 
Weeks - 3-2 to 3-5 each science class will meet only twice this week. Then Week 3-8 through 3-12-2010.
FOR NOW 4 USEFUL LINKS HAVE BEEN ADDED STARTING WITH THE ONE THAT IS TITLED ***MATERIALS SCIENCE THAT WILL GIVE US SOME OF THE BACKGROUND INFORMATION! WE NEED TO BETTER UNDERSTAND THE PROPERTIES OF MATTER AND HOW THESE PROPERTIES OF MATTER CAN BE EXPLOITED OR USED TO MAKE MATERIALS THAT WILL FUNCTION IN NEW WAYS. WE WILL BE VIEWING THESE TOGETHER AND YOU WILL BE REFERENCING THEM AS WE FINISH THE ANCHOR ACTIVITY (PRESENTATIONS AND DISPLAYS OF CUBES) ON MATERIALS SCIENCE - THE WEEK AFTER ISAT TESTING.
THE LAST TEN USEFUL LINKS TAKE YOU TO THE SCIENCE DAILY WEBSITE WHERE YOU CAN WATCH VIDEO'S AND READ THE ORIGINAL ARTICLES THAT WE ARE CURRENTLY WORKING WITH IN CLASS.
2-08-2010
Use the games below under activities to review for the test on the Periodic Chart next Wednesday!!!!
All Glogs should be completed, saved and published no later than this Friday. 2-12-2010
Everyone should have completed and handed in their Fractals – "The Sierpinski Triangle" and "Jurassic Park" fractals which were due last Friday. 2-5-2010
1-19-10
Hi,
Welcome to the 8-3 Science Website for more information and fun!!!! All work is begun in class what does not get finished in class becomes homework!!!!
YOU NEED TO POST FEEDBACK ON "THE WALL" BY USING THE LAST USEFUL LINK AT THE BOTTOM OF THE PAGE. TAKE A LOOK AT THE VIDEO - KEEP YOUR COMMENTS BRIEF - TEXT TALK ALLOWED! EMBED A VIDEO OF YOUR OWN IF YOU LIKE!
GLOGS NEED TO BE NEAR COMPLETION AND FINISHING TOUCHES NEED TO BE ADDED - LETS SET A DUE DATE TOGETHER! SOME OF YOU MAY HAVE TO GET INTO THE RESOURCE CENTER TO GET THIS DONE!
NEXT WEEK WE WILL BE REVISITING OUR "COMPREHENSIVE SUMMARIES" AND PART "C" OF FRACTALS!
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Hunting the Hidden Dimension
Background
The term fractal was coined by French mathematician Benoît Mandelbrot in 1975. He based the term on the Latin word fractus, which means "broken." A fractal is a geometric figure with some special properties—it is irregular, fractured, or fragmented in appearance, and it is self-similar; that is, the figure looks much the same no matter how far away or how close up it is viewed. In addition, unlike most geometric shapes, fractals have infinite areas and perimeters.
Fractals can be found extensively in nature: clouds, trees, coastlines, and mountains can all be described as fractals. Because of this, fractal geometry has many practical applications. Geologists can model the meandering paths of rivers and the rock formations of mountains. Botanists can model the branching patterns of trees and shrubs. Astronomers can model the distribution of mass in the universe. Physiologists can model the human circulatory system. Physicists and engineers can model turbulence in fluids.
Fractal images are constructed by the iteration of a mathematical function, by repeatedly substituting certain geometric shapes with other shapes, or by repeatedly applying geometric transformations, such as rotation or reflection, to points. The results of the functions are then plotted on a graph, and the points are colored using a formula. (Mandelbrot's famous fractal set is constructed by the recursive iteration of the formula z = z2 + c, where z and c are complex numbers, and c is a constant.) Because of the complexity of these calculations, and the number of iterations required, fractals are usually generated on a computer.
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Program Overview
NOVA explores the fascinating world of fractals and looks at how they can be used to better understand everything from coastlines and rainforests to weather systems and human physiology.
