Daily Recap: Friday, 4/17

Investigating Technologies:
Today was the last day of the current harbor rotation. Groups will be rotated into their new harbors on Monday.

Anatomy and Physiology:
Rat test. Anyone who didn't finish will have an opportunity to complete the test on Monday. Also...don't forget that Monday is the "rat funeral". You will be expected to come up with some sort of a tribute to your furry little friend.

Respect the van

I have to say...I like the new Honda Odyssey commercials:

Daily Recap: Thursday, 4/16

Anatomy and Physiology:
Today we had a short review/information session for the rat exam that's scheduled for tomorrow. The 80 question multiple choice test breaks down like this:

Unit	Questions	Labeling	Total
Introduction	4	-	4
Skeletal	4	5	9
External	4	-	4
Muscular	3	8	11
Digestive	6	5	11
Cardiovascular	5	11	16
Respiratory	4	-	4
Urogenital	6	6	12
Nerve/Endocrine	5	4	9
Total	41	39	80

You will be allowed to use your lab notebook and instruction sheets on the first half of the exam (the general questions), but not on the second half (labeling). You should study figures 2.2, 3.5, 3.15, 4.7, 5.3, 5.14, 7.2, 7.4, an 9.1 to prepare for the labeling section.

Biology:
We began our ecology unit by reading section 2.1. The assignment for this reading is a "contextual redefinition" worksheet.

iPod Shuffle

In 1994, Bon Jovi released Cross Road, their first "greatest hits" album. Among the album's "14 classic grooves were three new tracks: Always, Saturday Night, and an updated version of Livin' on a Prayer.

Saturday Night spoke to me the first time I heard it, and it has spoken to me continually since:

Hey, man, I'm alive.
I'm taking each day and night at a time.
Yeah I'm down, but I know I'll get by.
Hey, hey, hey, hey, man,
I gotta live my life.
Like I ain't got nothin'
But this roll of the dice.
I'm feeling like a Monday,
But someday I'll be Saturday night.

There's something hopeful here. It's an acknowledgment of the reality of life's hardships...but there's a strength in the human condition that allows us to shake off the past and look ahead with hopefulness. Each of us has the power to improve ourselves and our experiences. It's not a quick or easy process, but it's a doable one:

Someday I'll be Saturday night.
I'll be back on my feet,
I'll be doin' alright.
It may not be tomorrow, baby that's okay.
I ain't goin' down,
I'm gonna find a way.

You can check out the video here. Below is an acoustic version:

Daily Recap: Wednesday, 4/15

Anatomy and Physiology:
Today is the last scheduled day with the rats. We will review tomorrow and take the rat test on Friday. I've decided to allow you to use your notebooks on that test. Also remember that you'll need to provide some sort of a tribute to your rat when we have the "rat funeral" on Monday.

Biology:
Taxonomy test.

Name that "M"

Here's the full picture from last week:


And here's this week's "mystery m":


Good Luck!

Guest post: Mrs. Gingrich

*Mistermagette's note: In recognition of Leonardo da Vinci's birthday, I present the second guest post to this blog. Enjoy!

Nothing to do with Taxes
-by Mrs. Gingrich

April 15 has many connotations to me:

• Tax Day
• Being pregnant, 2006 - My son’s due date
• Being pregnant (again) 2008 - The day after my daughter’s due date (many are quite impressed by this coincidence)
And last but not least:
• Leonardo daVinci’s birthday

Some of you may hold a job and may have to pay some taxes. Tax day for most adults is a ‘bah humbug’ date on the calendar. But since I recognize three other special events that coincide with April 15 – it’s no longer a groan of a day, but a hooray for Leonardo (and my kids) in a celebration of birth.

If you have taken Art 1 with me at EHS, you have been through art history units. Oh come on, you loved it! Those of you not familiar - these are quite intense units of study focusing on a particular movement in Art, along with the historical significance, artists and their products of that time period. Ol’ Leonardo da Vinci falls in the Renaissance art history unit. (Side note: I teach my students a silly mnemonic during that unit in order to remember the four key artists of the time – TMNT! Heroes in a half-shell!)

