Kenneth Wesson Educational Consultant: Neuroscience

San Jose, CA kenawesson@aol.com

Essential Building Blocks of Interdisciplinary Understanding

STEM:

From

Information to

Inquiry to

Interdisciplinary Investigations

Inquiry is – how science is conducted in the real world. By its very nature, science is inquiry-based.

• Learner-centered – the learner “does,” not the teacher

• Adult serves as coach/facilitator • Learning is intentional • Head-in, Heart-in, and Hands-on • Opportunities for active

investigations → acquisition of knowledge • Utilizes Structured, Guided,

and Open forms of inquiry • Aligns with current research on

how children think and learn

Inquiry-based Science

What is the Adult’s Job in Inquiry? • Understand how children learn • Find out what students already know (BBK) • Elicit what it is that they would like to learn about a concept • Guide (not teach) them all in learning what they are interested in

along with meeting grade level content standards • Provide the necessary learning resources (be creative and

imaginative) • Provide a context(s) that address their interests and keeps them

wondering and asking more questions o Ask open-ended questions (why, what if, how…) o Ask “What do you think will happen…?” “How would our

results change if we…?” o Allow time for arriving at their own testable questions, time to

investigate, to ask new questions and find (deeper) answers o Repeat concepts in their own words, then provide the

academic language that describes the concept

Children are born

investigators

Understanding builds over time

Science and Engineering require both knowledge and practices

A Framework for K-12 Science Education

patterns

What does a modern-day scientist look like when he is working?

Relevant questions, imagination, predictions, inferences, patterns, hunches, experimenting (trial/error) skepticism, thinking, memory, curiosity, minimize errors, sense-making, a quest for knowledge → Science and Engineering Practices (NGSS + STREAM)

STEM:

From

Information to

Inquiry to

Investigations

Active Investigations Gravity, Balance and Motion

Problem-based inquiry approach to conceptual development

Algebra: Equations = Balance Students will think through algebraic equations differently, when they can envision them through the lens of physics first

Transfer

• Transfer is facilitated by knowing the multiple contexts under which an idea applies (i.e., effective transfer is inextricably linked to the conditions for applicability; rote learning rarely transfers.)

• New learning depends on prior learning and

previous learning can often interfere with new content that is being taught.

sk

ills/

know

ledg

e

Content

Learning on the Diagonal

Alexis Carrel, the 1912 Nobel Laureate in Medicine or Physiology, "learned [as a child] the intricate stitching required for his [later surgical experiments] from the renowned lace makers of Lyon, one of whom was his mother." Michael Bishop, How to Win a Nobel

Prize, 2003, p.140).

Transfer: From Balance to Bridges

San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge

Opened Sept. 2013

.

Cantilever Bridges

Cantilever bridges are typically supported on one side only. A cantilever bridge is a form of beam bridge

= washers

Table

2 inches

1 inch

= 12 inch ruler

20 20

20 12

4

1 inch

Balance and Engineering: The Cantilever Bridge Challenge

The cantilever bridge will extend 28+ inches from the edge of the table with no hinges, nails or glue

6 more rulers = 21 in total

“Aha” moments: moments of insight, where new understanding or a new solution spontaneously emerges without a conscious or active search.

“Aha” Moments

Children are born

investigators

Understanding builds over time

Science and Engineering require both knowledge and practices

A Framework for K-12 Science Education

Learning Progressions

Eight Practices – Asking questions and defining

problems – Developing and using models – Planning and carrying out

investigations – Analyzing and interpreting data – Using mathematics and

computational thinking – Constructing Explanations and

Designing Solutions – Engaging in argument from

evidence – Obtaining, evaluating, and

communicating information

Seven Crosscutting Concepts o Patterns o Cause and effect o Scale, proportion, and quantity o Systems and system models o Energy and matter: Flows,

cycles, and conservation o Structure and function o Stability and change

• Four Disciplinary Core Ideas: Life Science, Physical Science Earth and Space Science Engineering, Technology

and Applications of Science

3-Dimensions of Learning Science

Deep and Long-lasting Learning • Instructivism = teacher tells and student listens (the

transmission of knowledge that gets memorized in isolation).

