Cooperative Learning is a teaching pedagogy that is great to use, but often challenging to implement. In a high school general chemistry classroom (non-honors level), the range of math abilities across the student population often means that some students catch on quickly to the algebra-based concepts. Other students struggle with very basic algebra. The beauty of using Cooperative Learning is that the science teacher can use the higher ability students as another resource for the students that need to have concepts reinforced.

The movie "Fargo" won an "Oscar" for Best Original Screen Play at the Academy Awards in the spring of 1997. Fargo and Grand Forks, North Dakota were again in the headlines a few weeks later because of record-setting snowmelt floods.

Exercise: Determine the volume of water stored in the snow in the Red River basin. Also, give some possible reasons for why the flooding of the Red River was greater and occurred later in northern North Dakota than in southern North Dakota? [This is answered in the discussion.]

Astronomers build larger telescopes not only to collect more energy but also to resolve finer detail in the objects to be studied. While groundbased optical telescopes with "filled" apertures of up to 10 m have been built, and 30 m and larger-aperture designs are being studied, another method of observations permits equivalent apertures spanning tens to hundreds of meters to be used. Radio astronomers have used these instruments, called interferometers, for decades, with equivalent apertures spanning thousands of kilometers.

To help students learn, in a more concrete way, how natural selection operates, I came up with an activity that simulates evolution by natural selection. In this simulation, students take on the roles of crab-like predators that have variations in the shape of their "claws." These feeding appendages catch prey (pinto beans), and come in four variants: spoons, forks, knives, and chopsticks. Groups of students go hunting/scavenging for beans on grass lawns with their feeding appendages.

It's important to check the results from an experiment. Does the result make sense? Does it follow from other facts that are known? From the standpoint of teaching High School science, checking if one's results are sensible adds an additional layer of safety that the results are correct. (From the standpoint of advancements in Science, a basic research tenet is that results must be repeatable and not just a fluke.

It seems that traffic flow problems are becoming more and more common these days. In fact, despite the most noble efforts of city planners, even when there is very little traffic on the road, waiting seems to be a fact of life. So what is the probability that you will have to wait at a particular traffic signal, or perhaps more appropriately, what is the average amount of time you can plan on waiting? Let's look at a simple probability analysis related to traffic lights to find out.

When approaching an airport, pilots must learn to maneuver their aircraft visually, so that a stabilized approach to the runway can be flown at a constant approach angle. Precise approach planning insures a smooth transition to a landing within the Touchdown Zone (1) of the runway. Pilots must sometimes execute visual approaches that are varied in size, shape, and angle based upon a variety of factors such as: other aircraft, obstructions, noise abatement, or prevailing weather conditions. The standard approach angle however, is 3°.

A demonstration of the effect of the optic disc, or "blind spot," inherent to the optic nerve entering the posterior of the eye (bulbus oculi).

There is more to modulus than meets the eye. As a computer programmer I use it frequently for a variety of purposes including time and patterns.

An interesting and well-known riddle in the area of probability is "The Birthday Problem." You can find information about this problem in many introductory books in probability, probability and statistics, and math tricks books for laymen. This problem falls in the category of problems called counter-intuitive -- meaning that you may be surprised at the answer.