So Leonardo turns 557 this year. He actually died at the age of 67, but honestly the man did more during his lifetime than anyone else in history that I can think of. (History teachers: feel free to prove me wrong on this one). Leonardo is the reason the label “Renaissance man” happened. You know the type (many grandpa’s are like this – my dad is one of them): they can build an awesome tree house, they can play the guitar, they know what causes that “thump” sound that your car is making, they can help you with math homework and also help with still-life drawing. They can seemingly do anything – and do it well. That’s Leonardo.

I talk a lot about my dad when I’m teaching certain areas of art, because in a sense he’s an artist. He’s an architect, really, but in many ways architects are artists, too. My dad used to be president of an architectural firm in Topeka. Their main office was at the top of the Bank IV tower. I was always really excited to visit him at work because I would get to play with the really cool Prismacolor sets and stencils. Anyway, when you walked into the office suite, there were two larger-than-life images of Leonardo’s Vitruvian Man – one on either end of the office. If you aren’t familiar with the Vitruvian Man, an image is below. Imagine being about 8 years old, weirded out about life in general, but especially anything doing with the “bits and bobs” of physical anatomy. Dad’s office greeted me with this giant figure where, as an 8 yr old I stood at quite an awkward level to the guy. You get my drift. The giant one in Dad’s office lacked the “modesty” I’ve added to this image:


To learn more about the Vitruvian Man (and all the others who failed to prove what Leo did), go here.

I could go on and on about how Leonardo’s work has influenced my work as an artist and person. I adore his style of drawing – and strive to reach its complexity yet absolutely passionate, exploratory style. One of my favorite images is of an anatomical drawing done in his sketchbook. (Incidentally, this sketch is one of the few ‘mistakes’ Leonardo made – as he only had one cadaver to work from. Read on here.)


I love this image because of the sensitive subject, and all the scribbling, scrawling mess that surrounds the serene and tender baby. I’m especially drawn to it now that I’m a mother. You’ll understand soon enough. On this 557th birthday, I think about my own kids, and what they will grow up to be – maybe artists like their grandpa and mother? Who knows. One thing’s for sure: I won’t be posting a ginormous image of “bits and bobs” anywhere in our house anytime soon. There are other ways to inspire them!

Daily Recap: Tuesday, 4/14

Anatomy and Physiology:
Just a couple of days left to finish up the rats. Most groups are finished with the dissection, or getting close. Remember that we will be reviewing on Thursday and testing on Friday. Also, don't forget that you'll be required to have some sort of "tribute" prepared for the rat memorial service on Monday.

Biology:
A new Bio-Bulletin is available. Today was a test-prep/catch-up day. We will be taking a 40 question exam over taxonomy and classification tomorrow.

Satisfied last week's election results?

This graph shows the results of an online poll conducted by our local newspaper:


I don't know which is more interesting...that 81% are unhappy with the results of a democratic election, or that the percentages don't add up to 100.

What rhymes with Des Moines?

And now for a geography lesson. And another chance to poke fun at Kansas's ongoing struggles with Darwin's theory. (And just for the record, I was totally going to do this with my toy dinosaurs and m&m's...this guy just beat me to it.)

More on Texas

The National Center for Science Education (NCSE) is a non-profit organization dedicated to protecting the teaching of evolution in public school science classrooms. The organization's executive director is Dr. Eugenie Scott, who holds a PhD in physical anthropology from the University of Missouri.

Dr. Scott appeared last week on NPR's Science Friday program, where she discussed the recent adoption of new (creationist friendly) science education standards in Texas. In her interview with host Ira Flatow, she discusses the new standards, why wording and language are important, and what exactly is at stake with the passage of the new standards. You can access the interview and listen to it by following the above links, or you can download an mp3 of it here.

