Biology 137This is an introductory Biology course. We will cover a wide range of topics that all deal with the living organisms around us and hopefully discover a love of science.
Topics Covered: -What is Life? Since Biology is the study of life, it is important to know what qualifies something as being alive and why these characteristics are important. -Scientific Method & Metrics As a lab based course, it is crucial to understand how to think and measure like a scientist. These skills will be used throughout the course of the year. -Biochemistry Before we can talk about large organisms, we are going to first learn about the molecules that make them up. We will be looking at sugars, proteins and fatty acids which are some of the most important molecules to a living organism as well as the elements that make them up. -Cells and Cell Processes The smallest living organisms are only one cell big and the largest are made out of millions of cells yet the cells have striking similarities. In this unit, we will talk about the organelles, structures and functions of the cell. This will include how particles enter and leave the cell, photosynthesis, cellular respiration and mitosis. -DNA & Protein Synthesis DNA is this amazing genetic material that passes the code for life on from one generation to the next. Essentially DNA has all of the instructions to make all of the proteins in our body and proteins control how the body works. To truly understand life we have to understand how these proteins are made. -DNA Technology Scientists are constantly learning more about how DNA works and how to manipulate it. During this unit we will talk about some cutting edge technology and the potential of some of these technologies. -Genetics We often wonder why we have the same eye color as our mom but are tall like our dad. In this unit we will discuss how different traits are inherited and take a look at a few genetic disorders. -Evolution The scientific evidence for how organisms have changed over time is outstanding. We will explore this evidence and discuss how Darwin discovered these patterns. -Ecology Living organisms interact constantly with each other and the world around them. To fully appreciate living organisms we have to take a look at these interactions. -Body Systems In this unit we will look internally...literally! We will focus on how our body works and take an in depth look at the circulatory system, respiratory system and the digestive system. -Plants They are green and completely necessary for our survival so we will discover the wonderful world of plants. |
Physics 432This is an introductory Physics course so we will cover MANY topics. Physics explains to us how our world works so it ends up being a pretty interesting year. The best is when you start seeing physics outside of our classroom and in the world around us.
Topics Covered: -1-Dimensional Motion Physics is all about how objects move so we start the year by looking at how objects move in one direction. -Vectors & 2-D Motion In this unit we will discuss vectors and start working on objects that move in two directions, like when you hit a baseball - the ball moves vertically and horizontally! -Newton's Laws This unit talks about Newton's first two laws - inertia (an object's resistance to change of movement) & forces (the things that cause the object's movement to change). We will discuss everything from the importance of a seat belt physics speaking to the buoyant force! -Momentum & Impulse We talk about the momentum that a sports team has if it is on a major winning streak, but what is momentum? In this unit we will discover the physics definition of the word, how to change momentum and when momentum is conserved. -Work, Energy & Power Energy cannot be created or destroyed - just transferred! In this unit we explore some of the same types of problems from earlier in the year but from a different perspective. We also put our own power into perspective with horsepower! -Circular Motion We have a lot of misconceptions when it comes to objects moving in a circular pattern but we dispel all of those and get dizzy thinking about how and why objects continue in that circular pattern. We will also relate this to why planetary objects orbit each other - they are after all moving in a circle. -Electrostatics This unit is shocking as we talk about what happens when objects have a charge and how they interact with the environment around them. This unit has some awesome demos like the hair raising van der graaf. -Electricity This unit focuses on how circuits works and electrons move. This is one of my favorite units because we will have a hands on experience with how your home is wire and why electricians use certain techniques. -Magnetism We will start the unit by playing with magnetic and discuss how magnets are present in our life from the Earth's magnetic field to our daily use of transformers (more than meets the eye!). We will also look closely at how magnetism and electricity are related. -Waves & Sound We will start this unit by talking about all types of waves and then specifically focus on sound waves. We will figure out how they are formed and practical applications like how speakers work. -Light Topics Light waves are all around us. We will discuss all types of light and some special properties involved with them. -Modern Physics There are many exciting applications of physics currently being discovered. We will discuss everything from the atomic bomb and Einstein to the use of nuclear power, the tsunami in Japan and the standard model of atoms. In exciting news, scientists believe that they recently found the Higgs Boson! -Optics This is our final unit and focuses on how light waves bend when travelling through different materials. We will spend time with all types of mirrors and lenses and even focus on how glasses and contacts correct vision problems. |