Science Apps for the Classroom

Posted on May 3, 2012 by Ryan

Time for another post in my series of “Long-overdue responses to questions that were worth blogging about.” It’s a mouthful to be sure, but it comes up more often than you might think. Today’s question comes from Allison.

Hello!

I’m a student teacher right now in a ninth grade earth science class and I’d love to find more ways to involve technology in the classroom. Do you have any suggestions for iphone or ipod apps to use in a classroom at the middle school or high school level? (I’m focusing on Earth Science but all science apps are welcome).

Thanks,

Allison

Great question, Allison! Let’s dive right in by exploring my own phone. Here’s a screenshot of my “Science” apps folder on my iPhone. I have a 4S, but these should all work on any iPhone or iPod with a camera, compass, and GPS.  They’re not organized in any particular order, so I’ll just go through them from top left to bottom right.

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REVIEW: Space Chronicles

Posted on March 22, 2012 by Ryan

Space Chronicles: Facing the Ultimate Frontier

Written by Dr. Neil deGrasse Tyson

$26.95 / Hardcover / 384 pages

Published by W. W. Norton & Company

If I had to use one word to describe Dr. Neil deGrasse Tyson (other than the obvious “brilliant” synonyms) I’d say he’s passionate. His desire to help the public appreciate science crosses media barriers with a verve and energy unmatched by many modern agenda promoters. Space Chronicles reads like an attempt to distill and bottle some of that passion, and the ensuing cocktail is an invigorating delight sure to infuse the reader with the spirit of Dr. Tyson himself.

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An Open Letter to Gov. Bill Haslam of Tennessee

Posted on March 21, 2012 by Ryan

The Tennessee state senate very quickly passed a bill that would promote the teaching of creationism/intelligent design in the state. I wrote this letter to the governor explaining one reason why I thought the bill was a bad idea. I decided to post it here as well.

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Mind Like Kindle

Posted on February 4, 2012 by Patrick

I ordered a Kindle about 6 months ago. In my solstice shopping guide, back in December, I talked a little bit about how much I liked it. But, I don’t just like it… it has sort of changed my life.

It has me reading more than I have in years – but the real change was the realization that it brought me to. That realization was that I am living a life full of distractions. Email, Facebook, Twitter, various blogs, sports results, and the news cycle in general, these things all compete for my attention – and these are just the non-work related items. But, we all know this already. I knew it intellectually, but I didn’t know it intuitively.
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Where the science (conversation) happens [Video]

Posted on January 30, 2012 by Ryan

If you’ve listened to Episode 121 already, you may remember that I mentioned a video with Abe and myself filmed at a beer festival here in Nashville last December. There was a guy going around with a camera who took a shine to my science ramblings and asked if I’d be willing to hash out my theories of cute dinosaurs on air. I, of course, was happy to oblige. My bit starts around 17:44 and goes until 20:09 (Abe is replaced by Kevin at some point) and for the careful watcher I do have a brief cameo earlier in the clip.

(Find the video after the jump)

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How exactly does the world’s largest emerald form?

Posted on January 23, 2012 by Ryan

I stumbled across this video about the world’s largest emerald being sold. Sure it’s being sold by Canadians, but that’s not the important part, the important part is just how a 57,500-carat gem could form in the first place.

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Patrick’s Winter Solstice Shopping Guide 2011

Posted on December 8, 2011 by Patrick

I view this as a cumulative exercise, I was checking out my recommendations from last year, and in my opinion they hold up pretty well. Check them out if you don’t like what you see in this post.
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Ryan’s Winter Solstice SURVIVAL GUIDE

Posted on December 6, 2011 by Ryan

When the days get so short it seems as if the sun will never return to warm our cheeks, we give each other gifts as comfort in the darkness. Then somehow the days begin to lengthen. Coincidence? Of course not. Some credit a magic baby, others a Roman deity, science simply calls it the solstice. Regardless, warm your favorite geek’s heart with some gifts sure to brighten their darkest days of the year.

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Introducing: My Titanium Physicists!

Posted on November 28, 2011 by ben

Hi everyone. I’m here to announce that science… sort of has a new baby brother. It’s name is The Titanium Physicists Podcast .

Turns out that Physics is full of SUPER SEXY IDEAS which are way too technical for science journalists to talk about. No, the best way to taste this fruit is to go to the tree. I (ben) have assembled a team: my titanium physicists. A group of  the rarest sort. technical experts, and also lucid and fun.

But you can’t just throw a group of experts together in a room. they start talking technical and it’s impossible to follow. So to keep everything under control, we bring on a special guest each week! Awesome people who are good at interrupting nerds.

the result is a half-hour long show, released fortnightly. it’s super fun and i encourage you to listen. we’re up on itunes!

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REVIEW – Bodies: The Exhibit

Posted on November 7, 2011 by Juliana
Bodies: The Exhibition

Promo for Bodies: The Exhibition

While Ryan was enjoying New York Comic Con, I decided to take the opportunity to visit some of the Big Apple’s awesome museums. I left the choice of museum up to my good friend Rick, a New York native and fellow nerd, and he ended up taking me to the South Street Seaport — think Fisherman’s Wharf, NYC-style — for a double exhibit feature, Bodies: The Exhibition [BtE] and Dialog in the Dark (to be reviewed soon). Some of you might already know about BtE, since it’s been around since 2005. Multiple variations on the theme have been around for nearly 20 years, so you may have seen Bodies: The Exhibition, or Our Body: The Universe Within, or perhaps you saw Body Worlds back when it came out in 1995. These exhibitions are all independently owned and run, but you’d be forgiven for confusing them because they’re eerily similar. Essentially, you wander through room after room of plastinated human bodies, learning about the various systems and structures under our skin, seeing comparisons of healthy versus diseased organs, and wondering how the displays were made and who on earth these people once were.

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