• Constructivism (Piaget) = the student learns by doing and making connections, as knowledge is constructed inside his/her head via new brain circuitry.

• Constructionism (Papert) = learning comes by way of actively constructing knowledge through the act of constructing a meaningful product. Doing/making something that is tangible and shareable (a showable artifact that becomes public).

Engineering

• Creating solutions to problems (the work of engineers who “engage in a systematic practice of design to achieve solutions particular human problems” - NRC, A Framework for K-12 Science Education, 2012, page 11)

• The success of their solution(s) is determined by how well or satisfactorily it solves the problem (criteria)

• Solutions are limited by constraints (e.g., the available materials, time, budget/costs, tools, conditions, etc.,) and solutions do not occur in a “light bulb experience.” Instead, they require a deliberate, thoughtful, systematic design process.

Problem-Solving with a Partner

In the state of Bihar (India) an alarmingly ↑ rate of ♀ HS drop-outs. Propose a solution to this problem with your partner(s). What was their solution?

Solution: The government provided each girl a free bicycle to help them with the long (and often expensive) trip to school.

The Heritage of the Human Brain

Solution Problem

Ask questions Define the precise problem (the right ?’s)

Analyze assumptions (brainstorm) Call on relevant prior knowledge

Research: Analyze answers/available data Consult – research (people/references)

Design investigation(s) to test hypothesis Evaluate results (generated new questions?)

Use imagination/seek creative solutions Repeat steps wherever necessary

Summarize and report your conclusions

Deep and Long-lasting Learning • Instructivism = teacher tells and student listens (the

transmission of knowledge that gets memorized in isolation).

• Constructivism (Piaget) = the student learns by doing and making connections, as knowledge is constructed inside his/her head via new brain circuitry.

• Constructionism (Papert) = learning comes by way of actively constructing knowledge through the act of constructing a meaningful product. Doing/making something that is tangible and shareable (a showable artifact that becomes public).

Engineering

Design and

An Intimidating Proposal?

• All ideas begin with a vision/visual image (a mental picture → drawing).

• All engineering begins with a design (→ diagram graphic representation of the initial idea).

S.T.2R.E.A.M. Science

Technology (and Thematic trans-disciplinary

instruction to extend student learning)

Engineering

Mathematics (Maximizing connections and sensory experiences)

(“Design and Engineering”)

Reading and Language Arts

Art

Brain-sight: Seeing With the Mind’s Eye

Why aren’t we spending more instructional time on

drawing, abstract thinking

and visualization?

Testing testing

Non-educators Consumed by Legislation and Bureaucracy

No Considerations for human

Learning and Behavior

Neuroscience, Cognition, Learning and the human Brain

N.C.L.B.

Our role is to leave the next generation behind (not to take them with us) → leave them with the

knowledge, skills and creativity to thrive.

Visual Thinking: Which Room?

A murderer is condemned to death. He has to choose

between three rooms. The first is full of raging

fires, the second room is dark, but full of

assassins with loaded guns, and the third is full

of lions that haven't eaten in 3 years. You are

his advisor. Which room would you say is

safest for him?

Poll

A. The raging fires

B. The assassins

C. The lions

The third room, after three years, the lions should have starved to death.

The greater the flow of water across

Earth’s surface, the greater the

rate of erosion and deposition.

Learning is Cumulative: Complexity

Paper Helicopter

Partners: “A” = Awesome “B” = Brilliant

Abstract Thinking

Using your Reflexes (Each takes 0.05 – 0.1 sec.)

(1) Eyes → sight (2) visual cortex – vision → (3) association

cortex - meaning → (4) frontal lobes – plan of action → (5) PfC – prepares response → (6) motor cortex – takes an action

2

3

4

5

6

Reflexes: In the Mind (Each takes 0.05 – 0.1 sec.)

