Human Nature

Human Nature is a Wonder Collaborative documentary that was picked up by PBS NOVA. And I have questions.

It's the story of CRISPR: the challenges that were insurmountable prior to CRISPR, how CRISPR was discovered, how it's been implemented (so far), and what the future might hold. There are ethical concerns; they are explored. And this production was produced as a feature film. The production values are high, the soundtrack is not always subtle, and emotional punches are not always pulled. It's exceptionally well done.

After the introductory material (Preface), the film is divided into six chapters: Needle in a Haystack, CRISPR, The Gene Machine, Brave New World, Good Genes, and Playing God.

This is a 94-minute film, and I wrote 83 questions to accompany the viewing. That might seem like a lot of questions, but it is not. The questions maintain attention, but do not require reflection or analysis. And the question formats vary to prevent any potential fatigue. 

Human Nature at TPT

Physics Crossword Puzzles [Conceptual Physics]

Once I gained access to crossword puzzle creation software, I plied computer power to generate physics-themed puzzles. The trouble with most academic crosswords is that they consist one or two dozen words, not that many crosses, and a whole lot of empty "zen space". 

I was determined to fill the gaps on my physics crosswords with other terms, preferably science terms. When you get deep into gap-filling, you appreciate the value of short words, acronyms, and initialisms. Later I got the idea using words from online lists of "words all high school students should know". I knew that would bring some joy to the hearts of my ELA colleagues.

The puzzle-creation software package I initially used did not survive the 2000s. The most recent program I used still operates in the current version of the macOS operating system. So now I'm preparing crosswords for posting at TPT (Teachers Pay Teachers).

Puzzle Maker by Hokua Software LLC allows the creation of printable crosswords. It also allows for the creation of HTML puzzles that can be uploaded to one's server space and solved online. It also lets you drop in an image for the grid's backdrop rather than just using black, white, or gray. 

And for the printable PDF versions, I've prepared one with an empty grid, another with 10% of the letters prefilled, and another with 20% of the letters prefilled. Users can determine which level of difficulty is best for their students. I include a separate Word List for instructors to deploy at their own discretion. Words like "rarefaction" and "specular" are likely to show up where appropriate, as will high school vocab words like "impetuous" and "evanescent," so hints can prove useful.

I've discovered that there is much more craft involved in the creation of a robust, "busy" crossword puzzle, even with computer power. This is why so many subject-matter crosswords are so sparse.

Physics Crossword Puzzles at TPT

Making North America

Paleontologist Kirk Johnson certainly landed a trip of a lifetime with this series. I'm completely jealous. But he knew his way around these locations and had a compelling story to tell, so he was more deserving. We get the plate tectonics of how North America came to be, the genesis of life on the continent, and how humans made their way here from Africa, at least to the best of our understanding in 2015. 

Among other things, I learned that camels originated in North America. The continents of Laramidia and Appalachia are name checked, but for some reason, the Niobraran Sea is not.

My consolation prize is that I used my own photographs for the cover art on all episode question sets and the series bundle.

Making North America at TPT

What's the Universe Made Of?

Dark matter and dark energy: where cutting-edge physics and astronomy meet. In high school physics, we focus on 16th- through 19th-century physics. For some, the majority of the year is devoted to the study of motion, forces, mechanical energy, and momentum. Some make their way into electricity, magnetism, waves, and light. A few dabble lightly into 20th-century physics: atomic and nuclear physics, and relativity.

For those interested in peeking into 21st-century physics, dark matter and dark energy are appropriate topics. The science is still being sorted on these topics. I wrote question sets for episodes of Physics for the 21st Century devoted to dark matter and dark energy. NOVA Wonders produced a more recent episode devoted to both dark matter and dark energy. Much more slickly produced than the earlier Annenberg series, for what it's worth. 

