1. Stormy Weather
Go to the links below to learn more first-hand about El Niņo and to answer the following questions. What is the role that El Niņo plays in our weather patterns? What other theories are there to explain the causes of El Niņo, and what is their common denominator? What is the Global Weather Machine? How accurate are weather forecasters?
Consider This Before Answering the Questions
The first question here is, "How would you like to make a planet?" You can have a chance to try to replicate the Earth (well, at least do a simulation), but then you have to start thinking about the many elements that can change that Earth, particularly weather.
You'll be able to try this out and learn about El Niņo, noticing the effects it has on our planet's weather systems by going to http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/elnino/anatomy/earthsweather.html The first step is to read the Introduction and the Fine Print, then go ahead and click on the icon (top right side of the text or link at the bottom of the page-note that you'll have to download Shockwave if you don't already have it). What "fine print" must you take into consideration when "designing" the Earth? After you've had a chance to manipulate "creation," link to "Anatomy of El Niņo" http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/elnino/anatomy/ and check out the map there, then link to "Global Weather Machine" (in the middle of the map). As you move through this site, click on the graphics to get a better view. What factors affect our weather? What is the Global Weather Machine? How does Nature try to fix the imbalance between the poles and the tropics, and what effect does this have? What is the role that El Niņo plays in our weather patterns? How does it take over such a large system (be sure to link to the next page to find this out)? Go back to the top paragraph of this page and link to the "birth of El Niņo" to learn just what it is and the conditions that lead to its development. Consider the animation (graphic title "The birth of El Niņo")-what does it show? What other theories are there to explain the causes of El Niņo, and what is their common denominator? In contrast to El Niņo is La Niņa (note these are the masculine and feminine forms of "the baby"-an interesting name for such dramatic weather conditions). What answers does this site offer to questions like "Will California be deluged?" and "Will Florida be cloudier and cooler than normal?" What about the question posed for you to answer: "If the weather forecast calls for a 70 percent chance of rain tomorrow, do you carry an umbrella? How about 30 percent?" After You Answer the Questions
This site has much more information about El Niņo that you may want to pursue on your own, especially if you're into excitement and challenges. Link to "Chasing El Niņo" then go ahead and begin your chase-you won't even need to take a raincoat with you!
2. Ozone: A Real Health Concern
What exactly is the ozone hole? How did scientists first become aware of it? More basically, what is ozone and how is it formed? How is it destroyed? Why is it important? What is being done? What are TOMS Satellite Measurements? What steps might you take to reduce the risks posed by depletion of the ozone layer?
Explore answers to these questions by following the recommended links at below.
Consider This Before Answering the Questions
Worrying about holes in the ozone layer is a fairly recent phenomenon, but it is a global threat that seems to come from our own actions. Let's take a tour of The Ozone Hole to see exactly what it is, how it was discovered, the problems it poses, and what's being done about it.
We will begin at http://www.atm.ch.cam.ac.uk/tour/index.html . First, you may want to check out the "Before You Start" section and also print out the glossary (top left link). Then let's begin with Part I: The Discovery of the Ozone Hole (you might notice that because this is a Cambridge University site the spelling is British). As you go, you might want to take some side trips at the different links, and you'll definitely want to click on the graphics for more information; also, if you come across terms with which you're not familiar, either check them out in the glossary or click the links. Move on to Part II: Recent Ozone Loss over Antarctica and answer the questions as you read through this section. What are TOMS Satellite Measurements (we'll have another question about TOMS later)? (To watch the movies, you may need to check out both of them to see whether MPEG or Inline works with your browser.) How would you describe the monthly averages for October 1980-1991? In Part III, how do they describe "the recipe for ozone loss"? What role does sunlight play? What are catalytic cycles and what is their role? Recap the requirements for ozone loss. Move on to Part IV: Current Research Work at Cambridge and explain where the ozone goes as well as what caused the mid-latitude loss and how those losses were linked to losses over the poles. Describe the different models being used in research. Now, here we are back at TOMS: look at the comparisons between the TOMS model and the actual satellite data (and play the little movie)-how similar are they? Understanding what you have learned, what steps might you take to reduce the risks posed by depletion of the ozone layer? After You Answer the Questions
There are so many good web sites available for science. Another excellent site for learning about ozone is:
http://www.epa.gov/docs/ozone/science/sc_fact.html . You may want to check that one out as well as going to the EPA's glossary, which is located at:
http://www.epa.gov/docs/ozone/defins.html . The reason the Cambridge site was chosen over the EPA was merely because Cambridge included much more interactive material, but both are excellent sites so check out the EPA's as well.
