Monday, November 10, 2014

WHAT'S ALREADY OUT THERE ........... IN TERMS OF LEARNING PHYSICS THROUGH SPORTS?


Readers, I hope to publish a book.  Since I began renting a small office at the Quincy Center for Innovation (Quincy Chamber of Commerce) in mid-May I have begun to focus better.  In an effort to encourage the use of games and sports as a natural way for kids to begin to acquire physics concepts, the book is to be a collection of:


1.  the reasons I believe we should teach kids about physics through games and sports, as well as other everyday activities; 
2.  what I have found to be available now such as camps, museums, classes (not very much!); 
3.  resources that others have developed or published (very much!);
4.  proposals, lessons, approaches, etc., that I have developed.

In my searches I haven't found such a collection on the market.  Here is a partial list of what I have found to be out there now.
                                SELECTED LIST OF WHAT’S OUT THERE 



TELEVISION SHOWS             
“Sport Science”    John Brenkus, host.   ESPN2, Channel 50.

“Sport Science Newton Awards”  John Brenkus, host.   2013, first annual event.   



CAMPS      
Girls Reaching to Achieve in Sports & Physics  (“GRASP”).  Ohio State U.  June: 2 sessions



AMUSEMENT PARKS      
Knotts Berry Farm, California --  Physics Fun Day


Canobie Lake Park, New Hampshire --  Physics Day


“Motion in Use at Six Flags/Magic Mountain”  Curriculum and workbook, like Knotts and Canobie.


Disney World.  “Science of Imagineering” videos on roller coasters and other rides.



SCIENCE FESTIVAL     Cambridge Science Festival, also in other towns; annually:  April vacation



STADIUM EDUCATION

University of Nebraska   football games.  One-minute lectures.  Timothy Gay, Ph.D.

Science Day at the Ball Park.  Phila. Science Festival.  Stations/clinics throughout the ball park.



ARTICLES

“Sport Science: Physical Laws & Optimum Performance,” P. Brancazio. Physics Tchr 42:  318, 2004



MUSEUMS      “Science in the Park,”  Boston Museum of Science.  Ongoing.




www.sonic.org Science Olympiad Inc.   (to plan an event for elementary thru high school)

connectamillionminds.com    To get yourself started, Magic Johnson's video is especially motivating.  I looked through the downloadable booklets, and I really liked the one on football.

http://isaacslom.wikispaces.com    It appears that this website was organized by a high school teacher in 2010.  Under each school period, or class, there are many topics, all about different sport / science topics.  It should help anyone to get started!  I discovered it when I was looking up cheerleading science and decided it needs to be included under "What's Already Out There."


SCIENCE FAIR HELP                www.ScienceBuddies.org


LECTURES, CONFERENCES, COLLEGE CLASSES

Dedicated Conference:           Physics of Sports.  College of the Holy Cross, 2006.


Lecture:    “Improving the Quality of Your Students’ Work Using the Physics of Sports,” Arthur Eisenkraft.  Institute at National Science Teachers Assn., 2006



“Making Sport of Physics”  John Eric Goff, various conferences, 2009-2012



Classes, ongoing:    
“Physics of Sports”   John Eric Goff.  (Oberlin, 2001) / Occasionally offered at his present location at Lynchburg Coll., Virginia.

                
“The Physics of Sports”      Michael Lisa,   Ohio State U.

“Sports and Physics” AND a lab,    U. North Carolina at Charlotte.  

“Dr. Baseball” Dr. David Kagan,   California State U. at Chico.  Videos on YouTube.



BOOKS   Leaping, Sliding, Sprinting, Riding Science Book, Bobby Mercer, Lark Books, 2006



Gold Medal Physics:  The Science of Sports, John Eric Goff, Johns Hopkins U. Press, 2009.



Active Physics:  Sports, Arthur Eisenkraft, project-based inquiry approach, It’s About Time, Inc., 1998

Sunday, November 9, 2014

Connectamillionminds.com ................... GREAT SITE I JUST FOUND

I just found this site -- connectamillionminds.com -- and have only had a quick look so far, but I think you'll like it. To get yourself started, Magic Johnson's video is especially motivating. 

I looked through the downloadable booklets, and I really liked the one on football. It has a Football Bingo game, too. Looks like fun! There's also one on racing cars.

It's from Time Warner Cable.



Together, we've connected more than a million young people to the wonders of science, technology, engineering and math. Learn more about the journey.

Monday, October 27, 2014

ABOUT KIDS: JUST THREE THINGS


There are just three things -- already in place -- to bear in mind in helping young children to understand basic physics:

1)  Children play................................they touch things and use them,
                                                                  they use their energy,
                                                                  they know how outside forces feel to them
                                                              
2)  Children learn language..............that's what children's brains are designed to do

3)  Children are natural scientists....try one thing, if it doesn't work, try another

Put 'em all together and what've you got?   Steppingstones to understanding physics: 

       1)   Feel the physical sensation of riding down a slide

       2)   It took ENERGY to climb up against the force of GRAVITY. 
       Going down, GRAVITY does the work, save your ENERGY!

       3)   If, however, you were wearing a wet bathing suit, you didn't go far. 
       What to do, what might work? 
       Reduce the FRICTION.......Sit on top of something dry!

                                                            "Wheeee!"

Wednesday, October 15, 2014

WHAT'S IN A NAME?

When I began this weblog four years ago, the name I coined for this approach was "Newton 1-2-3 Go!"  It's a reference to Isaac Newton's three laws of motion, combined with "1-2-3 Go!"  which is said at the start of a race -- so, together a reference to the sport component as well as the science. 

However,  sometimes  when I would give my business card to someone, I noticed they'd puzzle a bit at the name.  As time passed, I came up with "Gateway to Science:  Sports and Games."  This was as I was preparing to do a local television show.  I adopted that name for the show and changed the blog name, too (also, my business cards!)