What's the Universe Made Of? at TPT

Great Electric Airplane Race

Miles O'Brien was our host for the popular NOVA episode, Chasing Carbon Zero. A few years ago, he put this episode together. O'Brien is a pilot who owns a plane he enjoys flying. Aviation presents an especially acute problem in our efforts to decarbonize transportation. This is the story of those who thrive on this acute engineering problem. Impressive innovations are being made. But progress is hard-earned, and there seems to be a long runway ahead of us before this technology can truly take flight. [You know I wouldn't be able to resist.]

Great Electric Airplane Race at TPT

Can new emission-free electric planes replace our polluting airliners and revolutionize personal transportation in our cities?

Ending HIV in America

This is the story of the AIDS epidemic, from the early 1980s to the early 2020s. From when it was referred to as GRID (Gay-Related Immune Deficiency) to clinical studies of the most effective contemporary medicines.

It's the story of tireless caregivers and relentless researchers who have persevered across four decades: where we've been, where we are, and what we dare to hope for in the future. 

Ending HIV in America at TPT

Almost 40 years after the discovery of HIV, could we be on the verge of ending the AIDS epidemic in America? As of 2019, in the US, there were only 34,000 new cases of the disease—a feat that once seemed near-impossible to achieve. How did scientists and the public health community tackle one of the most elusive deadly viruses to ever infect humans?

Petra: Lost City of Stone

You might remember Petra from its scenes in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade. Over the years I've seen pictures from time to time, but I never really knew the story. This episode of NOVA cured that. And it elevated my awareness of the non-gold gifts said to have been presented to Jesus upon the occasion of his birth. The once-nomadic Nabataeans became "the richest race on Earth" by trafficking in frankincense and myrrh while building this oasis deep in the desert of what is now Jordan. How they managed such enormous carvings and bringing water to the city of stone are the subjects of this episode.

Petra: Lost City of Stone at TPT

Hagia Sophia: Istanbul's Ancient Mystery

Hagia Sophia is a Byzantine church that has survived a few tests of time across its 1500 years. It was a marvel of architecture when it opened in 537 CE in Constantinople, it now stands as a monument of resilience in Istanbul in a region subject to cultural change and seismic activity. Built in six years with no apparent budget restrictions, its novel innovations appear to make it a likely survivor of future earthquakes. Originally a Byzantine Christian church, it was repurposed as a Catholic church, then an Islamic mosque, and then a secular museum. Since this episode of NOVA was produced, it was once again repurposed as an Islamic mosque.

Hagia Sophia: Istanbul's Ancient Mystery at TPT

Can Psychedelics Cure?

I was half expecting a Michael Pollan How to Change Your Mind psychonaut or microdosing storyline here. That's not what this is. This episode delves into research into the careful use of psychedelics to treat alcoholism, depression, and PTSD.

These are not happy topics, and this episode of PBS's NOVA gets a content warning. It has a few rough moments, but it's working with treatments for difficult diagnoses. 

As an educator, I was part of a culture that cast anything that could be considered a recreational drug as public enemy number one. Just as Richard Nixon labeled them when he was president. The closest I've come to illicit drug use has been breathing the air at rock concerts, where the air can grow thick with marijuana smoke.

In any case, Can Psychedelics Cure? presents anecdotes and data suggesting that psychedelics have curative properties when administered appropriately. The FDA will have the final say. Here's where the FDA stood as of June, 2023.

Can Psychedelics Cure? at TPT

Hidden Volcano Abyss

...an appropriate description of a submarine volcano. This episode of NOVA tells the story of the massive Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha'apai eruption that shocked the world in 2022. Earth science current events. 

We get accounts, video, and photographs from residents of Tonga who survived the tsunami and rain of debris and ash. It's a testament to their preparedness that only three people died. Still though, the human story is not without emotion.

We also get the forensic geology of the science team that determined why the eruption was 70 time more powerful than anything the volcano had previously produced, and how it produced a rare volcanic tsunami. Detective work and deduction. 

And research into the likelihood of another eruption in the near future. Right now on NOVA.

Hidden Volcano Abyss at TPT

The Story of Maths

There are some apparent contradictions with this one. It's British. It's the history of mathematics. And it's a little bit... spicy.

