The transit of Venus is a rare astronomical event that has been well documented throughout history. The most recent transit occurred in June of 2004, and the one before that took place more than 100 years earlier in 1882. This site from the South African Astronomical Observatory provides information and first-hand observations of the 1882 event from Wellington, South Africa. Just prior to the event, an observatory was erected at the Huguenot Seminary for girls, and some of the historical observations made from that site in 1882 are provided here for your perusal.

Created by David Lane of Rice University, this applet simulates experiments using 2 x 2 contingency tables. You specify the population proportions and the sample size and examine the effects on the probability of rejecting the null hypothesis. The author provides instructions and then five different exercises to practice these concepts. Overall, this is a nice interactive resource that allows users a more hands-on approach to statistics.

These zipped documents from MatEd provide information on designing a course on 3 Dimensional Digital Laser Scanning Fundamentals. At the end of the course, students will be able to identify applications for 3 dimensional digital laser scanning, operate a NextEngine brand 3 dimensional digital laser scanner, and have proposed a project to reinforce these concepts. The documents include a draft syllabus, contact information for the author of the course, a sample new course proposal form, and a course outline.

In 1953, Gottfried Moellenstedt invented the electron biprism, more or less by accident, with the serendipity characteristic to him: Aiming at dark-field imaging in an electron microscope, he stretched a thin tungsten wire across the objective aperture to block off the zero beam. However, instead of a dark field image, because of inadvertent charging of the wire under the beam, he found two images of the ZnO-needles serving as an object. Instead of trying the dark field imaging over and over again, he asked what the effect would be if the obtained two images were superimposed. Is coherence given? Moellenstedt, educated by Walther Kossel in diffraction of electron waves, had a vision: Together with his PhD-student Heinrich Dueker, he developed the electron biprism, consisting of a 1 micron m thin wire deliberately chargeable by means of a voltage source, as a beam splitter for coherent superposition of the electron waves passing the filament on the right and on the left. In 1955 they published the first results showing biprism interference fringes [G. Moellenstedt and H. Dueker, Naturwiss. 42, 41 (1955)], which, since then, gave access to the understanding of electron waves and their use for analysis of object structures up to atomic dimensions. Target Audience: 2-4 Year College Faculty/Administrators

9th Grade Math Practice Questions to test addition, multiplication, word-problem skills, and basic algebraic skills. Includes answers and explanations. From the Proficiency Building Activities of the NASA Lewis Research Center K-12 Program.

Provided by the American Dental Hygienists' Association, this site's resources are valuable for both dental patients and hygienists to help understand "the importance of oral health to total health." Patients will find informative fact sheets describing potential oral health problems as well as tips for preventing them. Hygienists will find the free posters useful as well as the instructions included for proper brushing and flossing techniques in order to educate and support their patients. The site underscores dental hygienists' roles in tobacco cessation efforts, a major topic of concern in the allied health professions. Providing free "life-saving advice", the ADHA hopes to promote overall heath beginning with oral care.

This site, created by Michelle Lacey of Yale University, gives an explanation, a definition and an example of ANOVA for regression. Topics include analysis of variance calculations for simple and multiple regression, and F-statistics. This is a great overview of this topic.

AQUASTAT - a global information system of water and agriculture developed by the Land and Water Development Division of FAO - provides comprehensive information about agricultural water management across the world, with emphasis on developing countries and countries in transition. The site includes a database of country data, country profiles, maps and GIS, water resources, online publications, and links to related sites and resources.

This curriculum guide, from the American Radio Relay League, is "a resource that will help you do what you do best...teach, and teach in a refreshing, captivating way that will bring your students into the world of wireless technology, a journey that will enrich their lives, and our lives." From this site, visitors can either download the basic document or browse the various units and activities listed here. Topics covered include Ohm's Law, Oscillators, Wireless Technology in Robotics, and an Introduction to Ham Radio, among many others.

ATE Central is a freely available online portal and collection of materials and services that highlight the work of the Advanced Technological Education (ATE) projects and centers. These National Science Foundation funded initiatives work with educators from two-year colleges to develop and implement ideas for improving the skills of technicians and the educators who teach them. ATE Central is designed to help educators, students, and the general public to learn about, and use materials from, the entire depth and breadth of the Advanced Technological Education program.ATE Central helps direct users to a full range of high-impact ATE resources available online, including curricula, learning objects, and podcasts. The portal aggregates information about the materials developed by ATE centers and projects, and organizes them using subject taxonomies, context appropriate keywords, and other digital cataloging techniques.

