May 3, 2024
This week, Science Friday is in Ames, Iowa, home to prairies, greater prairie chickens, and an array of wildlife. Plus, the co-emergence of two periodical cicada broods is underway. Scientists have tips for how to experience the event. And, as the “Universe of Art” podcast turns one, listeners discuss solar music boxes and what it’s like making art with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome.
Could A Lack Of Empathy Explain Cruelty?
Simon Baron-Cohen explains the consequences of decreased empathy.
Cultivating the Perfect Chili Pepper
If you’ve had supermarket salsa, you’ve probably eaten one of Ed Curry’s chili peppers. Visit his farm and find out how the heat gets in chilis.
Termite Symbiosis
In this activity, students will sort and classify interactions between pairs of organisms under the appropriate symbiotic relationship of commensalism, parasitism, and mutualism. Then students will observe mutualism in action, as they perform a termite dissection.
Wind Power
In this activity, students will discuss the differences between the Bear Creek Wind Park and Bergey Windpower turbines. Students will learn the basic parts of a wind turbine and then build their own model wind turbine out of recyclable materials. Students will test their model wind turbines using three different-sized blades to determine which size harnesses the most wind.
Technology’s Odd Couple Teams Up For Science
Musician will.i.am and inventor Dean Kamen are working together to get kids interested in robotics.
Colorful Chromosomes
In this activity, students review how human physical traits, such as eye color, are determined by specific segments of genes. Students will use basic crafts materials to build a simplified model of a pair of chromosomes that represents some of their own physical traits. Then students will compare and contrast their models, to determine which traits are most frequently found among their classmates and therefore can be called high frequency traits.
Where’s the Octopus?
When marine biologist Roger Hanlon captured the first scene in this video he started screaming.
Tending Crops On A Brooklyn Rooftop
A rooftop farm in Brooklyn grows vegetables and doubles as a green roof, insulating the warehouse below.
Creating Reservoirs Under Roads and Parking Lots
Porous pavement allows water to pass down to the water table, rather than run off into storm drains.
Brine Shrimp: Getting to Know a Salt Water Arthropod
In this activity, students will assemble a small saltwater aquarium to raise and observe brine shrimp. Then students will observe and record the growth of brine shrimp through various stages of their life cycle, and examine their various anatomical features.
Pinhole Viewer
By building their own pinhole camera, students will learn how cameras, telescopes, and their own eyes use light in similar ways.
Fossil Detectives
In this activity, students will learn about the two main types of fossils, body and trace fossils. Students will observe and examine a set of fossils to classify them as body fossils and trace fossils. Students also will act as paleontologists and try to identify each fossil.
Solar Spotting
Using the Swedish Solar Telescope, a ground-based observatory, Goran Scharmer and colleagues probe the penumbra—that’s the stringy structure around the perimeter of the dark part of the sunspot.
Delicious Smelling Chemistry
Use household materials to investigate and explore your ability to smell an odor, then compare and contrast results to determine if some individuals have a better sense of smell than others. Observe the Maillard reaction and how different odor molecules are released into the air.
Desktop Diaries: Michio Kaku
Theoretical physicist and futurist Michio Kaku takes us on a tour of his office, where he writes his bestsellers and records his radio shows.
Magnified Sun Burns
At the right angle, a magnifying glass will concentrate sunshine into a burning hot circle.
Make a Speaker
In this activity, students will learn how an electromagnet works by making a simple one. Using this knowledge, students will design a diagram to make a working speaker using household materials. Then students will follow instructions on one method of making a speaker, and test their own designs to compare results.
The Origin Of The Word ‘Robot’
‘Robot’ was the brainchild of the Czech playwright Karel Čapek, who introduced it in a 1920 play.
Candy Corn In Space
Astronauts are allowed to bring special “crew preference” items when they go up in space. NASA astronaut Don Pettit chose candy corn.
Glowing in the Dark
In this activity, students will learn about phosphorescence and how certain materials can absorb and store energy from a light source. Students will use critical thinking skills to hypothesize which type of light — incandescent, ultraviolet, infrared or fluorescent — will produce the brightest glow from a glow-in-the-dark star. Students will perform an experiment using cameras to observe the intensity of the resulting glow from each type of light source.