 The project runs February-July 2015 with students participating in March and again in June (Southern Hemisphere and Summer School). Using only the sunlight striking the Earth and a wooden dowel, students can measure the circumference of the
earth. Eratosthenes did it over 2,000 years ago. In Cosmos, Carl Sagan shared the process by which
Eratosthenes measured the angle of the shadow cast at local noon when sunlight strikes a stick positioned
perpendicular to the ground. By comparing his measurement to another made a distance away, Eratosthenes
was able to calculate the circumference of the earth. (See Carl Sagan's depiction of this process at
(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G8cbIWMv0rI.) Students will be able to do science the same way
Eratosthenes did in the iCollaboratory activities. A notable project in which this was done was The
Eratosthenes Project, conducted in 2005 as
part of the World Year of Physics; in fact, we will be drawing on a simplified version of the
teacher's guide developed by that project. The
difference between that activity and How Big Is Earth? is the online
learning environment provided by the
iCollaboratory where teachers and students can collaborate, share data,
and reflect on their learning of science
and astronomy. We will also maintain and share an ongoing database of
student measurements. We will collect
data on both teacher and student learning from surveys, discussions, and
self-reflection done online. Students in
each school will collaborate with students around the world; during the
first year, schools in six countries will
participate. We will share our research about the kinds of learning that
takes place only in global collaborations. If you are interested in having your middle school students participate, please contact icollaboratory@gmail.com Thank you, Bonnie Thurber and iCollaboratory Team |
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