, face painting and the assembling and flying of balsa gliders.
Demonstrations of indoor RC helicopters, aircraft and airships as well as free flight, rubber band powered models took center stage and captured the attention of all in attendance.
Two youngsters are locked into AIRPLANE mode!
Aviation history was not only exhibited by the museum’s aircraft displays, but was also showcased by scale modelers who exhibited their treasured collections of plastic and paper scale models.
Design and construction put to the test...ready DROP!
Creativity and engineering skills of both kids and adults were put to the test by designing and constructing an aerial delivery system for an egg drop competition. The task was to utilize plastic shopping bags (as parachutes) and a few other basic resources to protect the egg from damage during a drop from the second level of the museum. It was a cracking experience for most, but there were a few who survived and won prizes.
Family events such as these inspire and cultivate the quest for knowledge. Attend one near you soon; it can open several educational opportunities for you and your children.
Homeschool Astronomy on a Budget
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What can you see? by Jorg Weingrill on flickr
Initially in astronomy, there is not a huge financial investment. Just go outside and look up. Instant success. You see stars.
But then, there comes a thirst for more. What are the stars made of? Why do they move in the sky? And what’s all this winking and twinkling about? Questions you haven’t thought of since you wore Superman underwear. These worthy inquiries are easily answered in a trip to your local library.
Then it really happens. You find out your very own town has an astronomy club. “Come see the stars!” they entice you! “Free Star Party this Saturday!” Armed with a thermos of hot cocoa and cookies your wife made, you tramp up Star Party hill. And you see it all – not just the stars and galactic nuclei, but all those TELESCOPES.
WOW.
Your wife is not happy about trading the car for a telescope. Call her crazy, but a telescope doesn’t pick up the groceries or take kids to ballet. In fact, it’s a gadget to look at things that have been around since before either of you were around. You’re just all-fired up on doing it now. And yes, most of those sparkley things up there will be up there when you retire, so why not just wait until then?
“Because the purpose of life to experience happiness, which can only be experienced in the present moment,” explains the Dalai Lama, quite patiently.
“But the Dalai Lama does not have four children and two mortgages,” your wife counters. So what are you to do?
Astronomy club telescopes are available for members, but what if you want something of your very own right now? (We are, after all, Americans.) And you want to share astronomy with your kids, and you’re not likely to share an expensive telescope with those grubby hands. There must be a happy alternative. But what?
Go get a raft. The inflatable kind you have lurking somewhere in your garage already. Set it up on the grass, and pull out a pair of binoculars. A good pair. Add cocoa and cookies, and you have an instant star party worthy of any amateur astronomer.
How to pick a good pair of binoculars?
Binoculars - a working collection by jlcwalker on flickr
Here are some ideas that may work for you (excerpted from Backyard Astronomer’s Guide by Dyer and Dickinson):
Larger main lenses mean brighter images, but for most people, a 50mm lens is a practical handheld limit. Binoculars with a 7mm exit pupil are easier to bring to correct position in front of the eye, an advantage for young people and beginners of any age.
Higher magnification means better resolution, but it also means more stringent optical-quality standards to produce good images. It also results in amplified jiggling during handheld operation. This factor alone limits binocular magnification for handheld astronomical viewing to 10x.
Put it all together, the most popular sizes are 7×50 and 10×50. If you prefer smaller and lighter, go for the 7×42 or 8×42. Why not just go for the 10x50s, since biggest means best? Well, because aiming and observing through binoculars at night is much easier for some than others. In our experience, 7x50s are much easier to use. On the other hand, 10x50s yield fainter stars and more Moon and celestial object detail.
More detail makes sense, but why are dimmer stars more apparent? Part of the reason is that the smaller exit pupil helps avoid the edge-of-eye aberrations (producing sharper stars), but mainly, it is that the higher magnification in effect spreads out the sky background, darkening it in the process.
Roof prism binoculars are more compact than porro prism in sizes under 42, and are generally more costly. For general astronomy binoculars at a reasonable price, we recommend porro prism models in 7×50 and 10×50.
RECOMMENDATIONS for general astronomy glasses:
These two stand out, both in the $200 range: Vista 10×50 by Orion and Ultima 10×50 by Celestron. Both are 27 ounces (exceptionally lightweight for 50mm binoculars) and very sharp 5.3-degree fields and good eye relief. In the $100 range, the Bausch & Lomb 10×50 and 7×50 Legacy are ideal beginner binoculars for astronomy. A lightweight tripod and L-adapter are great additions for an upgrade. Go enjoy your night sky!
About the Author:
Since 1996, Aurora Lipper has been helping families learn science. As a pilot, astronomer, engineer, rocket scientist, and former university instructor, Aurora can transform toilet paper tubes into real working radios and make robots from junk in the back desk drawer.
You can download the free science experiment workbook at http://www.SuperchargedScience.com
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com
Building a Balsa Bridge
Posted by: | CommentsDeep inside every child (regardless of age) there lurks a design engineer. “Tim the Toolman” Taylor was always tinkering with things to make them perform better. We know what Tim’s results were; we saw them on television watching “Tool Time.”
Educational Hobbies in the Classroom
Balsa Bridge Examples
Teachers can release the creativity in their students through simple exercises in design. An example of this would be to have your students create bridges.
Students would create a balsa bridge across a specified span … say twenty-four inches that would support the greatest amount of weight.
Alternatively, students could use such things as plastic drinking straws, toothpicks, popsicle sticks, paper or other materials deemed appropriate in the ground rules for the project.
Whether it is in the classroom, the family room or kitchen at home, this can be a fun and exciting project for the whole family.
You can find many of the items needed for these projects at your local hobby shop, craft store or even at your favorite grocery store.
This experiment in design has an International following. Students around the globe compete at sanctioned events to test their design and building skills. Who knows, maybe one of your kids might be the one who designs the next major bridge expanse such as the Gold Gate Bridge in San Francisco.
Educational Hobbies Backyard Resources
Posted by: | CommentsYou can combine basic wonderment of nature with the complexity of technology very easily right in your own backyard, home or school through educational hobbies. Nature provides a plethora of plants, insects and animals as study material for this process. All you need to do is to have a simple basic digital camera and a way to print pictures of what you’ve taken.
One of my favorite educational hobbies is to look around my yard to see what I can of interest. Fortunately I can sit and watch for a little while allowing the critters around me to settle and accept my presence before getting closer to them. Some animals have a natural fear so they will be harder to approach, but in time as long as they begin to sense no perceived threat, they will allow me to get closer and closer.
Some of the animals and insects are obvious because of their size. However, there are others that one needs to look closely to see. But if you look closely you’ll discover more than you might expect. One simple way to study these critters is to use a simple digital camera to snap shots of them.
Take this little bee for example. You actually combine two educational hobbies…photography and entomology. Pictures often reveal more than the eye can see in a glance. The photograph provides one a detailed record of not only the bee but the flower it is on.
Now a trip to the library or a search on the internet for more information about both the little bee and the flower yields more information to expand upon in the classroom or the home “lab.” Being alert to the environment around you, you can find many creatures of interest.
Above: A spider in the garden. A field mouse seeking warmth and food on a cold winter night. A “Puff Ball” fungi harvested from the backyard. All make great subjects for educational purposes. Isn’t it time you got started in any one of the many Educational Hobbies?