Adults are shown enjoying adult beverages. The use of mathematics to schedule conjugal visits between a Chinese emperor and the 121 women in his hareem is illustrated. A prolific author of math texts who never actually existed. A mathematician who upended the field before losing a duel before his 21st birthday. The story of a nightclub dancer protecting a prestigious mathematician from Nazi thugs is told. And more.

Amid these spices is the history of math from before the invention of the number zero to recent attempts to prove the Riemann hypothesis. Host Marcus du Sautoy travels the world to visit key historical locations and talk to notable contemporary mathematical giants.

This is the human story of math.

We do math. We love math. And math coursework is devoted to the ideas and mechanics of math. Rightfully so. Here are four hours that humanize math. It might be a worthy diversion to contextualize high school or college mathematics.

The Story of Maths at TPT

Digital Remastering: The Summer Work of 2023

The Lessons of Phyz at TPT (Teachers Pay Teachers) began in 2018 with the publication of question sets for The Mechanical Universe (High School Adaptation) episodes. At the time, those episodes were not available for purchase, nor did they stream. [Now, all episodes of The Mechanical Universe stream freely.]

Other series and a variety of single-episode documentaries were added in 2019. When the pandemic hit in 2020, it became clear that the Google Docs format was the new PDF, so I began the work of transforming all my extant PDF resources into Google Docs. When remote teaching morphed into hybrid learning in 2021, I found I needed to post resources as "print-friendly Google Docs", files that could be assigned and collected in Google Classroom (or other LMSs) and could also be printed for use in the classroom for in-person instruction.

Hundreds of resources have since been added. The Lessons of Phyz offers 640 products as I write this post. But as the months and years have rolled by, I have discovered a few things about my resources.

I've solidified some formatting and style aesthetics that weren't always consistent in the early works. And I've notice a phenomenon that I can only refer to as "digital drift": a microscopic change in Google's fonts or kerning which—on rare occasions—altered the formatting in some documents, especially when printing them.

So I've spent this summer "digitally remastering" the old documents so that they would behave better in general, and when particularly printed. It's important to me that these documents perform as I intended them to when I created them.

As I was finishing that work, news arrived that Paul Hewitt's Conceptual Physics Alive! video series had become available to stream or download for free. So I remastered all my CPA question sets to include clickable links to the corresponding video. Embedded video links were already incorporated in The Mechanical Universe, Kinetic Karnival, and other series and stand-alone episodes in which a video streamed freely. 

Any typos found in remastering were fixed. I suppose it was like weeding a garden.

In any case, the store's products have been polished and the shelves are handsomely stocked as we head into the 2023-24 school year. 

Oh, and TPT has a new logo, too. It combines the apple and document sharing elements of the legacy logo and the color scheme of the short-lived, newer logo. I like it. 

The Lessons of Phyz Advantages

VIDEO QUESTION SET EDITION · [crossword puzzle edition here]

An abbreviated summary of "Lessons of Phyz Advantages" is provided in each video question set's product description. This post dives a bit deeper.

Why question sets at all?

I was never comfortable showing a video in class without an accompanying question set. Casting students as passive observers didn't seem like a path for learning. And it's asking a lot of students: to actively engage with an inherently passive exercise.

Depth of the questions

My first significant experience as a teacher using video lessons was via The Mechanical Universe: High School Adaptation. I was able to get my school to buy me the set, and it came with a binder of resources. Among the resources was a set of questions for students to answer while watching the video.

But the prompts called for extended, written answers. Not quick, "bang-bang" responses. More reflective, analytical responses. It didn't seem like students could answer these while the video played. Rather, the video would have to be paused while students drafted and composed responses.

I didn't want to spend that much time in the video.

Further experience with such things led me to the conclusion that the producers of video content hoped their content would occupy more of your calendar than you intended.

That did not suit my needs.

So I developed shorter, tighter question sets, with questions that could be answered while the video played without pause.

