Students experiment with a new material—aerogel. Aerogel is a synthetic (human-made) porous ultra-light (low-density) material, in which the liquid component of a gel is replaced with a gas. In this activity, student pairs use aerogel to simulate the environmental engineering application of cleaning up oil spills. In a simple and fun way, this activity incorporates density calculations, the material effects of surface area, and hydrophobic and hydrophilic properties.

Aerogel, commonly called "frozen smoke," is a super-material with some amazing properties. In this lesson and its associated activity, students learn about this silicon-based solid with a sponge-like structure. Students also learn about density and how aerogel is 99.8% air by volume, making it the lightest solid known to humans! Further, students learn about basic heat transfer and how aerogel is a great thermal insulator, having 39 times more insulation than the best fiberglass insulation. Students also learn about the wide array of aerogel applications.

Students learn how the force of water helps determine the size and shape of dams. They use clay to build models of four types of dams, and observe the force of the water against each type. They conclude by deciding which type of dam they, as Splash Engineering engineers, will design for Thirsty County.

Short Description:
This is the second entry in the Humanizing Science through STEM and the Arts (STEAM) interdisciplinary project. For this series, we collaborated with a cohort of future teachers in a science methods class who were majoring in Early Childhood Education. The future teachers authored stories for children inspired by Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer, and then read them aloud as part of a giving-back, service-learning activity.

Long Description:
This is the second entry in the Humanizing Science through STEM and the Arts (STEAM) interdisciplinary project. For this series, we collaborated with a cohort of future teachers in a science methods class who were majoring in Early Childhood Education. The future teachers authored stories for children inspired by Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer, and then read them aloud as part of a giving-back, service-learning activity.

Word Count: 11866

(Note: This resource's metadata has been created automatically as part of a bulk import process by reformatting and/or combining the information that the author initially provided. As a result, there may be errors in formatting.)

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(This case study was added to OER Commons as one of a batch of over 700. It has relevant information which may include medical imagery, lab results, and history where relevant. A link to the final diagnosis can be found at the end of the case study for review. The first paragraph of the case study -- typically, but not always the clinical presentation -- is provided below.)

A female neonate was delivered at 38 weeks gestation to an 18 year-old, gravida 1, Native-American female whose antepartum course was notable for crystal methamphetamine and tobacco use early in pregnancy. Prenatal care had been initiated at 11 weeks of gestation, and an ultrasound performed at approximately 20 weeks revealed findings interpreted as a large posterior fossa cyst with mass effect. The cerebellum had not been well visualized, although the impression was that some cerebellar tissue was present. These features were overall felt to reflect a Dandy-Walker cyst. Additional ultrasonographic impressions included a probable porencephalic cyst on the right side, ventriculomegaly, possible agenesis of the corpus callosum, and overall significant absence of brain parenchyma in the right hemisphere. Serial follow-up ultrasound evaluations were performed at approximate 4 week intervals, demonstrating essentially the same intracranial ultrasonographic findings. Of note was that other organs showed appropriate growth progression. At delivery by Caesarian section, the posterior aspect of the neonate's scalp was noted to be covered by a thin, tense membrane, which ruptured during the procedure. Apgar scores were 7 and 9 at 1 minute and 5 minutes, respectively, and death occurred within hours of birth.

Students learn about Pascal's law, an important concept behind the engineering of dam and lock systems, such as the one that Thirsty County wants Splash Engineering to design for the Birdseye River (an ongoing hypothetical engineering scenario). Students observe the behavior of water in plastic water bottles spilling through holes punctured at different heights, seeing the distance water spurts from the holes, learning how water at a given depth exerts equal pressure in all directions, and how water at increasing depths is under increasing pressure.

Students are introduced to the concept of a dam and its potential benefits, which include water supply, electricity generation, flood control, recreation and irrigation. This lesson begins an ongoing classroom scenario in which student engineering teams working for the Splash Engineering firm design dams for a fictitious client, Thirsty County.