http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LYwTIdagGSo
What ethical restraints do we recognize as we seek knowledge? This question, which runs through areas of knowledge in TOK, finds a particular focus this week in photographs just released of the Mashco-Piro tribe in southeastern Peru. The photographs, taken from a distance, renew the place of this group as an example of an “uncontacted” tribe in continuing issues of cultural and environmental conservation.
Many of us have temperature sensors and data loggers and I have fond students using them in several creative ways for extended essays and also to satisfy their scientific curiosity. I had one set of students wondering how often a fridge cycled off and on if you left the door closed. They left a temperature sensor and data logger inside the fridge overnight and the results were very surprising. The resulting temperature vs. time curve was so flat it was very difficult to tell when the fridge was on and when it was off. This was with a very old fridge and I was incredibly surprised to see how constant the temperature was inside the fridge. Another experiment we did was to place the sensor inside the fridge, close the door for 5 minutes and then open the door for one minute and close the door again for five minutes. This allowed us to see how quickly the fridge warms up with the door open and how long the fridge must cycle on in order for the temperature to go back down to its operating temperature. Finally, we did another experiment in our office with the air conditioning. (I work in the tropics) We turned the air conditioning off and measured the increase in temperature. In class, this was related to how much energy we use to decrease the air temperature inside by 1 degree, by 2 degrees etc. All of these experiments relate nicely to the energy and the environment unit and have direct relevance to the students’ everyday lives. I usually introduce Newton’s Law of Cooling to help the students better understand the resulting curves. It is not on the IB syllabus but it is good knowledge for your students to have.
How many IB Film students begin their movie with the main character waking up to the sound of an alarm clock? Far too many. There are so many creative ways for our students to open a film, but using an iPhone instead of a clock is not one of them.
This got me thinking about how directors open their films – either in terms of the title sequence or the opening scene. I will never go into a cinema where the film has already started. What the director chooses to show (or not show) first is a very important choice. Here are some of my favourites:
Here are a few URL’s that should help you with your teaching of topic 2, atomic structure.
A time line outlining the development of the model of the atom – nice and simple but stright to the point. Very useful:
OCB’s Organochlorine Pesticides) and PCB’s (Polychlorinated Biphenyls) enter the body through food or airborne particles.
They are believed to damage the bodies vital organs and immune system and are also believed to be carcinogens.
Image via Wikipedia
Well the summer is almost fully upon us – and thoughts maybe turning to Internal Assessments and projects that we can change or run through next year. One excellent IA which can bring in a number of unit areas including :-
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