Fwd: Samsung Solve for Tomorrow

Message from Samsung:

Dear Mr. DeVoe,

 

First, we'd like to say congratulations on being a finalist in the 2012 Samsung Solve for Tomorrow contest! Out of over 1,500 applicants for the program, you were one of only 12 schools who made it to the finals.  By being a finalist, your school has won $70,000 worth of technology and software courtesy of Samsung, Microsoft, Adobe and DIRECTV.

 

Unfortunately, your entry did not qualify you for our grand prize.  The submissions this year truly embraced the challenge put forth and our judges were faced with an extremely difficult decision. We appreciate all of the hard work you put into these submissions as well as your efforts in furthering STEM education. We encourage you to continue to approach these subjects with the creative and innovative thinking you've demonstrated throughout the Solve for Tomorrow contest.

 

Again, congratulations on winning the technology package for your school. We hope you will be able to use the technology to benefit your students and further their interest in STEM. A Samsung representative will be contacting you in the coming weeks to follow-up on fulfillment of this prize.

 

Best Regards,

 

Dr. David Steel, Adam Yates and Bree Falato

 

 

Bree Falato | Corporate Communications| Samsung Electronics North America
85 Challenger Road, 9th Fl. | Ridgefield Park, N.J 07660
Work 201.229.4789 | Mobile 201-289-6704 | b.falato@samsung.com

 

 

P  Save trees! Print this e-mail only if necessary.

For more information about Samsung's Sustainability initiative, please visit www.samsung.com/green

 

Learn about Meiosis (it's not a cycle!) Link 1 Link 2 - animation Link 3 - animation The failures of meiosis

In lab we've been analyzing different samples of "urine" to diagnose several "patients" with certain disorders. Here, Zeke checks the pH of the samples.

Ashlee calculates lung capacity during today's lab. A couple more weeks of human body work and onto the fetal pig lab!

In lab this week, we're studying ways we can influence human heart rate. One interesting concept in the mammalian dive reflex, a response that has evolved in many mammals including humans. Heart rate plummets in response to underwater conditions to conserve oxygen. We're using Vernier Lab Quests to document this.

Build-a-Body: http://www.spongelab.com/slxdev/interactives/buildabody/en/whole/index.html

Groton Central School is in the running for a $100,000 technology award from Samsung Electronics! Please vote for our video at the following website: www.samsung.com/solvefortomorrow Or search for "Earthship Groton" on Facebook where you will find a link to vote. Thanks for your support and remember you can vote every day for the next month!

Learn more about the Groton HoneyBee Project!

There's a good article on NPR's website about the risk of Lyme Disease...caused by a bacterium spread by certain species of ticks. Our warm winter will probably result in an above-average number of ticks in our wooded areas this year so please educate yourselves. Above is a risk map. We're in a low-risk area but it's still best to check yourself after coming indoors.

8TH ANNUAL GREEN BUILDING SEMINAR SERIES
(5) Thursdays, February 9, 16 & 23 and March 1 & 8, 7:00-9:00pm
at First Unitarian Church of Ithaca Annex, 208 E. Buffalo St.(near Aurora), Ithaca NY

February 9: Earthships! A showing of the award-winning documentary, Garbage Warrior, will be followed by a discussion with one local couple who recently built an earthship and another who are working on one this year with Michael Reynolds (the leading earthship guru, featured in Garbage Warrior). For more about the film, visit: http://www.garbagewarrior.com/

February 16: Deep Energy Retrofits. What does it take to turn a typical home into a super-performer? Jon Harrod of Snug Planet and Ian Shapiro of Taitem Engineering will walk you through their process for making a home super energy-efficient and discuss the huge benefits that can result.

February 23: Rehabbing Old Windows. With a few simple repairs and improvements, you can make your old windows perform as well as new ones. Mark Pierce, Extension Associate with Cornell University's College of Human Ecology, is an expert in energy efficiency issues in residential buildings, and Shad Ryan is the Owner of On Balance Solutions, which specializes in vintage and historic sash rehabilitation. They will discuss the benefits of keeping your old windows and walk you through the process of fixing and tightening them up.

March 1: Affordable Green Building. Following up on last year's popular seminar, we've invited two local experts to discuss different strategies for keeping your green building projects affordable, including the decision-making process that goes into incorporating green building practices and materials that are healthy, safe, resource-efficient, and durable but that don't cost a premium. Scott Reynolds is the Director of Construction Services for Ithaca Neighborhood Housing Services, and Joe Laquatra is the Hazel E. Reed Human Ecology Extension Professor in Family Policy at Cornell University, whose teaching and research efforts focus on sustainable aspects of housing.

March 8: High-Efficiency Heating Systems. So, you've made your home as energy-efficient as possible and now your old boiler isn't just inefficient, it's oversized. There are a lot of options these days. We'll discuss high-efficiency biomass and fossil fuel-fired systems, mini-splits, geothermal, masonry heaters, and more, including how heat-recovery ventilation works as part of the system.

Admission: $8/seminar or $35/series. No need to preregister. 

Please visit http://ccetompkins.org/gbss to check for changes or cancellations on the day of the seminar!
For more information, contact Guillermo Metz at (607) 272-2292 or email gm52@cornell.edu.

Groton Honeybee Project

GCS students (mostly Freshmen) have spearheaded a unique business plan....to mange honeybees and sell honey to the Groton community and cafeteria. Led by Camille H. And Mr Wiech, about 12 GCS students will build the boxes from scratch and harvest the wildflower honey. Come check out their presentation to the Board of Ed. on Feb 6th.  Exciting things to come!

Please take a moment to fill out this quick survey if you used the iPads during their brief stay in our classroom:

https://docs.google.com/a/groton.cnyric.org/spreadsheet/viewform?hl=en_US&formkey=dGVxNk0zTE01cndTWXdsYk9CVXoxbWc6MA#gid=0

I just posted a new review site under the Study Resources section.  Its not too early to start reviewing for the NYS Regents Exam!  Be sure to utilize all of these options in the next couple months.

For today's service project time slot of the holiday gala, the science department hosted projects made from "trash". These included hanging planters for the hallway and bird feeders out of plastic soda bottles. Nice job everyone!

This week's lab: making homemade root beer.

Introducing...Senior Projects

Today I'm thrilled to announce the beginning of our work on Senior Projects. Pick a topic you are passionate about... it can stem from a problem right here at GCS or could be global in nature. It could relate to science but it doesn't have to. Use interviews, technology, fundraising, video, presentations, boycotts, campaigns, surveys, etc. to learn, educate others, and address the problem. Document your progress over the next two-three years and during your senior year, you will be given a venue to present or display your culminating project. You should also create a tab in your ePortfolio for this endeavor. Don't forget to use experts around you...GCS, SUNY Cortland, Cornell, Ithaca College, etc.

Some resources to get you started:

www.challengebasedlearning.org
www.tigweb.org
www.common.is/community
www.innocentive.com

...and be sure to check out the girl at the bottom of this site. She sums it up nicely!

Yeast fermentation lab. Which sugars do baker's yeast prefer? Under which conditions do yeasts perform best?

Another great Prezi from some members of 1st period:

Photosynthesis on Prezi

Collaborative Voicethread on Herbs and Spices by members of Food, Land, and You.