(1) PfC – prepares response (2) Ears → hearing → (3) motor

cortex – takes an action

3

1

2

Reflexes: Visualization (Each takes 0.05 – 0.1 sec.)

(1) Eyes → sight (2) visual cortex – vision → (3) association

cortex - meaning → (4) frontal lobes – plan of action → (5) PfC – prepares response → (6) motor cortex – takes an action

2

3

4

5

6

Visualization in Mathematics

We “see” with our eyes?

We see with our brain. Blind individuals read, learn, recognize objects, etc. without their eyes.

Math - tube

(This issue of Science and Children received the 2011 Distinguished Achievement Award recognizing it as the Best “One-Theme Issue” for an American Educational Journal in 2011)

Children are born

investigators

Understanding builds over time

Science and Engineering require both knowledge and practices

A Framework for K-12 Science Education

Engineering

• Focus question

How can we change the motion

of wheels rolling down ramps?

Learning Progressions 1. One disk + straw → Spinning top →

↓ 2. Two disks + straw → a wheel-and-axle system ↓ 3. Four disks + straws → a pair of two wheel-and-axle systems ↓ Large disks vs small disks Cardboard cart vs tongue depressor cart ↓ 4. Create your own cart (applications, math, design, engineering, art)

Engage

Explore

Explain Elaborate

Evaluate

5 E’s Science Lesson

Engineer

Extend (Learning

Progressions

Part 1 - Students tackle an engineering challenge: “Design a cart that will roll from one place to another.”

In-depth Investigations and Connected Learning Progressions

FOSS Philosophy: Understanding builds over time through conceptually connected first –hand experiences • Investigations-based

learning • Long-term engagement with

the concept • Multiple exposures to core

ideas (DCI)

Part 4: Redesign their cart to meet new challenges

Part 3: Use their carts to investigate starting position

Part 2: Improve their cart design so that it will roll as far as possible

Part 1: Design a cart that will roll

NGSS Guiding Principle: Focus on in-depth explorations of fewer topics

Piaget believed that the “knowledge acquired by memorizing is not real knowledge that can be used.”

If what is learned is used only as a one-time response to a test item, the enduring impact will be minimal at best.

When students read or are “told” information and never asked to apply it, they are unlikely to connect it successfully in different contexts or within future events.

“Knowledge” Fallacy

Elements of the Engineering Design Process

1. Define the problem/need thoroughly. Is there a need for it? 2. Carefully define the criteria (what will your product do?)

and constraints (resources, materials, time, information, etc.) placed on your possible solutions. Brainstorm a list of possible solutions and evaluate the feasibility of each one. (Linus Pauling: “The best way to get a good idea is to get lots of ideas, and throw out the bad ones.”)

3. Select one solution and devise a plan for producing it. 4. Design/draw and construct that solution (prototype). 5. Test your solution, and evaluate its performance. (You may

need to “re-engineer” or revise the prototype, based on results/testing (did not meet the solution criteria)

6. Repeat steps 4-6 until the solution meets the criteria. 7. Obtain a patent and go into production!

Step #1 - Research the problem/challenge Step #2 - Brainstorm solutions Step #3 - Design (draw/illustrate) what the proposed solution would look like Step #4 - Build a prototype of the design solution Step #5 - Test the prototype Step #6 - If improvements are needed to meet the stated criteria, revise or refine the design/drawing Step #7 – Build the new (“new and improved”) prototype – an “optimized solution” Step #8 Test the revised solution

Step #1 - Research the problem/challenge Step #2 - Brainstorm solutions Step #3 - Design (draw/illustrate) what the proposed solution would look like Step #4 - Build a prototype of the design solution Step #5 - Test the prototype Step #6 - If improvements are needed to meet the stated criteria, revise or refine the design/drawing Step #7 – Build the new (“new and improved”) prototype – an “optimized solution” Step #8 Test the revised solution

Engineering

Engineering challenge: Build a spinning top. 1. Criteria: construct a spinning top that spins for seven seconds or more.

