Lab Out Loud » science education

Unboxing Vernier’s LabQuest2

Brian — Sun, 29 Apr 2012 09:00:32 +0000

Episode 79 – Vernier’s Game-Changer

Brian — Mon, 23 Apr 2012 05:30:07 +0000

David Vernier

Our guest this week is the co-founder of Vernier Software & Technology, David Vernier. David talks to us about the history of the company, his popular software and data collection hardware, and the release of two new products that are part of Vernier’s Connected Science System – the LabQuest2 and Graphical Analysis iOS app.

Links:

To listen to this episode, download the mp3 directly, find us on iTunes, or use the player below.

Episode 78 – “Hunting the Elements” and other resources from NOVA

Brian — Mon, 02 Apr 2012 05:30:29 +0000

Rachel Connolly

In anticipation of NOVA’s upcoming “Hunting the Elements” special and app, we got in touch with Rachel Connolly – NOVA’s Director of Education. Rachel talks to us about the show and its accompanying app, NOVA’s Hunting the Elements periodic tweets, and other resources from NOVA. Listen to the show and watch “Hunting the Elements”, airing 4/4/12 on PBS.

Links:

Watch Hunting the Elements Promo on PBS. See more from NOVA.

To listen to this episode, download the mp3 directly, find us on iTunes, or use the player below.

Episode 77 – Gaming for Science

Brian — Mon, 19 Mar 2012 05:30:02 +0000

Zoran Popović

Our guest this week is Zoran Popović. As director for the Center for Game Science at the University of Washington, Zoran helped create (with David Baker and Seth Cooper) Foldit – a popular online game that teaches protein folding and ultimately allows scientists to discover protein structures through crowdsourcing and community collaboration. Zoran talks to us about Foldit and using games to help solve problems facing humanity.

Episode 76 – Not Another Lab Report

Brian — Mon, 05 Mar 2012 06:30:25 +0000

Fred Ende

Our guest this week is Fred Ende. As a middle-school science teacher, Fred quickly became frustrated with cookie-cutter, partial inquiry and simple scientific method lab reports that rarely engaged students in the content. Deciding to change this mode, Fred created open-ended lab experiences where students investigated their own questions, became interested in sharing their work, and ultimately improved their scientific writing. Fred talks to Lab Out Loud about his experience in making scientific writing more relevant and student-centered.

Links:

Download the article (provided courtesy of NSTA): “Not Another Lab Report“, by Fred Ende in NSTA’s Science Scope)
Fred’s Blog
Follow Fred on Twitter
SCIENCE 21
Follow SCIENCE 21 on Twitter
“A Framework for K-12 Science Education: Practices, Crosscutting Concepts, and Core Ideas” (from the National Academies Press)

To listen to this episode, download the mp3 directly, find us on iTunes, or use the player below.

Episode 74 – There’s a Zombie in my Classroom

Dale — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 06:30:16 +0000

Dr. Steven Schlozman

This week we talk with Dr. Steven Schlozman, Assistant Professor of Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School and Lecturer in Education at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. Schlozman talks to us about his start in teaching, his recent book “The Zombie Autopsies: Secret Notebooks from the Apocalypse” and how to use zombies to teach science.

Links:

The Zombie Autopsies
“The Zombie Autopsies” (Amazon.com)
Steven Schlozman Profile at Harvard
George Romero Continues Undead Obsession with ‘Zombie Autopsies’
Potential of a Zombie Attack Considered by Guest Speaker (the Utah Statesman)
A Harvard Psychiatrist Explains Zombie Neurobiology
Inside Zombie Brains: Sci-fi Teaches Science (CNN)
The Neuropsychology of Zombies (Boston.com)
Essential Zombie Films
The Walking Dead, AFC

More Links:

The Zombie Autopsies Book Trailer

Zombie Autopsies 101 from Daniel Lagin on Vimeo.

To listen to this episode, download the mp3 directly, find us on iTunes, or use the player below.

Episode 73 – NCSE Now Defending Climate Change Education

Brian — Mon, 16 Jan 2012 06:30:29 +0000

Dr. Eugenie Scott

As science educators are increasingly reporting attacks on climate change education, the National Center for Science Education (NCSE) is announcing that they will also be defending climate change science in public school science education. Join us as Dr. Eugenie Scott explains this new initiative for NCSE by adding climate change to their portfolio in defending good science education.

Links:

To listen to this episode, download the mp3 directly, find us on iTunes, or use the player below.

Episode 71 – Hack Your Bio Class

Brian — Mon, 19 Dec 2011 06:30:44 +0000

Marcus Wohlsen

For the last episode of 2011, we talk with journalist and author Marcus Wohlsen. Wohlsen is a science writer for the Associated Press who has received abundant praise for his recent book “Biopunk: DIY Scientists Hack the Software of Life.”
Listen to the episode as Wohlsen talks about his book, the underground community of “biopunks” and how you might hack your biology curriculum.

Links

To listen to this episode, download the mp3 directly, find us on iTunes, or use the player below.

Episode 70 – Go Back in Time with Terra Tempo

Brian — Mon, 05 Dec 2011 06:30:20 +0000

David Shapiro

We welcome David Shapiro to the show to talk about his graphic novel “Terra Tempo: Ice Age Cataclysm”. Shapiro is the creative director and writer at Craigmore Creations – a publishing house that specializes in Earth science and natural history stories. In “Terra Tempo”, Shapiro’s young characters travel back in time to Glacial Lake Missoula and witness the resulting floods when the ice dam breaks. Listen to the episode and engage your students in natural history with “Terra Tempo”.

Links

To listen to this episode, download the mp3 directly, find us on iTunes, or use the player below.

Episode 69 – Success with Science

Brian — Mon, 21 Nov 2011 06:30:29 +0000

Shiv Gaglani

Ever wanted your students to conduct scientific research? Our guest this week has some insights for you. A second place winner in the Intel Science awards in 2006, Shiv Gaglani is now a graduate of Harvard working to spur interest in STEM among students. We talk with Shiv about his book (and website) “Success with Science”, how to engage your students in scientific research, and the importance of STEM in our economy.

Links

To listen to this episode, download the mp3 directly, find us on iTunes, or use the player below.