Group Announcements

• Exploring the Environment Joins the ESSEA
  The Exploring the Environment Through Problem-based Learning project funded by NASA Global Climate Change Education to expand and update Exploring the Environment (ETE) web site is now officially part of the Earth System Science Education Alliance (ESSEA) network.
  
  ETE: http://www.cotf.edu/ete/modules/modules.html
  ESSEA: http://essea.strategies.org/
  
  
  
• Science Takes Over the National Mall October 23-24, 2010
  Can science be funny, magical, singable or just plain cool? Brian Malow, the “science comedian,” one of the many performers at the USA Science & Engineering Festival, the first national science festival, thinks it can.
  
  This October, the week-long USA Science & Engineering Festival arrives in Washington, D.C., culminating with a colossal Expo on the National Mall October 23-24th with more than 1500 interactive exhibits including the science of Harry Potter, NASCAR, Thanksgiving dinner, baseball, and virtual reality simulators. Even Albert Einstein and Marie Curie will be resurrected from the past by trained actors relaying first-hand accounts of their discoveries.
  
  The entire Festival is free to all.
  
  More than 550 federal agencies, trade associations, corporations, colleges and universities and other science-related organizations have signed on to help. Partners and sponsors include Lockheed Martin, the Department of Energy, the National Institutes of Health, AAAS, American Women in Science, Boeing and Northrop Grumman.
  
  Additionally, the first-ever You CAN Do The Rubik’s Cube tournament will be held on the National Mall in Washington D.C. as part of the festival on October 23rd. The initiative aims to teach students valuable math and 21st Century skills like algebra, geometry, problem-solving, teamwork and perseverance. More than 60 schools are already registered to compete. To-date, more than 1,600 schools and hundreds of afterschool programs in the U.S. are using the You CAN Do The Rubik’s Cube math education kit to teach fundamental math disciplines like area, perimeter, volume, angles, and algorithms in the classroom.
  
  To learn more about the You CAN Do The Rubik’s Cube program, please visit www.YouCanDoTheCube.com . Details on the USA Science & Engineering Festival can be found at www.usasciencefestival.org .
  
  You can also connect with us at
  http://www.Facebook.com/YouCanDoTheRubiksCube.
  
  Gloria Patterson
  The EdVenture Group
  1290 Suncrest Towne Centre
  Morgantown, WV 26505
  304-296-9021 x10
  304-296-9049 fax
  gpatterson@edvgroup.org
  www.theedventuregroup.org
  
  
• Webinar Opportunity - "Can Carbon Capture and Storage Clean Up Fossil Fuels?"
  Dear Colleagues:
  
  We wanted to alert you to a new Climate and Energy Webinar and Book Club Series launching on Friday, Nov. 12, 1pm ET, with an hour-long webinar entitled, "Can Carbon Capture and Storage Clean Up Fossil Fuels?" Presented by Dr. Geoff Thyne of the University of Wyoming, the goal of the webinar is to assist educators of climate and energy science in better understanding the challenges and potential of Carbon Capture and Storage to offset global carbon emissions and in developing ideas for how to incorporate these concepts into classroom learning. Dr. Thyne has a background in geochemistry, petroleum geology, and hydrogeology, and is a senior research scientist at the Enhanced Oil Recovery Institute, which resides in the School of Energy Resources at the University of Wyoming.
  
  Registration is free, but required due to a limited amount of space. There are only 8 seats left for the webinar, so register ASAP at http://serc.carleton.edu/NAGTWorkshops/climatechange/webinar/nov.html
  
  For more information on the series, visit: http://serc.carleton.edu/NAGTWorkshops/climatechange/webinar/index.html
  
  Thanks,
  Morgan Woroner
  IGES
  
• Geographic Information Systems Course Offered at Fairmont State University
  If you are interested in taking a course that you can apply in the real world, Geographic Information Systems is being offered again this spring after a year on sabbatical. This course counts a general science course.
  
  This is an interdisciplinary course designed to introduce students to spatial thinking and its application through the use of Geographic Information Systems (GIS) software. Students will be introduced to basic concepts in cartography including and the role of other spatial technologies (aerial photography, remote sensing, and Global Positioning Systems - GPS) as they relate to GIS applications. Students will also learn how to find data to answer specific questions by using GIS software and complete a semester project using GIS to address an issue of interest to them, and applicable to their fields of endeavor.
  
  Course Information
  
  Sponsoring Institution: Fairmont State University
  Course Title: Geographic Information Systems
  Course Code: 2854 SCIE
  Credits: 4.00
  Course Start Date: Jan 17, 2012
  Course End Date: May 11, 2012
  Course Meeting Day/Time: Thursdays
  01:00 pm - 04:20 pm
  Building Location: HH; Room: 101
  Instructor:
  Dr. Phillip E Yeager
  Fairmont State University - Dept. of Biology
  1201 Locust Av., Fairmont, WV 26554
  Tel: 304.367.4168
  Email: pyeager@fairmontstate.edu
  
  

Group Articles / Topics for Discussion

• Earth Science Video Relased September 30, 2010
  
• Updating Exploring the Environment with Climate Science Methods and Partners
  
• NOAA: U.S. Experienced Above Average Temperatures; Below Average Rainfall
  
• Global Mean Temperatures Module: Learning Objectives
  
• HURRICANE TRACKING MAP
  

Group Weblinks

• NASA Innovations in Climate Education
  https://nice.larc.nasa.gov/
  
• Exploring the Environment
  http://www.cotf.edu/ete/modules/modules.html
  
• Earth System Science Education Alliance
  http://essea.strategies.org/
  
• Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change
  http://www.ipcc.ch/
  
• WJU CET Global Climate Change Project Is Featured on West Virginia Public Radio
  http://www.wvpubcast.org/newsarticle.aspx?id=17376
  

Group Files

• • Understanding and Responding to Climate Change: Highlights of National Academies Report, 2008 edition
  ClimateChange_highlights.pdf (Size: 7 Mb)
  
• • Climate Literacy: The Essential Principles of Climate Science
  Climate Literacy Booklet Low-Res.pdf (Size: 3 Mb)
  
• Global Temperature Poster
  ETE-GlobalTemp_11x17.pdf (Size: 8 Mb)