Virtual
Teacher Newsletter No.84 January
30th 2004 MARS STUFF
THE
FREE ONLINE FORTNIGHTLY IT TEACHERS' NEWSLETTER
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CONTENTS
1.
Welcome
2.
Mind Candy
3.
WWWinfo Dictionary
4.
New Printables - 404
5.
Technical Stuff - SMALLER FASTER
BETTER
6.
Web Site Focus TRAILER WORLD
7.
MARS THE LATEST FRONTIER
8.
Great Sites
9. Readers' Requests/Comments
10
Next Issue
11.
Code of 'Netizens'
12.
Tips
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1.
WELCOME EVERYONE. Starting the new school year with
some
great stuff - the MARS stuff. How
fantastic.
The
ultimate, 'OH Cool Factor', leading to a great sense of wonder.
The
ideal opportunity for less teacher talk more finding out and
integration
of the internet with the curriculum.
How
do we make laptops more than just a 2,000 dollar pencil?
Hereıs
a great start with Mars links below.
And
where are future computers going, read about the new
10ghz
chip and BIOLOGICAL nano transitors. Amazing.
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2.
MIND CANDY Gusto
A
puppet is the artist's soul set free."
-Frank
Ballard, Puppeteer, Designer/Director, Teacher
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Does
it matter whether we know today or tomorrow how much
a
child has understood? For my part, so sure do I feel of the
effect
that I am willing to wait indefinitely.²
Marie
L. Shedlock, The Art of the Storyteller , published in 1915.
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Do we
want human beings teaching our children, with all their
faults
and follies and limitations, but with all their depth and
grandeur
as well? http://www.philip-pullman.com/pages/content/index.asp?PageID=66
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From
the ISIS Speech
.So
here are five steps we should take, starting right now.
Do
away with these incessant tests; they only tell you things
you
don't need to know, and make the children do things they
don't
need to do.
Abolish
the league tables, which are an abomination.
Cut
class sizes in every school in the country. No child
should
ever be in a class bigger than twenty.
Make
teaching a profession that the most gifted, the most
imaginative,
the most well-informed people will clamour to join;
and
make the job so rewarding that none of them will want to
stop
teaching until they drop.
Make
this the golden rule, the equivalent of the Hippocratic oath:
Everything
we ask a child to do should be worth doing .
If we
do those five things, we will not bring about a golden age,
or an
earthly paradise; there are more things wrong with the
world
than we can cure by changing a system of schooling.
But
if we get education right, it would show that we were
being
serious about living and thinking and understanding
ourselves;
it would show that we were paying our children
the
compliment of assuming that they were serious too; and
it
would acknowledge that the path to true learning begins
nowhere
else but in delight, and the words on the signpost say:
"Once
upon a time ²
Philip
Pullman
April
2003
http://www.philip-pullman.com/pages/content/index.asp?PageID=66
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3.
WWWinfo - Dictionaries
http://www.glossarist.com/glossaries/entertainment/humourous.asp
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4.
NEW PRINTABLES - 404
The
earliest known "404 error" card in its original error form.
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5.
TECHNICAL STUFF
Learning curve
for education internet project
Every
student and teacher in NSW, from kindergarten to TAFE has an email address
waiting in the wings of a $33 million state-wide system bracing for its biggest
test - the new school year.
http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2003/12/15/1071336882014.html
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Smaller
Faster and Better
By
Fred Lawrence
Semiconductor
researchers have known since the 1950s
that
the quantum-confinement effects of tunnel diodes boost
circuit
speed and current handling while reducing component
count
and power consumption.
Now
some researchers say a new CMOS-compatible tunnel
diode
process could extend the lifetime of existing silicon
fabs
by leapfrogging the next node in the semiconductor
road
map (as defined by Moore's Law). Silicon-integratable
tunnel
diodes might also provide enough current density to
allow
telecom radiofrequency components to be moved off
separate-and
costly-gallium-arsenide chips and onto silicon,
allowing
one-chip solutions for broadcasting that can
boggle
the mind.
Advanced
Micro Devices (AMD) has fabricated a standard
CMOS
(complementary metal-oxide semiconductor) transistor
with
a gate length of 10 nanometers, six times smaller than
the
smallest CMOS transistors currently in production.
Smaller
transistors mean more of them can be placed on a
chip, and thereby
boost the chip's processing capability.
This breakthrough
could lead to a chip with 1 billion transistors
at a similar size
to current chips which hold 100 million transistors.
The 10-nanometer
transistor relies on a design known
as the Fin Field
Effect Transistor (FinFET), which adds
an extra gate to
the traditional single-gate transistor design.
