Tuesday, July 9, 2013

Summer 2013: Day 2

Dennis Leber talking about Pi
There is no better way to start the day than with pie, right? Except we weren't talking about the dessert, we were taking about the number. Dennis Leber and Hung-kung Liu came in to talk about the discovery of pi and how it is calculated. To demonstrate this, they prepared an activity where we measured the diameter and the circumference of a copper ring, a bicycle tire, and rubber balls. Using the measured data, Dennis calculated pi and compared this to the actual value. Some of the calculations were really accurate, and others were not as close.
Measuring lots of objects

Creative Measurements
Working together
David Duewer then came to talk about the evolution of units and measurement standards. He gave a brief description of an activity about finding ways to define measurement units that were transferable. Any thing can be measured using a personally defined standard, but it is difficult to transfer that information to others. The activity was well developed and is a useful tool to teach about standards and measurement.
David Duewer explaining Metrology for Chemisty

We took a group picture, followed by lunch and then time to work on the wiki and develop lesson plans.
Working on lesson plans

The day ended with a presentation by Amanda Forster, Mike Riley, and Jeff Horlick about Bullet Resistant Armour. They talked about how bullet resistant armor stops the bullet and spreads out the force as much as possible. However, it can't transfer it all, so it can still be very painful. In order to test the effectiveness of the armor, they use clay and measure the depth of the deformation in the clay. That depth can then be converted to force. The difficulty is accurately measuring the depth of the deformation.
Amanda Forster explaining Bullet Resistant Vests


The activity was to measure the depth of imprints made using a lemon and plaster in a paper cup. It was great practice with the calipers. The calipers have three measuring tools and are quite handy for measuring different aspects of an object. The main jaw was used to measure the outside diameter of the test tube. The inside jaw was used to measuring the inner diameter of the test tube. The depth probe was used to measure the depth of the test tube. It was a little confusing, but provided a lot of really good practice and a good way to end a metrology day.
Working together to use the calipers
Figuring out the how to use the calipers
Measuring the imprints

5 comments:

  1. I am having an awesome time and learning so much. I know my students will benefit from this program. It is making me a better teacher in the classroom in order to produce better students.

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  2. Dennis really looked like he was enjoying talking to us and fielding our questions. I really liked that!

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  3. Dave gave me quite a lot more understanding about the discipline and understanding that is the foundation of measuring.
    I'm glad we got paper copies of his and all of our lecture's Power Points!

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  4. Great info, new ways of Pi, will pass on to math teachers on our campus.

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