Here is video of Dr. Scott's testimony before the Texas State Board of Education last month:

Infomercial Hall of Fame

Since infomercials have been a previously discussed topic on this blog, I thought I'd let you all know that The Daily Beast has published their list of the 12 craziest infomercial pitchmen (or women). Here's the Cliff's Notes version:
1. Vince Shlomi: Can you use your ShamWow to clean your SlapChop?
2. Billy Mays: Could sell ice to Eskimos (and if you call in the next 20 minutes, he'll throw in some free Oxy-Clean).
3. Susan Powter: Stop the Insanity...a tall bald woman can probably scare me into buying ANYTHING.
4. Ron Popeil: Now what was I supposed to do after I set it?
5. Richard Simmons: Does "Sweating to the Oldies" refer to the music or the man?
6. Suzanne Somers: The Thighmaster...'nuff said.
7. Donald Trump: Will tell you how to get rich...
8. Jay Kordich: Can make healthy and delicious juice out of anything
9. Tony Little: A mullet with muscle.
10. Matthew Lesko: The government's giving away money...so why's he on my TV instead of standing in line trying to get some for himself?
11. John W. Scherer: Video professor...so certain you'll be satisfied, he'll send it to you for free.

Their 12th person is Billy Mays again, this time on Fox News. I think I'll substitute my own here:

12. Chuck Norris: He'll sell you a Total Gym and then kick your ass with it.

Daily Recap: Monday, 4/13

Anatomy and Physiology:
This is the last week of our rat projects. Groups should be getting really close to finishing them up. We will plan on reviewing on Thursday, then taking the exam on Friday.

Biology:
Today we played "BIGO" as a review of the material from textbook chapter 7. Tomorrow will be a test-prep day, and then we will test out of the taxonomy unit on Wednesday.

Easter Bunny biology

I pulled this essay by Darksyde off of DailyKos yesterday (thanks to the Panda's Thumb for pointing pointing it out).

Rabbits are mammals of course and at first glance they appear to fall in with squirrels, mice, chipmunks and a bunch of other adorable little critters that make up the most successful order of mammals on earth today: rodents. [...]

More recent anatomical comparison (however) suggests rabbits may not be rodents at all. In fact, they might be an offshoot or close relative of early Artiodactyls like the indohyus on the left. Modern artiodactyls include the largest, most unrabbit-like animals on earth today. But back in the Paleocene they were tiny and some, like mouse deer, still are. With tens of millions of years to work with, it's entirely possible an early artiodactyl or forerunner of same evolved into an order of their own, called Lagomorphs, now represented by rabbits, pikas, and hares. If so, one of the closer extant relatives of petite bunny rabbits would be the great Blue Whale!

So if you noticed that the bunny delivering your Easter-goodies yesterday morning seemed to be a little pre-occupied, it's probably because he was in the middle of a major identity crisis. But while this may be unnerving for the poor rabbits who now may find themselves classified more closely to giraffes and whales, it is a great illustration of how scientific models are constantly changing as new information and ideas become available.

Darksyde does end his essay on a somber note:

Alas...I must report that at present there is no evidence in the fossil record of a mansized, bipedal rabbit creeping around in the wee hours delivering candied eggs or self portraits rendered in sweet chocolate. But...it wasn’t all that long ago, in geologic time, when ancestors of the mammals celebrating Christ's resurrection today sat in the crook of a tree, munching leaves, pondering the primeval world before them with hare-sized brains. Evolution moves in mysterious ways.

Lagomorphs are highly social and quick on their feet. They breed fast, they evolve fast, and they can live patiently underground in sand, soil, or snow nibbling at dead roots and fallen leaves, while the world above convulses in nuclear holocaust or climatic catastrophe. Given time, who can say what the distant future holds for our lovable long-eared friends? So let’s not count out Peter Cottontail, or something a heck of a lot scarier, just yet.