The double gate
effectively doubles the electrical current
that can be sent
through a given transistor, and a thin vertical
silicon fin helps
control leakage of current through the transistor
when it is in the
off stage
These new chips
can run at 10 GHz and more with little or no
trouble. Look out
Intel! Although a search on Google brought
up some of this
technology, it is far from current, but interesting
reading,
none-the-less.
Is it
alive?
One source tells
us (Science (vol 302, p 1380)) that a functional
electronic
nano-device has been manufactured using biological
self-assembly for
the first time.
Israeli
scientists harnessed the construction capabilities of DNA
and the
electronic properties of carbon nanotubes to create the
self-assembling
nano-transistor. The work has been greeted as
"outstanding"
and "spectacular" by nanotechnology experts.
Braun's team
began their manufacturing process by coating a
central part of a
long DNA molecule with proteins from an
/E. coli/
bacterium. Next, graphite nanotubes coated with
antibodies were
added, which bound onto the protein.
After this, a
solution of silver ions was added. The ions chemically
attach to the
phosphate backbone of the DNA, but only where
no protein has
attached. Aldehyde then reduces the ions to
silver metal,
forming the foundation of a conducting wire.
To complete the
device, gold was added. This nucleates on
the silver and
creates a fully conducting wire. The end result
is a carbon
nanotube device connected a both ends by a
gold and silver
wire.
The device
operates as a transistor when a voltage applied
across the substrate
is varied. This causes the nanotubes to
either bridge the
gap between the wires - completing the
circuit - or not.
Out of 45
nanoscale devices created in three batches, almost
a third emerged
as self-assembled transistors. They work at
room temperature
and the only restriction for future devices
is that the
components must be compatible with the biological
reactions and the
metal-plating process.
The team have
already connected two of the devices together,
using the
biological technique. The same process could allow
us to create
elaborate self-assembling DNA sculptures and circuitry.ı
http://www.Tech-Notes.tv
January
27, 2004
Tech-Note
12
This is the Borg
Star Trek has arrived.
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6.
WEBSITE FOCUS - Here's another great way to start the year
have
them all so motivated that they will even learn - algebra
really
or Latin declensions. Take the bunch to "TRAILER WORLD",
(to
be said in a deep resonating voice).
http://www.apple.com/trailers/
Here
you can view the new and often overlooked world of
the
trailer. An artform as significant
as the novel, painting or
indeed
the crib summary. But then again
folks it is one of the
greatest
forms of manipulation of the last century and in this one.
At
stake is persuading the masses to spend a great deal of
money
on tickets and merchandising, to see the latest hugely
expensive
movies.
Why
would you bother???
Because
its fantastic, brilliant, enjoyable and brilliant.(2 brilliants
in one
sentence, I don't often do that).
Here
in short - school/lesson/period suitable bites, you can see
Hollywoodıs,
the World's, latest formulas, ideas and special effects.
In
3minutes - hey isn't that the attention span of your average
teenage
boy Trailers were made for Teachers - you can see
every
thrilling, exciting explosive current visual and audio idea.
KABOOM#*!!!??
Take
a look, ask a question or 10.
What
sound effects are used?
What
action sequences are there?
How
does it grab your attention?
Do
they use gorgeous girls to get attention?
Are
there any car chases, skids or crashes?
What
dialogue is used?
What
songs are used?
Find
the common properties, find the similarities, find the formula.
AND -
make one of your own.
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7.
MARS THE LATEST FRONTIER
The
latest NASA exploit provides a jumping off point for an
amazing
array of splendid questions relating to almost everything:
What
are the conditions necessary for life to exist?
Is
there life on Mars?
Was
there life on Mars?
What
makes up our atmosphere?
What
makes up the Martian atmosphere?
If we
found one, could we bring home a Martian pet and keep it
on
earth?
Is it
possible that we are entirely wrong about the conditions
necessary
for life?
What would
Martians think of Earth?
'...a
big part of he reason the Earth seems so miraculously
accommodating
is that we evolved to suit its conditions.