The video is not my primary curriculum resource; it's a supplement. In my class, the video will play through once, and that's it. Students complete the question set while the video plays. If you're hoping for a deeper analysis and reflective responses, my video question sets are not the way to go.

Page design: print-friendly Google Docs

This topic is so important, I wrote a separate post about it: One document to rule them all. The TL;DR version is this: My question sets are Google Docs files that can be assigned to students in Google Classroom, for example, if remote teaching/distance learning is in effect. They can also be printed and used in an in-person setting. Maximum flexibility is the objective.

Because the print versions might be used in a darkened room, I chose to use a heavy sans=serif text font for increased legibility.

Question variety

Most video question sets that have been put into the world are "word-drop" questions—one-word fill in the blank. I use them, but not exclusively. 

Word-drops don't really work for exotic words that are unfamiliar to students, or whose spelling is challenging. For those, I prefer a multiple-choice format. Students might not be able to spell an exotic word, but they can pick it out of a line-up when they hear it. And having done so, they can see how that exotic word is spelled.

Multiple choice question construction takes additional time and energy: now you need distractors to sit appealingly with the key. 

Ages ago, I served on the physics development committee for California's short-lived Golden State Exam. Because I complained to the California Department of Education about the statewide physics exams it was developing, the State Board of Education appointed me to its Assessment Review Panel. We vetted questions developed by Educational Testing Service for use on California's Content Standards Tests. All this work made me acutely aware of the importance of quality distractors.

I also like pick-from-a-list questions. And when the material calls for it, matching is good. On rare occasions, a tour/false works well.

The point is to mix it up where possible. I don't have research to show that that makes for a more engaging, less tedious question set, but I believe it. So that's what I do. 

And no student, even those who are well-read and intellectually sharp, should have much success completing the question set without watching the movie/episode.

That seems like a lot of questions!

Many question sets have nearly one question per minute of film. At first blush (and when comparing to competing products), that might see like a lot of questions. Maybe too many questions. It is not. The questions are low-level, intended to maintain student attention and focus on the content. They are not deep reflections or rich analysis. So the frequency is right for the task at hand. Teachers who initially found the load to be intimidating were surprised by how well it worked with students.

Raised ceilings: space for writing

Sometimes a word-drop question has enough verbiage that the dropped word occurs in the second line of text. In those cases, I add some vertical space so that students have room to write (when the document is in print form); no need to scrunch the handwriting. Not all author-creators think of this.

No unnecessary art

Most of my question sets are pure text. The visuals and graphics are the domain of the video. If anything, the question sets represent a translation of the visual and auditory to text. I don't see any value in clip-art or screen grabs. On some (rare) occasions, there is value in interpretation of a graphic element or graph.

Non-breaking space

This one is weed-deep. When a question calls for selecting items from a list, often the list of items can be fit to a single line of text. Sometimes items in the list consist of more than one word. When using the Google Docs file, it's convenient to be able to double-click an item on the list to select it. But if the item has more than one word, double-clicking only selects one word. I use a non-breaking space between the words so that both words are selected on the double-click. Like I said, this one is deep in the weeds.

Play to the buzzer

When you ask students to maintain attention throughout the video by using a question set, many will lose focus after the answer to the final question is revealed. So it's best to have that occur as close to the end of the video. If it's the last word of the video's narration, all the better.

The Brain

Neuroscientist David Eagleman explores the human brain in an epic series that reveals the ultimate story of us, why we feel and think the things we do. This ambitious project blends science with innovative visual effects and compelling personal stories, and addresses some big questions. By understanding the human brain, we can come close to understanding humanity.

The Brain at TPT

Our Planet II

Our Planet (2019) represented something new in the well-traveled wildlife documentary genre. It included stunning photography and footage acquired at considerable expense and difficulty; that's the price of admission. But David Attenborough's script did not shy away from revealing the less appealing facts of habitat and species decline. The realities of human impact were documented. Not heavy-handidly. But not ignored, either.

