At Oklahoma City Community College, they have developed gel electrophoresis activities that support active learning of many scientific concepts, including: pH, electrolysis, oxidation reduction, electrical currents, potentials, conductivity, molarity, gel electrophoresis, DNA and protein separation, and DNA fingerprinting. This article presents…

The strong-inference protocol puts into action the important concepts in Platt's often-assigned, classic paper on the strong-inference method (10). Yet, perhaps because students are frequently performing experiments with known outcomes, the protocols they write as undergraduates are usually little more than step-by-step instructions for performing…

The traditional range of marine microcosm laboratory experiments is presented as an ideal environment to teach the entire analysis process. The microcosm lab provides student-centered approach with opportunities for collaborative learning and to develop critical communication skills.

Many teachers and other service providers struggle with trying to address the many skills that are important for young children to acquire during the preschool years. Early Literacy Initiative project (Project ELI) is a comprehensive, two-tiered, early language and literacy intervention model that includes activities for all children as well as…

This brief article presents some quick and easy science experiments for those dreary winter days when classrooms need a pick-me-up. These seemingly easy science experiments will make a lasting impact on students.

Sediment oxygen demand (SOD) is the rate that dissolved oxygen leaves the water column in a body of water due to the build-up and decomposition of organic carbons in the sediment. The introduction of organic materials changes the chemistry of streams, and many chemical reactions occurring in bodies of water, with the exception of photosynthesis,…

An experiment in photochemical oxidation, which deals with bilirubin, a well-known light-sensitive biological compound that is pedagogically ideal for photochemical experiments at tertiary institutes, is presented. The experiment would benefit students in chemistry who eventually branch out into the health sciences or biochemistry.

The use of Calculator-Based Laboratory (CBL) technology, the graphing calculator, and the cooling and heating of water to model the behavior of consecutive first-order reactions is presented, where B is the reactant, I is the intermediate, and P is the product for an in-class demonstration. The activity demonstrates the spontaneous and consecutive…

The study describes how to design and optimize an experiment with multiple factors and multiple responses. The experiment uses fractional factorial analysis as a screening experiment only to identify important instrumental factors and does not use response surface methodology to find the optimal set of conditions.

The effectiveness of science experiments often are partly dependent upon the amount of classroom time available for implementation. This factor alone has frustrated many teachers who attempt to complete laboratory assignments in the allotted time period. This document provides experiments that were designed for the middle year in a 3-year biology…

This book contains simple experiments through which students can learn about the properties of energy. These experiments include making a kitchen "volcano," a soda-pop "cannon," and a puffed-rice "scooter." Topics include: energy and work, fossil fuels, solar energy, kinetic energy, potential energy, mechanical energy, heat energy, sound energy,…

Twelve desk-top experiments and demonstrations which illustrate properties of and facts about gas are presented. Each experiment includes: purpose, materials needed, instructions, and a list of facts and properties that have been observed. Several of the activities also include questions for students and items for discussion. The topics of the…

On December 2, 1942, in a racquet court underneath the West Stands of Stagg Field at the University of Chicago, a team of scientists led by Enrico Fermi created the first controlled, self-sustaining nuclear chain reaction. This updated and revised story of the first reactor (or "pile") is based on postwar interviews (as told to Corbin…

Article discussed reasons why teachers should encourage hypothesizing by children and how they can be stimulated to formulate them. (Author/RK)