January 2009

What’s in a name?

January 13, 2009

Hey all you bio-babes (and bio-boys) out there, wanna give us some feedback?  A good friend of mine is a biologist and science writer, and is starting a new blog.  No, you can’t read it yet, it hasn’t begun, but she’s searching for the “killer app” of a name.  She’s got some ideas, below, and [...]

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Things to do in a microwave #4: Microwave a CD

January 11, 2009

OK, I wouldn’t let it run quite as long as these bored college students did, but it DOES look REALLY cool (and it’s a great use of those annoying AOL CD’s, or the romantic mixes that your old boyfriend made for you): And another really pretty one (gotta love the Darth Vader-esque breathing in the [...]

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Revising the Rainbow

January 10, 2009

In this week’s episode of Science Teaching Tips, we look at my favorite thing — light.  Light, like, rulez.  Dude.  And so does my old mentor, Paul Doherty, who will tell you one of his best stories from the history of science about how the spectrum came to be the spectrum.  I mean, what the [...]

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Things to do in a microwave #3: Ivory Soap Monster

January 7, 2009

I’m surprised at the number of people who haven’t seen this one, but then again, neither had I until I went to the Exploratorium (where they’ll stick anything in a microwave). Put a bar of Ivory Soap (no substitutes!) on a paper towel in the middle of the microwave.  Press go.  About 2 minutes should [...]

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Things to do in a microwave #2: Create a plasma

January 6, 2009

Here’s what you do — slice a grape in half, but keep the halves connected by a little “hinge” of grape skin.  Some suggest drying off the grape halves a little.  Some suggest using a green grape in particular, and some say to cut it in quarters. Put the two halves next to each other, [...]

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Things to do in a microwave #1: Find your microwave hot spots

January 4, 2009

I’ve been wanting to do a series of posts on Fun Things To Do with a Microwave, and I’m just going to get off my butt and DO it!   For some of these to work well, you need to know where your microwave hot spots are. What do we mean by hot spots?  Microwaves are [...]

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How big is the full moon?

January 2, 2009

In keeping with my previous post on the International Year of Astronomy, this week’s 5-minute  Science Teaching Tips podcast is about our perception and the size of the moon.  What coin would just barely cover the full moon? You may be surprised. TI director (and recovering astrophysicist) Linda Shore explains how our brains distort the [...]

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Welcome to the International Year of Astronomy!

January 2, 2009

Happy New Year!  It’s yet another year that’s been designated the International Year of Some Great Big Science Topic (last year was polar year).  This year it’s the International Year of Astronomy, and there are quite a few fun-packed astronomical events for the whole family.  See a whole list of astronomical events for 2009 here.  [...]

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