This follow-up miniseries centers on migrations and seasons. Well, months more than seasons as it trots the globe's northern and southern hemispheres throughout one calendar year. It's perhaps a bit gentler regarding the message of anthropogenic climate change, because that science is very settled. Our Planet II was designed with bingers in mind. Each of the first three episodes ends in a cliffhanger.

Our Planet II at TPT

Colosseum: Roman Death Trap

Among the most hackneyed of tweet opening phrases is "I don't know who needs to hear this, but...". The author is attempting to signal an imminent dose of universal wisdom.

This episode of NOVA popped up as this week's summer rerun for NOVA. I visited the Colosseum in April and saw a lift made of lumber in the bowels (hypogeum) of the structure. This program tells its story, and much, much more. As the title implies, it was not a place of joy, mirth, or happiness for those who participated in the spectacles. 

But there was state-of-the-art engineering going on in there. So ... I don't know who needs to use this, but there is cromulent STEM content in this episode: mechanical and hydraulic engineering as well as emission spectroscopy and bone-strengthening nutritional supplements for gladiators. Gladiators were trained in fight schools and were provided with health care. Not all gladiator fights were allowed to end in a death (given the investments in these fighters). But releasing wild apex predators into the arena via lifts and trap doors kept audiences coming back for more.

Colosseum: Roman Death Trap at TPT

Crypto Decoded

By early June, 2023, regulators were coming after cryptocurrencies. And NTFs had not really caught on fire. Maybe I've come to this episode of NOVA too late. And it's not that old. But 2022 was a long, difficult year for crypto. 

NOVA traces the origins of crypto and what some hoped it might be able to do. From the blockchain to Ethereum, this episode does what it can to decode crypto.

Crypto Decoded at TPT

From Bitcoin to NFTs, crypto is making headlines. But what exactly is it, and how does it work? Experts go beyond the hype and skepticism to unravel the social and technological underpinnings of crypto – exploring how it came to be and why this new technology may change more than just money.

Honda Cog Ad

 

I always loved this two-minute ad from Honda UK. It merited an exhaustive Wikipedia entry. I showed it during our Energy units, since there were so many energy transfers and and transformations. Creating a student assignment around it was challenging, though. And doing so sat on the back-burner for some time.

Eventually I settled on a "phenomena-match" where I created a list of physics phenomena and broke the video into 33 distinct events, with titles!

Students are asked to read the list of phenomena and then watch the video. Then they're asked to watch the video again and label each event with at least one phenomenon shown. (Some events show multiple phenomena, and students are encouraged to label as many as they see.) 

But there are some restrictions. All 33 events need to tagged with at least one phenomenon, and each phenomenon must be assigned to at least one event by the end of the video. And no single phenomenon can be assigned to more than five events.

Fun, engaging, and with just a pinch of tension (as you come up on your fifth citation of "collision").

Honda Cog Ad at TPT

Spin the Cradle

The Newton's Cradle likely spends most of the school year collecting dust. Adding this will diminish the accumulation a little bit.

Center that cradle on a low-friction turntable, and you've got the makings of a nice demonstration for AP Physics 1. There's a classic uniform circular motion free-body diagram to be solved. And the solution speaks to the angle a ball will swing to when things are set into motion.

A curious counter-intuitive interpretation of the mathematics is explored. It's nerdy stuff, appropriate for the more deeply-set plow we use in the advanced level high school course.

And how cool is that cover photo, with the balls of the cradle seeming to repel one another?

Spin the Cradle at TPT.

Secrets in Our DNA

When the direct-to-consumer DNA tests were splashing onto the scene a few years ago, I noticed that some of my colleagues at school were getting their 23AndMe or AncestryDNA tests done. None of them were science teachers.

My immediate take was that the more you knew about DNA, the less likely you were to buy into these tests.

I haven't purchased a test, myself. But I might get one someday. There seems to be some entertainment value and some medical value. But it's important not to set expectations very high.

That said, there is a story here. A story with several compelling threads. And this episode of NOVA gets at this story.

Secrets of Our DNA at TPT