This video, created by ATETV and presented by WGBH, takes a look at internships and co-ops that students can participate in while earning their degree. This video explains the value of participating in internships and co-ops to gain valuable workplace experience to show employers after graduation. The hands-on skills that students learn will be complemented by classroom work, creating graduates proficient in both experience and education. This video is helpful for students whose skills and education could benefit from internships or co-ops. Educators will also find a background essay, discussion questions, and standards alignment for the material. Running time for the video is 2:09.

This Gulf of Maine educational website takes students aboard the submersible Alvin. It includes informational pages such as a project overview, as well as pages about Alvin, hydrothermal vents, and the researchers involved in the project. Classroom activities explore nautical and mythical names such as the Titanic, instruct students how to make a model of the ocean floor in a shoebox, and introduce topics such as deep sea vents and plate tectonics. A photo gallery highlights research aboard the Alvin and links are provided to recent dispatches describing research experiences on the Alvin.

This case study provides an introduction to HIV, including the life cycle of the disease, its treatment, and problems associated with different treatment options. The case would be useful in an upper level high school or lower level undergraduate class studying health and biology. The case study and teaching notes may be downloaded in PDF format. The site also includes a section for instructor feedback where general comments may be read and contributed.

This tutorial is comprised of 10 modules that offer information, instructional techniques, and practice labs on how to make the most common needs in distance education accessible for individuals with disabilities, and enhance the usability of online materials for all students. The modules center around topics such as making video, flash, word , PDF and many other documents accessible for students with disabilities.

This post on the AmericaView Blog describes accessing Landsat data and using it in the ArcGIS program. The post includes a link to an instructional video which will show you how to access freely available Landsat satellite imagery and data and then work with it in ArcGIS. Running time for the video is 8:01.

Pamela Peterson Drake, Professor of Finance at Florida Atlantic University, has prepared this site to ˘ď‹ďĐrefresh a student's accounting knowledge in preparation for further studies in finance.˘ď‹ď Topics on the site include the foundations of accounting, balance sheets, income statements, statements of cash flow, and additional disclosure. Each topic contains a thorough explanation with examples. At the end of the review, there is a quiz for visitors to test their knowledge of accounting basics. This is a useful resource for students in accounting services, and also for educators to incorporate into their classrooms with minimal or no adaptation to the review needed.

This learning activity from the Advanced Technology Environmental and Energy Center (ATEEC) provides students with the opportunity to use analytical meters and instruments and perform acid deposition sampling. Students will collect samples from various sources over a period of time, then measure pH and develop graphs or charts. Users must download this resource for viewing, which requires a free log-in. There is no cost to download the item.

Acid precipitation will be defined. At different points in the lesson students will write balanced reactions for the formation acid precipitation from atmospheric sulfur and nitrogen oxides and the neutralization of acids by limestone. Students will determine which states are most at risk from acid precipitation and assess how that risk has changed from 1996 to 2006. Sources of atmospheric sulfur (burning of high-sulfur coal) and nitrogen oxides (automobile exhaust) will be listed. The buffering effect of limestone soils and its mitigating effect on acid precipitation will be discussed. Students will correlate these areas with sulfur and nitrogen oxide production, population, composition of coal fields, and soil composition. This resource includes both a teaching guide and student worksheets.

The Acoustic Monitoring Project at NOAA is observing the ocean through underwater acoustics. At this site, visitors can learn about NOAA's studies in Bioacoustics, Ocean Seismicity, and Environmental Noise. The site also offers many animations dealing with Axial eruption, Atlantic Seismicity, and much more.

About 150 common acronyms in organic chemistry are listed along with their full names and structures.

This resource covers Seyfert galaxies, radio galaxies, BL Lacertae (BL Lac) objects, quasars, supermassive black holes, determining masses in galactic centers using the virial theorem, and a model for active galactic nuclei.

