Online Student Book

 

Generally Helpful Sites

Submitting data for IAPS activities: Some IAPS activities provide the opportunity for students in classrooms across the country to compare their data with each other. Click on the appropriate link to submit your students' data.

Submit data for Activity 74, “Measuring Speed”

Submit data for Activity 82, “Braking Distance”

Shown below are several sites that relate to Issues & Physical Science (IAPS). Some provide background information to supplement the information in the student book, others provide links to supplemental information and articles you may choose to use with students.

Unit A: Studying Materials Scientifically
Unit B: The Chemistry of Materials

Unit C: Water

Unit D: Energy



IAPS Issues in the News

Below is a list of newspaper articles and websites that link current events to issues explored in IAPS. Use these with your students to foster discussion about current science issues.

Unit A - Studying Materials Scientifically

Visit the Green Cleaning Network to explore resources and discussions about ways to clean that minimize impact on the environment and human health.
Professional cleaning with a green attitude
Environmentally friendly cleaning products erase grime but let environment shine

Unit B – The Chemistry of Materials

The chemistry of beauty products is going green
How green is your computer?

Unit C – Water

Bottled water versus tap: Which is safer to drink?

Unit D – Energy

Green building methods save energy, environment
Neighbors compete in Energy Smack down
US wind energy adds 1,400MW of capacity

Unit E – Force and Motion

Human crash test dummies to welcome virtual relatives



Unit A: Studying Materials Scientifically


Activity 4
Hazardous Materials at Home

Reduce and Dispose of Household Hazardous Waste by the US Environmental Protection Agency provides strategies for reducing hazardous materials at home.

Activity 11
Choosing a Cleaner

The Household Products Database provides safety, health, and disposal information for household products. This database is searchable by major category or product name.


Unit B: The Chemistry of Materials

Activity 13
Product Life Cycle

Basic Information: Green Chemistry from The United States Environmental Protection Agency

The Green Chemistry Institute by the American Chemical Society

"Green Chemistry Takes Root" by Elizabeth Weise. USA Today, November 22,

The Great e-waste Recycling Debate

Activity 18
Properties of Plastics

The American Chemistry Council Learning Center
This site offers several resources to help teach about plastics and recycling.

Consumer Fact sheet on Copper by the U.S Environmental Protection Agency – Office of Ground Water and Drinking Water

Activity 27
Reclaiming the Meta
l

Current Primary and Metal Scrap Prices can be found at

Metalprices.com
The London Metal Exchange

Activity 29
The Green Computer Challenge

The Federal Electronics Challenge

Make A Difference Campaign for Middle School Students


Unit C: Water

Activity 32
Mapping Death

and

Activity 33
John Snow and the Search for Evidence

On the Mode of Communication of Cholera, (John Snow, 1855).
John Snow's 1855 book "On the Mode of Communication of Cholera" is available at this site sponsored by the Department of Epidemiology in UCLA's School of Public Health. This webpage includes the first 38 pages of the book and provides links to the complete book and to maps and more information on John Snow.


Unit D: Energy

Activity 53
Home Energy Use

The Utility Connection has links to over 2,000 local utility companies.

To find power generating web pages for your area, try an Internet search for "your state or city + power or electricity," or try the web site of your local electric utility company.

Activity 64
Electricity Generation

The Energy Information Administration provides maps of the United States showing power plant locations for individual states.

Tennessee Valley Authority: Reservoirs and Power Plants
This site provides links to all of TVA's power generating plants.

California Independent System Operator
At this site the daily forecasted available energy resources and actual demand in the state of California are show in both graph and data table format.

New York Power Authority: "Our Facilities"

Bonneville Power Administration
This site provides free videos for teachers in the Northwest.

Build a hydropower station using this paper model

Foundation for Water and Energy: "Turning to Hydropower" Includes a "walk through" of a hydroelectric power plant plus a design to make a water powered generator.