2. Constraints: (a) use only the materials provided, (b) you can spin your top using only your hands, and (c) five minutes to construct and test your top.

Use the following items: • Stirring straws • Large plastic disks (red) • Small plastic disks (yellow) • Scissors • stopwatch

• Kevin Dunbar (McGill University): The most important

discoveries in science emerge during laboratory

meetings, not in the labs themselves (not scientists

working alone). Instead, dozens of researchers

gather, informally discuss their latest work, share

ideas, engage in dialogue, ask one another questions

at the conference table. The best scientific/human

ideas come by way of generating ideas with one

another.

During Investigations, NG Group Talk Should Sound Like…

1. I would argue that ___, because___ . 2. My claim is ___. My evidence is ___ . 3. I agree/disagree with ___ , because. 4. What I’m hearing is that … 5. What do you mean by…? 6. It sounds correct to me, because… 7. Why do you think that? 8. Can you say more about that?

Engineering

Conduct a formal investigation to answer the following questions:

• Where should the disks be placed on the stirring straw in order for the system to spin?

• Will the top spin longer if the disk is placed closer or further away from the bottom of the system?

• How long will the disk spin if it is placed on the straw o ½ inch from the bottom o 1 inch from the bottom o 2 inches from the bottom o 3 inches from the bottom, or o 4 inches from the bottom? (record your data: What is the optimal design?)

Engineering

1. What seems to be the optimal distance to place the disk from the bottom of the straw to get the top to spin the greatest amount of time?

2. Will a larger disk spin longer than a smaller disk placed the same distance from the bottom of the straw?

3. If additional disks are added (more mass) to the spinning system, will the amount of time that it will spin increase or decrease?

4. record your data

Step #1 - Research the problem/challenge Step #2 - Brainstorm solutions Step #3 - Design (draw/illustrate) what the proposed solution would look like Step #4 - Build a prototype of the design solution Step #5 - Test the prototype Step #6 - If improvements are needed to meet the stated criteria, revise or refine the design/drawing Step #7 – Build the new (“new and improved”) prototype – an “optimized solution” Step #8 Test the revised solution

Engineering

Your wheel-and-axle system can be made with the following items:

• 2 Stirring straws • 4 Large plastic disks (red) or • 4 Small plastic disks (yellow) • 1 pair of scissors

Engineering

Engineering challenge: Build a wheel-and-axle system (transferring your knowledge from the spinning tops). 1. Criteria: construct a wheel-and-axle system that rolls at least 24 inches with a slight push. 2. Constraints: (a) use only the materials provided, (b) your wheel-and-axle system must roll 24 inches on its own after one small push, and (c) you have 5 minutes to construct and test your wheel-and-axle system.

Engineering

Construct the wheel-and-axel system (Investigate the accompanying questions and record your data using centimeters.)

1. Insert a green stirring straw through the center hole in a red or yellow disk (identical to your spinning system) and roll it on the table. What happened?

2. Add a second disk of the opposite color at the other end of the straw and roll your wheel-and-axle system on the table. What happened? Why?

3. Place two disks of the same color at each end of the straw (now your former “spinning top” system has two disks at the opposite ends of the straw instead of just one).

4. Now roll your wheel-and-axle system on the table. What happened when a second disk of the same size was added? Why?

5. Will two large red disks in a wheel-and-axle system roll farther than two small yellow disks? How could you find out?

Step #1 - Research the problem/challenge Step #2 - Brainstorm solutions Step #3 - Design (draw/illustrate) what the proposed solution would look like Step #4 - Build a prototype of the design solution Step #5 - Test the prototype Step #6 - If improvements are needed to meet the stated criteria, revise or refine the design/drawing Step #7 – Build the new (“new and improved”) prototype – an “optimized solution” Step #8 Test the revised solution

Engineering

If an additional wheel is added to the 2-wheel-and-

axle system, will it go further when the same

amount of force is exerted? Predict what will

occur, write down and then test your

prediction. Were you correct?

