SD83 Students have an Ion Science Careers
It has been said that science students are like atoms insofar as they bond well together.
Certainly that was the case when seventeen students from four SD83 high schools joined forces to do Science and learned more about the related careers they entail. SD83 Careers along with UBC-Okanagan’s Let’s Talk Science Outreach Program had Grade 9-12 students from JL Jackson, Salmon Arm, Eagle River and Al Fortune secondaries participate in three activities during their three hour stay at the Kelowna campus: Ocean Acidification, Photovoltaics and Human Movement Dynamics.
Students first examined photovoltaics, the study of how sunlight is converted into electricity. The youth had to start by testing their voltage and current measurements, make sure they set up their solar panels properly using the right resistors in series and parallel formations and then use flashlights to measure the current in different situations. One scientific report shared with the students indicates if all of the solar energy that hit the earth was captured for one hour, it could power all of humankind’s activities for one year. Students also learned that a typical solar power plant are one-third cheaper to operate than a current coal fired power plant.
Students then turned their attention to ocean acidification. A UBC grad student reviewed elements of the periodic table, showed and explained how carbon moves everywhere in our world and how the ocean can store fifty times more carbon than our atmosphere. Students then blew into one beaker of water and then added red cabbage water into it and another beaker with normal tap water to illustrate how more carbon in the water changes PH levels which can lead to problems for calcified structures and creatures in the ocean such as coral reefs, oysters and plankton.
Finally, the students checked out the healthy exercise and aging lab to learn about the simple movement of the human arm and tried to re-create that motion with tape, elastics and wooden sticks with their own models. They also had a chance to talk with two Ph.D students who are doing interesting research using trans-cranial magnetic stimulation or TMS. In a bid to improve the functional mobility of older adults, Cori Caulkins is trying to understand if the power of visualization and imagination can assist older people in retaining more of their mobility, especially when facing challenging diseases like Parkinson’s. During this time and other times with the Let’s Talk Science Ambassadors, the facilitators shared their career journeys and aspirations of where they would like their science knowledge to take them. Let’s Talk Science also wanted to acknowledge the sub-sponsors for the events which included Mobile Marine Biology, Westcoast Women in Engineering, Science and Technology and Solar Energy for Net Zero Eminence Cluster of Research Excellence.
If you have any ideas on neat experiential learning opportunities that students can engage in, please reach out to SD83 Career Education Coordinator George Richard via text or phone at 778-824-1188 or email grichard@sd83.bc.ca.