The program:
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reports on one of the first applications of fractal geometry—when a Boeing computer scientist in 1978 applied principles of fractal geometry to create a mountain background for a plane for publicity photos.
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introduces Benoît Mandelbrot's realization that many forms in nature can be described mathematically as "fractals," a word he invented to describe shapes that look jagged, or broken, or that do not conform to traditional geometry.
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explains that fractals are produced by taking a smooth-looking shape and dividing it repeatedly in a process known as iteration.
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describes one of the defining characteristics of a fractal—self-similarity—a state in which an object looks the same regardless of the distance from which it is viewed, or in which an object's parts look similar to the whole object.
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notes that prior to Mandelbrot's discovery of fractal geometry in the 1970s, mathematicians relied on classical mathematics to describe geometric shapes but had no mechanism for characterizing the erratic patterns that existed in nature.
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recounts that while he was working at IBM, Mandelbrot noticed patterns in phone-line transmissions that reminded him of a hundred-year-old mystery known as mathematical "monsters."
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illustrates some of the monsters, including the Cantor set, Koch's snowflake, and the Julia set.
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shows how Mandelbrot used the Julia set to create his own equation, which, when iterated and graphed on a computer, generated the well-known Mandelbrot set.
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notes that many pure mathematicians turned against Mandelbrot when his work first appeared, and that even today some mathematicians maintain that his work has done little to advance math theory.
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presents some of the many ways fractals are used and applied to everyday life, including measuring coastlines, creating special effects in film, downsizing wire antennas, better understanding human physiology, and investigating why large animals use energy more efficiently than small ones.
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follows researchers to a Costa Rican rainforest, where they try to determine whether applying fractal geometry to data from a single tree can reveal information about how much carbon dioxide the entire rainforest can absorb.
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Classwork/Homework Assignment #1 - Bring in one of your DOODLES - make sure it is a doodle and not a sketch or drawing. If it is a sketch or drawing you have used Euclidian Geometry to create it and you will probably have difficulty finding the fractals in it whereas you should be able to find fractals in you doodles! Assignment analyze your doodle for Fractals!
Analysis due Friday 1-15-10.
Classwork/Homework Assignment #2 - Write a COMPREHENSIVE summary on the material viewed from "Fractals/ hunting the Hidden Dimension." Make sure to include your notes on careers and sciences that use fractals as well as the information about the types of fractal patterns and where they are found. Don't forget to include of course the basic information that explains what a fractal is, who discovered them and the significance of fractal geometry in science and its connections to chemistry and the major science construct that fractal geometry is connected to. Use the various useful links to help you complete this assignment which will be due next Wednesday 1-13-10.
Classwork/Homework Activity #1 - Use THE FIRST Useful Link below!
Studying Mandelbrot Fractals using Java Interactive. You will be working in teams to study on the Java site from the useful links below! fractals. Students can use the "Col+" and "Col-" buttons to change the image's colors. Then use the mouse to draw a rectangle on the image and click "Go!" to enlarge the image. Have students zoom in on the fractal around its edges. Repeat using different parts of the fractal. What do students notice when the zoom in and out of the images?
Using THE LAST useful link below -
Continue investigating fractals building a better understanding of what they are by visiting the Peoples Archive: Benoît Mandelbrot Web site to view a video (3m 13s) of Benoît Mandelbrot describing fractals. Click on the Video menu "Medium" button. Take notes on characteristics of fractals that Mandelbrot mentions. (The key idea contained in this video is the concept that fractals are made of parts, and that each part is like the whole except smaller.) If you have difficulty understanding Mandelbrot in the video, you can read a transcript when the clip is over by clicking the "Read" button from the Transcript menu. WORK FROM THIS IS DUE TUESDAY 1-12-20.
Homework Activity #2
You need bring in 5 pictures of fractals that you see everyday life and share them with the class. These can be collected from magazines or newspapers, they can be pictures that you have taken yourself of fractals you have observed in nature. The pictures need to be mounted on paper. Make sure you put your heading on them.
The pictures cannot be printed off of the internet from any of the fractal links. this assignment
is due next Thursday 1-14- 10.
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