Question:

How do you teach vocabulary best?

Answer: In context

Full answer: In the context of doing

(not in the context of reading).

Instead of saying: Use MINDFUL LANGUAGE by saying: “Let’s look at these two pictures.” “Let’s COMPARE these two pictures.” “What do you think will happen when…?” “What do you PREDICT will happen when…?” “How can you put those into groups?” “How can you CLASSIFY…?” “Let’s work this problem.” “Let’s ANALYZE this problem.” “What do you think would have happened “What do you SPECULATE would have happened if…?” if…? “What did you think of this story?” “What CONCLUSIONS can you draw about this story?” “How can you explain……?” “What HYPOTHESES do you have that might explain...?” “How do you know that’s true?” “What EVIDENCE do you have to support…….?” “How else could you use this…..? “How could you APPLY this ……..?”

The Science of Learning

Reading comprehension goes from the learner to the page not from page → learner

What the learner already knows determines text comprehension.

Step #1 - Research the problem/challenge Step #2 - Brainstorm solutions Step #3 - Design (draw/illustrate) what the proposed solution would look like Step #4 - Build a prototype of the design solution Step #5 - Test the prototype Step #6 - If improvements are needed to meet the stated criteria, revise or refine the design/drawing Step #7 – Build the new (“new and improved”) prototype – an “optimized solution” Step #8 Test the revised solution

Engineering

Your wheel-and-axle system can be made with the following items:

• 2 Stirring straws • 4 Large plastic disks (red) or • 4 Small plastic disks (yellow) • 1 pair of scissors

Step #1 - Research the problem/challenge (What is a wheel-and-axle system? What are its constituent parts? How do the parts work together? What is a bearing?) *

* CCSS –E/LA Standards application Reading Informational Text at grade level

Students need to learn the language of science

as a tool to both comprehend, and

communicate what they learn/know about

science investigations, oral discussion,

writing, visual, and their mathematical

representations.

NGSS Highlights #1

Language Learning

• Academic language requires systematic instruction, (“taught, not caught”) while everyday language requires no instruction at all.

• Students frequently acquire a new language based on the individuals with whom they associate. “First- language isolation” is often one of the greatest obstacles to progress in English language learning.

• One of our key goals is to teach students how to use vocabulary in the production of academic language (speaking and writing)

Step #1 - Research the problem/challenge Step #2 - Brainstorm solutions Step #3 - Design (draw/illustrate) what the proposed solution would look like Step #4 - Build a prototype of the design solution Step #5 - Test the prototype Step #6 - If improvements are needed to meet the stated criteria, revise or refine the design/drawing Step #7 – Build the new (“new and improved”) prototype – an “optimized solution” Step #8 Test the revised solution

Engineering

Engineering challenge: Build a cart (based on the knowledge you gained from the wheel- and-axle system). Criteria: design and construct a 4-wheeled cart that moves from one place to another (rolls 24 inches). Constraints: (1) use only the materials provided, (2) your cart must roll 24 inches on its own given one small push, and (3) you have 10 minutes to construct your cart, and run your 1st test measuring the distance..

Part 2 - Students improve their design

Redesign their cart to meets new constraints: Rolling distance (incorporating CCSS-Math)

In-depth Investigations and Connected Learning Progressions

Engineering: Making a Ramp 1. Cut a piece of cardboard approximately 15 cm X 45 cm

2. Measure and mark the points on the ramp that are 6 cm, 12 cm, and 24 cm from the bottom.

3. Holding the top of the ramp, attach two clothespins to the top end of the ramp.

4. Place the ends of each of these clothespins into the “mouth” of two more clothespins making a right angle (L-shape) leg to hold up the ramp.

(Your ramp should be stable and ready to use).

