Another great day…CAER and Dr. Cooper!

IMG_7342 reducedThe Red/Blue groups had a busy day off site at the Center for Applied Energy Research! The students really enjoyed the different activities. They learned about Newton’s Laws through Newton’s Cradle, explored energy through balloons, rubber bands, and masking tape; and built some electromagnets. It was a great fun-filled day!

The yellow/green groups got to hang out with Dr. Robin Cooper and his graduate students today. The students got to see a real heart, lungs, and brain today. They got to put probes on themselves to measure the electricity going through their bodies. They also viewed and made conjectures about larvae and other fruit fly stages when they were exposed to different colors of light. The did some touch tests with crayfish.

IMG_7324 reducedIn their words…

What did you learn about today that you did not know before?
  • Today I learned how mutations effect fruit flies in different stages of their life. I also learned about blind spots.
  • I learned about optogenetics and how our nerves and senses are effected.
  • That you can change the brain waves of a fruit fly.
  • I learned about the different senses, organs, and the brain
  • That a blood clot could lead to a heart attack or stroke.
What did you like about what you learned today?
  • I liked experimenting with my partner, larvae, fruit flies and crayfish to discover how light, touch, and other senses react or work.
  • I liked touching the lungs and brains.
  • Being Able to touch Actual Real Body Parts that someone once owned
  • I liked how we didn’t see the circle when we covered the opposit eye and focus on the object
  • I like that they experiments made me think about the results.
IMG_7288 reducedWould you like to learn more about this topic?  Why or why not?
  • Yes, because it can solve people’s problems.
  • Yes, because it shows the different types of heart, lung, brain problem of what they look like.
  • I would like to learn more about this topic because this experiment could be tested on many different specis.
  • I would because learning about senses and how they work or can cause reactions especially when modified, was informative and fun.
  • I would like to learn more about this topic because it helps humans and the nervous system is awesome!
Conversation Starters…
IMG_7335 reducedYellow/Green Groups
  • How did your fruit flies react to light? What did they do? How did you measure their movement?
  • What was your favorite body organ you learned about? What kinds of things affect its size?
  • Tell me about how you programmed your robot. What kind of challenges did you start?

Red/Blue Groups

  • How do we preserve energy?
  • What kind of fuel is the most efficient?
  • What happened to the balls in the Newton’s Cradle?

Photo of the Day… Click here to view the rest of the pictures

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