Monday, February 21, 2011

Pat The Tomato Plant

Week one- After a week of sunlight and water Pat has grown about an inch! 2/21/2011

This Rocks!

There are three different type of rocks- Igneous, Metamorphic, and Sedimentary.

Igneous rocks are formed when magma cools with in the earth. The way it hardens against the other rocks already formed creates the rough texture of the igneous rock.

Metamorphic rocks form when enough heat or pressure on an existing rocks is so much that it causes a chemical or physical change.

Sedimentary rocks are formed when minerals settle at the earths surface within bodies of water.

Above is an illustration of how these three rocks are formed from this web site http://www.knowledgeallocator.com/article/igneous-and-metamorphic-rocks-49.html

Geocaching

We went geocaching today around Mercer! This is what we found at each location and where each location was.
1- Metal keychain and rolled up piece of paper- Outside Willet on a bike rack
2-clear container with a white lid full of black eyed peas- On a white metal gate beside the RLC
3- red container with a log inside
4- a pill bottle with baby Tabasco sauce inside- In the shrubs between Willet and the grass area in a walkway
5- Pill bottle full of soda tabs
6-chalk inside a clear bottle- In the mulch outside Tarver in the front by the entrance
7- battery in a clear container
8- magnets and a little car inside a pill bottle- in bush beside walkway to the front of Willet.

Geocaching is a hobby where people use a gps to locate coordinates. Once they locate these coordinates there is something there like a little bottle with a piece of paper for these people to sign. This is a neat hobby because people can see places they would have never seem before thanks to others giving them the coordinates to find. When someone is interested in starting this hobby they can go to the website www.geocaching.com and find coordinates and start their search!

Geocaching can be used for environmental research. Scientist that find new places that will be important to study can write down the coordinates and easily remember exactly where they were. The scientist can also give the coordinates to others to put into their gps and others can find the location with out any trouble. It allows for easy access for places that might be hard to give directions too. In this way a gps helps scientist better learn about the environment. Because they easier they can find what they are looking for, the more they will be able to study it!

The picture below shows the trail we followed around Mercer while geocaching in pink!



http://www.geocaching.com/