Part 3 – Investigating start positions (Cross-cutting Concept: cause-and-effect)

Students design and conduct an investigation using their carts to find out how start position affects distance

In-depth Investigations and Connected Learning Progressions

Re-Engineering

• What are some of the important design characteristics of a cart that allow it to roll?

• How can you improve on your design or your engineering techniques? (the design of the cart, the materials, etc.)

• What would you do differently if you were constructing a cart with no constraints?

• How is your design like a real “go kart” or a “soapbox derby car”? How is it different?

• How is your design like a real car? How is it different?

The real cause of failure in formal education

is essentially the fact that one begins

with language, instead of beginning with

real and material action. (Piaget, 1976)

Cognitive Rehearsals (→ consolidation) When playing with objects, learners are simultaneously manipulating/playing with ideas (internal dialogues attach words and meaning to actions – the “mind’s eye”) building the brain’s fundamental circuitry

Exploring and experimenting involve examining relationships, interactions and systems, where learners formulate their own personal “theories” (mental constructs)

Thinking is a cognitive rehearsal for discourse

Discourse is a cognitive rehearsal for writing (phonological loop or “inner voice”)

Cognitive Rehearsals

“You can't make the words or ideas

come out of your pencil,

until you can get them

to come out of your mouth.”

Cognitive Rehearsals

Playing with objects and ideas, exploring and experimenting, thinking, talking, and writing become cognitive rehearsals (background knowledge) for reading.

Writing and reading clarify one’s thoughts, generate coherent thinking, and cultivate precision in expressing one’s inner thoughts (→ LT/P memory consolidation)

Discourse and writing become cognitive rehearsals for assessment Source: Kenneth Wesson (2011). Education for the Real World: six great ideas for parents and teachers. Brain World, Issue 2, Volume 2.

3 i’s – inquiry, involvement, and investigation

3-D earning

Giving students opportunities to engage in

1. Dialogue and discourse → 2. Research (library, Internet, blogs, experts, text, etc.)

→ 3. Reading to find out (not because it was assigned) → 4. Discovering answers for themselves (learning in its

most powerful form) through listening to others→ 5. Summarizing their findings – synthesizing

information found from multiple sources/multiple kinds of sources (“multiple ways of knowing”)→

6. Present their findings/thinking orally, and represent the progression of thinking (hypothesis → conclusion) in writing.

(Reeves, D.B. (2003). High Performance in High Poverty Schools: 90/90/90 and Beyond. Center for Performance Assessment. Denver, Colorado)

“One characteristic of high-performing schools is an emphasis on teaching non-fiction writing.”

Argument from Evidence

How can we plan learning experiences to meet the goals of STEM, STEAM and S.T.2R.E.A.M.?

Teaching Creativity and Innovation Through STEM and STEAM

STEM education…

The easiest way to incorporate play and STEM into your curriculum is to identify the STEM in the content and activities that you are already teaching.

Some content is “STEM,” but not labeled as such, while other content lends itself towards STEM and play with just a few modest modifications.

Humpty Dumpty’s friend, the local fortune-teller, has predicted “a severe fall accompanied by multiple injuries.” Mr. Dumpty recently saw you and your engineering expertise featured on the Six O'clock News. Design an engineering solution for him.

Re-engineering: Humpty Dumpty

Engineering solutions for Humpty Dumpty... • A light-weight titanium helmet • A full-body padded suit • A thick foam pit at the base of the wall • A seat/seatbelt system securely fastened to the wall • A “tip-o-meter” that sets off a siren when he leans 5-10 degrees in any direction • Attach him to a motion-activated parachute • Place him inside a 360-degree rubberized geodesic frame

Re-engineering: Humpty Dumpty

NGSS: “…develop a simple sketch, drawing or physical model to illustrate how you would solve this problem.” (Achieve, Inc., 2013)

Re-engineering: The Three Little Pigs

Problem/situation: You have received an urgent text

message from the Three Little Pigs, who are exasperated

with “little pig-provocation” by their neighbor the Big Bad

Wolf. You have been asked to engineer two safeguards to

prevent further persecution from the Big Bad Wolf.

