Tuesday, January 17, 2012

Forensics lesson makes an impression on Pleasantville students

PLEASANTVILLE – Blood spatter analysis, footprint and bite mark impressions, drug testing, hair and fiber analysis and fingerprinting are just some of the topics explored in an elective course being offered at Pleasantville High School, now in its second year.

Taught by Darlyne de Haan, a former state forensic scientist, the course is aimed at providing students with an introduction into forensic science as a career track. “This is a huge, growing field,” de Haan said. “It’s a comprehensive science. There are all sorts of options besides traditional law enforcement: psychology for profiling, statistics and forensic accounting.”

to read more, click here


Sunday, January 08, 2012

Welcome Back New & Returning South Pointe Students!

Welcome to Block III. On this blog you'll find links to interesting science stuff. Click on something, check it out, and come back and leave a comment to earn extra credit. Click on the comment button below, or email me at jgiacobbe_southpointe@cox.net Make sure you include your name in the comment, or I won't know who gets the extra credit (10 points each time you have a meaningful comment).

For the 1st one this block, it's a piece of cake. Just leave a comment showing me you've been to the blog, and you get the credit. Were you paying attention? Just leave a frakin' comment with your frakin' name and you get some extra credit points. Capisce? (that's Italian for "do you understand me?")

Check back regularly, at least once a week, for more extra credit options.

Hi Ho!   JG

The 5 Most Mind-Blowingly Huge Machines Built By Science




Christopher Hitchens Is Hailed by Stephen Fry as a Man of Style and Wit

Christopher Hitchens Is Hailed by Stephen Fry as a Man of Style and Wit

Actor and author Stephen Fry salutes Christopher Hitchens as an inspiring polemicist but also as an abiding fan of P. G. Wodehouse and a magnificent writer. 

 

When a dog isn't a dog

When a dog isn't a dog
By CNN National Security Producer Jennifer Rizzo

When an insurgent rocket attack badly injured Cpl. Dustin Lee while he was on patrol in Iraq, his shrapnel-impaled partner, Lex, picked himself up to lie over Lee - an effort to protect him.

"He knew Dustin was injured," said Lee's mom, Rachel. Lex was his bomb-sniffing dog.

Lee didn't survive his injuries, but Lex did - and became a part of the Lee family when Rachel adopted him.

"When Dustin was killed, one of the first things I asked about was Lex, because of their camaraderie. They depended on each other"

Lex, a German shepherd, served in the Marines as a military working dog.

Friday, December 23, 2011

So Long and Thanks for All the Fish!

So Long and Thanks for All the Fish!

To my Biology and Forensic Science students, glad to have known you (well, most of you). It's been an honor to have been your teacher (that's for all of you). You don't have to go home, but you can't stay here. Have a good holiday break, and I'll see you next year! Peace...JG

Tuesday, November 22, 2011

 
Me releasing a Red-Tailed Hawk at the Nina Mason Pulliam Audubon Center...cool beans

Sunday, October 16, 2011

Welcome Back New & Returning South Pointe Students!

Glad to see you've made it to Block II. Just a reminder, on this blog you'll find links to interesting science stuff. Click on something, check it out, and come back and leave a comment to earn extra credit. Click on the comment button below, or email me at jgiacobbe_southpointe@cox.net Make sure you include your name in the comment, or I won't know who gets the extra credit (25 points each time you have a meaningful comment).

For the 1st one this block, it's a piece of cake. Just leave a comment showing me you've been to the blog, and you get the credit. Were you paying attention? Just leave a frakin' comment with your frakin' name and you get some extra credit points. Capisce? (that's Italian for "do you understand me?")

Check back regularly, at least once a week, for more extra credit options.