I keep Newton 1-2-3 Go! because I still think it works, and maybe some product will be developed in the future for which it would be a good name.  By the way, I see a lot of business potential. 

Using games and sports to advance the understanding of physics and geometry is an area that is vastly underdeveloped, i.e., in a way that is consistent, systematic, and widespread.  If this idea were embraced, the sky could be the limit.  I think that young people, especially those who are looking to go into business for themselves, would do well to explore this and figure out what they could develop and market.  Put your thinking cap on!





The infrastructure is already there -- the sports industry, electronics, movies, books, amusement parks, playgrounds, social media, you name it -- 
and in the hands of the right people -- YOU? -- you could advance the cause of science literacy, innovation, and most of all, fun!

Saturday, October 11, 2014

VIDEO: Visit to Isaac Newton's home


This video shows you where Isaac Newton lived in eastern England.  The famous apple tree that inspired him has had cuttings transplanted to some other areas, too.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VupFDDrX0Rw&feature=player_embedded

VIDEO: Dr. Baseball explains "The Wave"


Click on this link to view this neat video from Arbor Scientific about "The Wave."

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=cvDAntw_jbI

Tuesday, September 23, 2014

Friday, August 8, 2014

LEAFLET: The Physics of Skateboarding -- Doing an Ollie




DID YOU KNOW THAT YOU CAN LEARN PHYSICS
WHILE DOING AN OLLIE?
 



This  is  about  the  science  involved  in doing  an  ollie  while  you’re skateboarding.  It will answer a few of your questions about   how skateboarding works.
It answers the following questions:
What 4 things are required for an ollie?

Which law of motion is involved when you push down – causing   you  and  the board to go up in the air?
 
What force does the grip tape on the board’s top surface provide? 

______________________________



WHAT 4 THINGS ARE NEEDED FOR AN OLLIE?     


Sports coach Bobby Mercer recommends that you get started this way:


What You Need

·         -  Flat, paved surface

·         -  3-foot long piece of lumber, at least 6 in. across and 1 in. thick

·         -  Broomstick

·         -  Skateboard

·         -  Helmet
·         -  Elbow and knee pads

What You Need To Do To Prepare
    1.      Place the broomstick on the flat, paved surface.  Place the board (lumber) atop the broom lengthwise, with the broom in the center.

    2.      BALANCE         Stand on the lumber, try to balance over the broom so that neither end of the board touches the ground. 

    3.      SPIN  (rotate)  Once you’ve mastered Step 2, crouch down while balancing.  Push down gently with one foot, and lift up the other foot without taking it off the board. 

The board should rotate around the broom as one end of the board hits the ground  (other end pointing up).
 

 If you can’t do it right away, don’t worry – it’s a tough trick.  Keep practicing.

    4.     PUSH   (hop)    When you get your rotation down (Step 3), it’s time to take the move to the next level.  Crouch down like before, but this time instead of pushing down gently, slam  one  end  of  the  board  down as  hard  as  you  can  with your foot.  If you do it right,  you and the board will fly up off the ground.

    5.      Once you can make the board rotate (Step 3) and hop (Step 4), try it with the skateboard – without the broom.  Make sure you’re wearing your helmet and elbow and knee pads.  Slam the end of the board to the ground and ride the front into the air.



WHAT’S GOING ON?

The ollie is a skateboard move for hopping over objects.  It’s a hard trick, so don’t feel bad if you struggle with it.  Some skateboarders spend months learning how to do it, and some never learn it.

In Brief, the science behind an ollie is:
    
    1)      About shifting your weight  (to exert a force) and


    2)     Obeying Newton’s 3rd law of motion      
          “For every action there is an equal and opposite reaction."
  
    In Detail:
1) Let’s start with shifting your weight:  when you crouch, you have a lower center of gravity.  That makes it easier to keep your balance.  Simple, huh?

AND THEN WHAT HAPPENS?
Then you slam an end of the board into the floor.  The force you exerted  (to push down) makes the board  rebound (push back up)  off the floor.  This rebound lifts the whole board – and you.

2) That’s because, with Newton’s 3rd law, the floor supplies an opposite  (upward)   force  equal to your downward slam.
    How fast you hop up depends on your momentum     (a combination of your speed and mass).                     

Did your feet slide around on the piece of lumber?  That should happen less on a skateboard.  Skateboards have grip tape on their topsides,  which  provide  the  friction  needed to hold your feet in place.                      


SO  —  WHAT MAKES FOR A GOOD OLLIE?


______________________________

Thank you to Bobby Mercer for presenting  this  so  clearly  and  so approachably  in  his  terrific  book:     The Leaping, Sliding, Sprinting, Riding  Science Book  from  Lark  Books  at Sterling Publishing, 2007.
                Highly recommended!!

_________________________

Skateboarding   is just one of endless ways to gain an understanding of physics and geometry.    I hope this leaflet introduces you to seeing things you never saw before – or wondered about but just didn’t know where to start.

Physics  and  geometry come into play in every single activity and event going on around us.  

Knowing how things work can add to your performance and to your fun. So give it a try.  How?

·      Start with the information here which I found in: 

    The Leaping, Sliding, Sprinting, Riding Science Book by Bobby Mercer. You may not understand everything in it right away, but for now, use what you do understand

·         
    Conduct an online search of your own

·        
        See what other books and videos your library has

·       
          Share them with your friends, your class, your team, your scout troop

·         
     Read my blog and tell others:   sportscience-kathy.blogspot.com

·      
         See my show on Quincy Access Television, channel 8:  
“Gateway to Science:  Sports & Games”

                                        Thank you!          Kathy Hogan