What design and engineering solution can you propose?

1. A house with an aluminum rooftop. 2. Replace the chimney with a central heating system 3. Wolves are afraid of snakes, so around the house… 4. Wolves are afraid of water, so install a motion- sensitive automatic water sprinkling system. 5. Build a solar-powered environmentally friendly fan that blows air away from the house, when the wolf blows air towards the house 6. Build a house with a 35° angle rooftop (too steep). 7. Wolves are afraid of water, so build a houseboat and position it 20 yards from the shore.

Re-engineering: The Three Little Pigs

Only Your Imagination Can Set a Limit on Your Creative Thinking

Houseboat Solutions for the Three Little Pigs “Arte/Scienza”

Imagining, Thinking, Visualizing, Drawing, (Re-drawing), Building, Testing…

Students who lack ability . . .

to create visual images when reading, often experience comprehension difficulties.

They cannot describe the pictures in their minds as they read.

Learners who were instructed to create mental images of events…learned two to three times as much as learners who read aloud the sentences repeatedly. (Anderson, 1971)

Drawing does for the brain during the day,

what

Dreaming does for the brain at night.

Goodwill Engineering Garage sales, Thrift shops, Goodwill, basements, etc. 1. Remove two parts and reassemble. 2. Remove four parts and reassemble. 3. Remove six parts and reassemble (reverse engineering) 4. Diagram the interior 5. Begin writing assembly instructions (engineer) 6. Remove two more parts and reassemble. 7. Draw the complete interior 8. Complete assembly instructions 9. Test to see if the object is (still) operational

…not merely “academic problems” for the purpose of intellectual development, but global challenges to the very survival of our planet and our species. They will require new approaches, novel ideas, new solutions, and the complex merging of multiple disciplines.

Science = Knowledge and “Human Progress”

1850: 1 in 4 American babies died before his/her 1st B-day. People packed into dark, dirty rooms with fetid air and no running water → lethal epidemics → cholera, pneumonia, scarlet fever, diphtheria, whooping cough, tuberculosis and smallpox. Today: Only 6 in every 1,000 American infants are expected to die before age 1 - a remarkable improvement attributable to developments in science including antiseptics, improved sanitization, clean drinking water, pasteurized milk, childhood vaccinations, modern medical procedures, anesthesia, and nearly 70 years of developments in antibiotics.

Drugs Contaminate Lake Michigan Prescription drugs have been found far from Milwaukee's sewage outfalls, suggesting the lake is not diluting the compounds as scientists expected By Brian Bienkowski and Environmental Health News | Thursday, September 5, 2013 | 5

vancomycin

cin my-cin

co-my-cin van-co-my-cin

Reverse Direction Decoding

antibiotic drug of last resort for hard-to-treat hospital-acquired infections

We want to known best as the innovation nation

instead of a high-stakes testing nation,

where two-thirds of the hours in a school

year should not be devoted to prepping

students for tests leaving no time for

building creativity.

Man of the New Millennium: A Search for Us in an Age of Me

by Gregory Dark The Anthropocene is not a healthy epoch in the earth’s geological chronology. The activities of human beings since the late 1800s (Indstrial Revolution) have had a greater negative impact on this planet’s lithosphere than any other creature in the history of planet Earth. So much so that geologists have designated man’s destructive occupancy of this planet as a period: “Anthropocene,” to be precise. The rate of extinction suffered by other species during man’s residency on this planet, this anthropocenic age, has been anywhere between 100 to 1000 times more intense than beforehand.

Are we “tenants” or “stewards” of planet Earth?

Contact Information: Kenneth Wesson

National Science Consultant (408) 323-1498 (office) (408) 826-9595 (cell)

San Jose, CA kenawesson@aol.com

sciencemaster.com