Hi Ho!   JG

Friday, October 07, 2011

I'm at the ASTA conference at the Mesa Convention Center. It's totally cool...five hundred dedicated, engaged, and enthusiastic teachers sharing ideas, stories, and awesome lessons. If you're a science teacher, you need to hook up with the Arizona Science Teachers Association. Visit our web page at http://www.azsta.org, tweet us at @AZScienceTA, or like us at our Facebook page at http://www.Facebook.com/pages/Arizona-Science-Teachers-Association/

Science Works, Dudes and Duddettes!

Monday, September 26, 2011

Final Shot at Extra Credit...

It's been like a ghost town around here lately. If anyone is out there, and paying any sort of attention, drop me a line, I'll give you some extra credit for being a clever and alert student.;)

Oh, and you actually have to do something else:

If you're in Biology class, visit this link below, and write me a one paragraph summary of it...

What Your Skull Shape Says About You




If you're in Forensic Science, visit this link below, and write me a one paragraph summary of it.

New Forensic Fingerprinting Approach Retrieves Elusive Prints


Tuesday, August 23, 2011

Forensic Science Mini-Mystery I Answer

Since Lubbock died by his car with his key case in his hand, he was preparing to drive away, probably in pursuit of Thurston. If he had seen her or her parked car, he would have approached her or looked for her instead.

He was shot from the direction of the hedge. She could therefore have shot him only by moving her car out of sight and then returning to hide and wait for him. He left the inn so soon after she did, however, that there was not enough time for that. She therefore did not shoot him.




Monday, August 15, 2011


Top 10 Perseid Meteor Shower Facts

Every August, the night sky is peppered with little bits of comet debris in what we call the annual Perseid meteor shower. The Perseids are bits of the comet Swift-Tuttle and often create the most amazing meteor shower of the year. 

Here are 10 cool facts you can use to impress friends and family late at night or early in the morning while watching for shooting stars: click here to see the rest of the story


Monday, August 08, 2011

Welcome New and Returning South Pointe Students!

Glad to see you've made it this far. On this blog, you will find links to articles, images, and video that is of interest to science. Generally, click on a link, check it out, then come back and leave a comment on it to earn extra credit. Click on the comment button below, or email me at jgiacobbe_southpointe@cox.net Make sure you leave your name in the live or email comment, or I won't know who gets the extra credit (25 points each time you have a meaningful comment).

For the 1st one, it's easy as pie. Just leave a comment showing me you've been to the blog, and you get the credit. 

Check back regularly, at least once a week, for more extra credit options.

Welcome aboard!   JG

Wednesday, July 20, 2011

Happy 189th birthday, Gregor Mendel! 


GREGOR MENDEL: Google Doodle celebrates the father of genetics

Gre
gor Johann Mendel — who was born on this day in 1822 — is honored Wednesday with his own Google Doodle, which spells out the company's home-page logo in ...
peas, of course
 

Tuesday, July 19, 2011

NSTA Statement Regarding the Release of A Framework for K–12 Science Education by the National Research Council (NRC)

 

Arlington, Va.—July 19, 2011—The National Science Teachers Association (NSTA) believes the Framework for K–12 Science Education, released today by the NRC, has the potential to bring about transformational changes in science education. The Framework for K–12 Science Education is the most significant and promising step forward in science education since the release of the National Science Education Standards (NSES) and Benchmarks for Science Literacy. The Framework builds on the strengths of these standards documents while refocusing the field on a vision to better engage students and build their understanding and appreciation for science and engineering over the K–12 years.

One significant aspect of the framework is the recommendation that new standards integrate three key dimensions: practices needed to engage in scientific inquiry and engineering design, content that includes a limited number of core ideas in four disciplinary areas, and cross-cutting concepts that bridge both the sciences and engineering.

Also noteworthy is the Framework’s inclusion of engineering which focuses on how science is utilized through the engineering design process, and the distinctions and relationships between engineering, technology and applications of science. The Framework also brings much needed attention to the practices of science, especially at the K–2 level, that will support science instruction through the interdisciplinary connection to language arts and math.