In this professional development video from Getting Results, Dr. John Bransford, professor of education at the University of Washington School of Education, and an instructor talk about how to engage students. Bransford says engagement involves getting students interested in working on problems they have some knowledge about, followed by reflection on different learning strategies. The instructor is shown facilitating a physics experiment. His students try to predict the outcome of the experiment, and then discuss their findings as a group. Bransford concludes by saying that classroom activities connecting theory with practice help students to value what they learn. The 3:54 video is accompanied by a background essay and discussion questions. Users who sign up for a free account can download the video as well.

This collection of student activities contains problems dealing with waves and oscillations. Specific topics include masses on springs, pendulums, sound, and waves on a string. The activities include pictures and diagrams for clarification, but solutions to the problems are not included.

Created and presented by Vincente D'Ingianni, Director of Professional Services at Binary Systems, Inc., this PowerPoint demonstration covers how to adapt a Legacy phone system to Voice-over-Internet Protocol (VoIP). In the demonstration, D'Ingianni covers VoIP gateways, Bandwidth, Softswitches, and carriers.

Adaptive learning refers to the use of what is known about learners, a priori or through interactions, to alter how a learning experience unfolds, with the aim of improving each learner's success and satisfaction. Blended learning refers to the use of learning activities of differing kinds and venues to synergistically achieve overarching learning objectives. We have developed a technology infrastructure that supports online learning, where activities can be designed to adapt in response to an individual learner's situation. Recognizing that what is learned about learners from these activities could subsequently be used to adapt classroom-based learning, we have begun introducing technology features that support coordination between these venues. These same capabilities enable human interventions in adaptive online learning activities, thereby extending their responsiveness. From these beginnings, we anticipate the prospect of adaptive blended learning environments, where what comes to be known about learners from activities performed in any venue can be used adaptively by subsequent activities. This paper presents and discusses some opportunities and issues related to this prospect, both technologically and pedagogically. Target Audience: 2-4 Year College Faculty/Administrators

Instructor Mark C. Hersam of Northwestern University has created this course, the Advanced Physics of Materials, presented by the NanoEd Resource Portal. This page contains the syllabus, lecture materials, and assignments for the 10-week course, which aims to "cover advanced topics in solid state physics including band structure, electron dynamics and conduction, semiconductors, optical properties, dielectric properties, ferroelectrics, diamagnetism, paramagnetism, magnetic ordering, and superconductivity." Lecture notes are accompanied by RealPlayer videos of the lecture itself and the assignments are excellent worksheets for nanotechnology students to complete.

The Advanced Technology Environmental and Energy Center (ATEEC) provides a wide range of environmental and energy technology learning resources for students, teachers, and technicians; the Center does this, in part, through their electronic Environmental Resources Library (eErl) digital library. The Center's objective is the "advancement of environmental technology education through curriculum development, professional development, and program improvement in the nation's community colleges and high schools." ATEEC is housed at Scott Community College (Bettendorf, Iowa) and was established by National Science Foundation (NSF) Advanced Technology Education (ATE) Center funds.

This case study considers the problems that would arise if one were to cross over into a mirror-image environment. The case looks into the lock-and-key theory of enzyme action. This material would be most useful in biology, organic chemistry or biochemistry courses. The case study and teaching notes may be downloaded in PDF format. The site also includes a section for instructor feedback where general comments may be read and contributed.

This radio broadcast discusses the findings of a conservationist who flew over of most of the continent of Africa in a small plane at low altitude, photographing the ground below every 20 seconds, to form a grid map. The flyover was intended to evaluate human impacts on African ecosystems, including wildlife, vegetation, and soil. The researcher, Dr, Michael Fay, points out that humans have penetrated very deeply into every single ecosystem in Africa that was visited, exhausting soils, vegetation, and water systems. He also discusses the need for greater natural resource management to locate the places where humans have already exceeded what the ecosystem can sustain. The broadcast is 7 minutes and 45 seconds in length.

This site is the open access journal for agrobiotechnology economics and management. The purpose of the journal is to lead the way "to socially responsible and economically efficient decisions in science, public policy, and commercialization" in agrobiotech management and economics. Here, users will find the complete current issue of the journal and back issues to the first edition published in 1998. Topics in the journal include insect resistance management plans, Bt cotton, farming in developing countries, and genetically modified foods. In addition to free access to content, users may choose to become a member of the site (also for free) and receive notification when new issues are published, expert forecasts in agricultural biotechnology, and increased influence over the content of the journal. This is a helpful resource for students, educators, and researchers working in agricultural technology fields.