What
we marvel at is not that it is suitable to life but that it is
suitable
to our life - and hardly surprising really. It may be that
many
of the things that make it so splendid to us
well-
proportioned Sun, doting Moon, sociable carbon, more
molten
magma than you can shake a stick at and all the
rest
- seem splendidly simply because they are what we were
born
to count on............Other worldıs may harbour beings
thankful
for their silvery lakes of mercury and drifting clouds
of
ammonia. They may be delighted that their planet doesn't
shake
them silly with grinding plates or spew messy gobs of
lava
over the landscape, but rather exists in a permanent
non-tectonic
tranquility. Any visitors to earth
from afar would
almost
certainly, at the very least, be bemused to find us
living
in an atmosphere composed of nitrogen, a gas sulkily
disinclined
to react with anything, and oxygen, which is so
partial
to combustion that we must place fire stations
throughout
our cities to protect ourselves from its livelier
effects."
pp223-4
Is
there Life on mars?
http://www.space.com/searchforlife/mars_conditions_020819.html
Life
in the Universe
http://www.lifeinuniverse.org/noflash/Water-04-02-01.html
About
the Earth
http://seds.lpl.arizona.edu/nineplanets/nineplanets/earth.html
How
old is the Earth?
http://www.talkorigins.org/faqs/faq-age-of-earth.html
http://www.how-old-is-the-earth.com/
What
parts of the Earth are inhabited by humans? Why?
Here
we are going to Mars to explore a new planet BUT
What
do we know about planet Earth?
youwonıt
be surprised to hear that we donıt understand
it
completely and what we do understand we havenıt
understood
for long.² pp15)
³Of
the small portion of the planetıs surface that is dry
enough
to stand on, a surprisingly large amount is too
hot
or cold or dry or steep or lofty to be of much use to us.
³
Human beings can live in ³only 4
percent of the whole
surfaceı
area of the earth. pp217
All
excerpts above are from Bill Brysonıs
"A
Shorter History of Nearly Everything" Double Day ISBN 0385 408188 http://www.randomhouse.com/features/billbryson/bookshelf6.html
Besides
all these thought provoking questions there are
wonderful
sites available covering the NASA
space flight itself.
Latest
Pictures from mars
http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/index.html
Animation
of Mars landing - this appears to be the landing
which
was shown on TV - the simulation flash movie was
prepared
well in advance of the landing, obviously, so what
we
saw was a simulation not the real thing, obviously,
who
was there on Mars with a Camera shooting these images?
http://marsrovers.jpl.nasa.gov/gallery/video/movies/RoverAnimPart2.mov
Who
was there on mars shooting the landing video?
Is
there dust on mars?
How
long is the Martian Day
Is
Mars THAT red?
What
is Martian gravity like?
Is
there any air there?
Compare
the simulation to the actual pictures of mars.
What
pictures did TV news bulletins used?
Was
there a camera crew waiting on mars to film the landing?
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8.
GREAT SITES
HOT
SITES
Career
Voyage
Some
Great Maths Questions
Global
Positioning - Just type in the coordinates and there you are.
http://www.mapquest.com/maps/latlong.adp
Indigenous
Weather knowledge
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9.
READERS COMMENTS/REQUESTS
Enjoy
the festive season and thanks for all the great ideas, etc.
Marg
A
Teacher
Librarian
Roma
Middle School
Roma
QLD 4455
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Hi
Cathy
Thankyou
for your wonderful newsletter!!!!
Carolyn
Draper
------------------------------------------
merry
christmas Cathy
thank
you for your wonderful newsletter - is send it out to all
teachers
at Sydney Girls High School. have
found some excellent
sites
on your recommendation.
best
wishes
wendy
herbert
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10. NEXT ISSUE
Thanks
everyone who sent Merry Christmas emails,
glad
you
are enjoying the newsletter if you do enjoy it send in
some
ideas and thoughts and great sites so I can spread
them
around.
Ciao
Cathy
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11.
Code of the 'Netizens'
This
Newsletter is not free, despite the misleading advertising
above.
The Fee is now due. Each week you must help one
colleague
on the Internet who has less knowledge than you.
Help
that person even if you have to visit their classroom or
do a little
research and get back to them. Trust me, this will
help
a lot of people get their computer classrooms running better.
OK
I'm trusting you!!!
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12.
TIPS
1.
Double click on highlighted URLS to open in browser.
2.
Send in your Questions, Questions will be published with
Answers,
send in your Answers, if you have expertise to share.
3.
Nominate a brilliant site for review and inclusion in this
newsletter.
4.
Nominate a fantastic school site for review and inclusion in
this
newsletter.
5.
Make contact with other schools using fantastic programs.
6.
Prepare and innovative article for this newsletter.
7.
Tell 2 colleagues about this newsletter.
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The
opinions expressed here are purely those of the editor,
Cathy
Brown. All other small print clauses apply. Such as:
Use
at your own risk. Nothing in life
is guaranteed. If it doesn't
work
for you send me an email.
Editor:
cathy brown mailto:cathy@virtualteacher.com.au
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