“This framework emphasizes the importance of engaging students more deeply in the process of doing science, not just learning content,” said NSTA Executive Director Dr. Francis Eberle. “NSTA applauds the NRC for its outstanding work on this document and for engaging the science education community during the development process. Much work lies ahead. We look forward to working with Achieve to translate the Framework into new science standards that can be supported by all states, and to involve science teachers in the development process.”

The Framework will serve as the basis for the development of Next Generation Science Standards, a state-led effort managed by Achieve, Inc.

About NSTA

 

The Arlington, VA-based National Science Teachers Association (NSTA), www.nsta.org, is the largest professional organization in the world promoting excellence and innovation in science teaching and learning for all. NSTA’s current membership includes approximately 60,000 science teachers, science supervisors, administrators, scientists, business and industry representatives, and others involved in science education.

Contact

 

Kate Falk, NSTA
(703) 312-9211
kfalk@nsta.org

Monday, July 18, 2011

Salt Lake Tribute Attributes Firing of Utah Archaeologists to a Combination of Political Retribution and a Lack of Respect for the Past

The positions of state archaeologist Kevin Jones and assistants Derinna Kopp and Ronald Rood were eliminated, not only to save money, but to settle scores. The three had become an annoyance to some of the powerful people in the Legislature, governor’s office and the Utah Transit Authority, and they had opposed powerful real estate developers. http://www.sltrib.com/sltrib/opinion/52175670-82/state-ancient-utah-archaeologists.html.csp

Saturday, July 02, 2011

New Evidence Suggests God Also Had Incredibly Busty Daughter


ARABAH VALLEY, ISRAEL—In a discovery that biblical scholars say could alter our most fundamental understanding of Christianity, recently unearthed manuscripts suggest that in addition to His Son, Jesus Christ, God also had a daughter with absolutely humongous breasts.
Scholars say Tammi of Nazareth may have been a major religious figure nearly two millennia before the bra was invented.

The documents, found in a cave near the Jordanian- Israeli border and estimated to have been composed circa A.D. 200, recount the life, teachings, and death of Jesus' well-endowed twin sister, Tammi of Nazareth. According to experts, the revelation points to a more dualistic conception of the divine, one with the male principle embodied in Jesus and the female principle represented by Tammi and her giant, heaving bazoingas.

"It's a monumental shift," said Boston College religion professor Paul Ferber, claiming that the newly discovered texts are more significant than the Gospel of Judas or the Dead Sea Scrolls. "Tammi has single-handedly undercut the male hegemony we've come to associate with the Christian faith, and added an important new dimension to the holy scripture."

"Also, the various sources are in clear agreement that Tammi had the most enormous jugs in all of Galilee," added Ferber, gesturing with his hands."Seriously. Like, out to here."

The existence of Tammi has caused scholars to reexamine the Trinity of the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, and replace it with a Quadrinity that includes the Daughter figure—though some, including Ferber, argue it should actually be reconstrued as "a five-way Quintinity, counting as two separate divine powers both of Tammi's bodacious watermelons."

According to the manuscripts, written in Greek on papyrus scrolls, Tammi led a ministry contemporaneously with her brother's. Although she promulgated similar ideas concerning faith, humility, and forgiveness, and appeared to possess the same miraculous powers, Tammi seems to have had more difficulty communicating her message. In one passage, for example, her disciples repeatedly coax her into washing their feet, apparently for a better vantage point from which to observe her "heavenly radiance." And while she, like Jesus, walks on water, the feat is described as almost disappointing to many onlookers, who had apparently hoped to see her run.

Professor Ned McCormick of Duke Divinity School said a complete understanding of Tammi's teachings will require decades of research, with particularly close scrutiny given to the dozens of detailed illustrations.

Explaining the difficulty of interpreting the texts, McCormick cited a passage that reads: "Saith Tammi, 'Consider ye this on the forgiveness of one's enemies: Let he who would slander you sup at your table, let he who would inflict…I saith unto thee: Look upon mine eyes, which dwell within mine head, and not upon mine bosom, wherein no wisdom dwells.' And then did Tammi snappeth her fingers together, saying, 'Seriously; I doth mean it. Up here.'"