Ag in the Classroom is a resource for teachers who teach about agriculture. Information is provided about grants for teaching agriculture, links for resources, conferences, and a teacher page. The teachers page contains downloadable issues of Acres of Agventures, Ag Mags for kids, many agriculture lessons, kits for teachers available to loan, and a 4 Kids Only page.

In this 4:23 video adapted from Pathways to Technology, learn why, to be a successful farmer today, you need the latest computer technology. Community college student Adam Sheppard˘ď‹ď_s family has been farming the same land for seven generations. The geographic information systems (GIS) and global positioning systems (GPS) technology he is studying in school can help farmers know how much seed to buy, where to plant, and how much compost or fertilizer to use. Adam's internship at a co-op farm allows him to apply what he's learned in the classroom. When finished with school, he plans to bring his knowledge back home to his family's farm. The video is accompanied by a background essay, standards, and discussion questions. Users who sign up for a free account can download the video as well.

In this 4:15 video adapted from Pathways to Technology, learn how one person turned a job-ending injury into an opportunity to build a new career. When Richard Guider lost his arm in an industrial accident, he needed to find new career opportunities. He began by attending community college, where he studied agricultural technology and water management. In school, he learned that a job can be more than just a way to earn a paycheck˘ď‹ďÓit can help make a difference in the world, for example, by keeping the fishing holes he loves free of pollution. The video is accompanied by a background essay, standards alignment, and discussion questions. Users who sign up for a free account can download the video as well.

A unit designed to teach the history of aerodynamics, to develop some fundamental mathematical skills relating to the field of aviation, and to study the history of flight, including the first transatlantic flight, the Wright Brothers, and supersonic flight (old and new). Math criteria include the computation, concepts, and problem solving of velocity; acceleration, speed, distance traveled, and time. Includes 20 word problems.

This website illustrates the Alaska Quaternary Center's (at the University of Alaska, Fairbanks) commitment "to the promotion of interdisciplinary research and the enhancement of interdisciplinary instruction in Quaternary sciences." Users can view images of the field work and learn how to obtain quaternary data from the AQC Quaternary Research Geodatabase.

This site features a scientific article associated with the Mars Global Surveyor Project, reporting data collected from a study analyzing Mono Lake as a terrestrial analog to Mars. The study is centered on two classes of biomarker compounds amino acids and fatty acids and on the microbial diversity of Mono Lake. A table illustrates the mole % fatty acids in Mono Lake sediments.

Priorities and tasks of a human resources management employee and team are outlined by Carter McNamara, MBA, Ph.D., in this free website. McNamara is responsible for this compilation as "a volunteer effort to the community." The site covers human resources management in precise detail focusing on everything from employee salaries and training to basic human resources outlines. "Ensuring Safe Work Environments" and "Sustaining High-Performance Employees" are only two examples of the topics reviewed on this informational site. The site also provides links to other HR resources online as well as links to HR forums and discussion groups.

Get involved with this non-profit organization dedicated to the restoration of the Chesapeake Bay. Site contains descriptions of its programs plus an online version of their newsletter, Bay Journal. Also features information on upcoming events, the latest news, workshops, and the Alliance's flag ship project, River Sojourns. These week long paddling and camping trips celebrate the rich history and ecology of the rivers that make the Bay unique.

This article from Elizabeth E. LeClair highlights a spatial reasoning exercise and the importance of spatial reasoning ability in many scientific disciplines. The author touches on her own pedagogical experience and how she witnessed her students struggle with spatial reasoning. The article goes on to include details on a 90-minute lab session which is intended to improve spatial reasoning skills and may be applicable in a number of different science and technical classes. Useful graphics are included. This document may be downloaded in PDF file format.

The Materials Science and Technology Teacher's Workshop (MAST) provides this activity for classes learning about diodes and electrical currents. The laboratory illustrates how diodes can be used to rectify alternating current. It uses a galvanometer to determine the direction of current flow when an AC or DC current is applied to the circuit containing a diode in series with a resistor and a galvanometer.The lesson includes step by step directions for the experiment.The activity should require about 20-30 minutes of class time to complete. Discussion questions and teacher notes are included.