The Physics of Bridges


How Bridges Are Built | Educational Innovations Blogby Lior Zitman

Bridges have changed greatly over the years.  Thanks to advances in building materials and machinery, building a bridge is now more precise than ever before.

Nevertheless, all these modern marvels come down to a few simple physics principles.  Our technologies may evolve, but some things—like physics—never change!

Every bridge, regardless of its form, must constantly balance the opposite forces of tension and compression.  How these forces work together is what makes each bridge type unique. Read the rest of this entry »


Making Scientifically-Accurate Snowflakes


Priscilla Robinson, Educational InnovationsBy Priscilla Robinson

Snowflakes!  They arrive in flurries, storms and blizzards, not to mention “Winter Bomb Cyclones!”  I’ve always thought the science behind snowflakes is amazing.

A snowflake begins when a tiny dust or pollen particle comes into contact with water vapor high up in Earth’s atmosphere.  The water vapor coats the tiny particle and then freezes into a tiny crystal of ice.  This tiny crystal will be the “seed” from which a snowflake will grow.  The process is called crystallization.

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Grant Funded Neuroscience!


By: Will Wharton, Backyard Brains

Looking to impress your grant providers with DIY neuroscience? With Backyard Brains kits, it’s easy!

Recently, biology teachers at Okemos High School (Ann Arbor, Michigan) requested and received grant funding to introduce several Human-Human-Interfaces into their classrooms. The results left their students stunned…

 

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STEM Discussion Starters


Discussion Starters - Educational Innovations NewsletterLooking for a free STEM resource to share with your students?  Here’s our selection.  Some websites offer ready-to-go lessons… others share exciting interviews with young people involved in STEM fields.  All of them are worth a visit!

If you find a worthy site that we haven’t mentioned here, please let us know in the comments section below.

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STEM in the News


You already know that STEM learning is everywhere these days.  The term “STEM” had its origins in the 1990s at the National Science Foundation.  Since then, it has become a buzzword for all sorts of events, policies, or programs involving one (or several) of the acronym’s disciplines—namely, Science, Technology, Engineering, or Math.

STEM has been in the news ever since.  Below we’ve collected an assortment of articles looking at some of the challenges, successes, plans, and controversies related to this important skill set.

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