"In all fairness to her disciples, it must have been impossible to concentrate with a couple of cannons like those in your face," McCormick said. "Especially in that desert heat, with nothing but a thin linen vestment between you and two of the most succulent milk-makers you've ever laid eyes on, beads of sweat slowly making their way down from her throat and running along the swells before descending into that perfect cleft between…oh my Lord."

The circumstances surrounding Tammi's death are unclear, but the texts seem to suggest that while she was not crucified, she did, like her brother, die in Judaea, rise from the dead, and ascend bodily into heaven in her early 30s, well before her breasts would have begun to sag.

While the documents make no direct mention of Tammi's participation in the Second Coming, Ferber said he would not be surprised if her followers held similar eschatological views and worshipped her as a kind of tandem messiah who would one day return to earth along with her brother, "her ginormous gazongas defying gravity as she descended bodily in glory from heaven" to establish the Kingdom of God.

"Maybe I'm just being hopeful," Ferber said, "but I'd sure love to see those holy ta-tas with my own eyes."

Saturday, June 11, 2011

Capitalizing on curiosity

Featured speaker Larry Lowery’s lively presentation at the San Francisco NSTA conference highlighted research findings about how children learn to inspire teachers to incorporate new practices in their classrooms. Lowery encouraged teachers to further expand students’ opportunities to learn and explore using their various senses.  He showed a functional MRI image to illustrate the lit-up areas of the human brain that can follow from the simple sensory experience of touching an animal’s fur. 

When a student holds a classroom pet, examines a leaf through a hand lens, or hears a bird call, multiple areas and receptors in the brain are activated, providing a rich network of connections that deepen the learning experience.

In an engaging illustration, Lowery suggested that viewing a single image of a single leaf doesn’t teach us anything.  However, viewing two different leaves side-by-side invites comparisons that capitalize on our brain’s tendency to learn through examining differences and contrasts. Students who look closely enough at two different leaves to see varying edges and vein patterns may never again walk in the woods without noticing and appreciating nature’s wonderful array of leaves and trees. As Lowery said, “the beauty of the world is enhanced when you see the world the way a scientist sees.” 

Lowery is professor emeritus at the Lawrence Hall of Science, University of California at Berkeley, and is principal investigator for the Full-Option Science System (FOSS), the widely used K-8 science program funded by the National Science Foundation and developed at the university.  Early in his distinguished career, Lowery studied with Richard Stebbins and was part of the team at Berkeley that developed the Animal Coloration program, a classic resource for activities on the evolution of concealment that NSTA Press published in an updated and revised edition.

Lowery also edited the popular NSTA Pathways to the Standards Elementary Edition, which provides a wealth of inspiring classroom vignettes and tips for teachers who work with our youngest scientists.

Saturday, June 04, 2011

A very controversial figure, boldly (whether rightly or wrongly) attacking a serious social question involving human rights, control over our own bodies, and how far religious perspectives, even commonly held ones, should be able to influence personal liberty...jg

Assisted-suicide advocate Jack Kevorkian dies at age 83

Jack Kevorkian, the retired pathologist who captured the world's attention as he helped dozens of ailing people commit suicide, igniting intense debate and ending up in prison for murder, has died in a Detroit area hospital after a short illness. He was 83.

Even admirers couldn't resist. Adam Mazer, the Emmy-winning writer for "You Don't Know Jack," got off one of the best lines of the 2010 Emmy telecast. "I'm grateful you're my friend," Mazer said, looking out at Kevorkian. "I'm even more grateful you're not my physician."

When asked in 2010 how his own epitaph should read, Kevorkian said it should reflect what he believes to be his "real virtue. "I am quite honest. I have trouble lying. I don't like people who lie."