Many people say that kids are the future, but we are here now, and we can make a difference —Gitanjali Rao, at age 11, in 2017 I’m excited to share a preview of my new book, Design Thinking: A Guide to Innovation. The following excerpt showcases how young innovators applied design thinking to solve real-world… Continue reading Design Thinking: A Guide to Innovation
Tag: STEM
Thursday’s Lunar Eclipse!
What to Know and How to Watch I’m now more aware of upcoming celestial events, thanks to more frequent use of my stargazing app (see my previous post on Star Walk 2). One of the most exciting is the upcoming total lunar eclipse on the night of March 13-14, 2025. Since the best viewing time… Continue reading Thursday’s Lunar Eclipse!
Star Walk 2 Review:
Your Personal Planetarium for the Parade of Planets Stargazing enthusiasts are in for a treat with the rare Parade of Planets happening in late February 2025, when Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune will appear together in the night sky. This once-in-a-decade event is the perfect opportunity to connect with the cosmos. But… Continue reading Star Walk 2 Review:
Henrietta Swan Leavitt:
The Woman Who Helped Us Measure the Universe In the early 1900s, measuring distances in space was one of astronomy’s greatest challenges. We knew there were other galaxies out there, but we had no reliable way to determine how far away they were. Enter Henrietta Swan Leavitt, an American astronomer whose brilliant discovery would forever… Continue reading Henrietta Swan Leavitt:
The Parade of Planets:
A Guide to this Upcoming Celestial Event Looking out my window one recent night, I noticed the crescent moon with three other bright points of light trailing in an arc. I had often seen Venus and, less often, Mars and Jupiter. I hadn’t noted that arc before, though I must have seen it. What was… Continue reading The Parade of Planets:
Sal Khan Says AI Will Transform Education:
We Should Listen As a classroom teacher, I’ve been waiting for the moment Sal Khan describes in his new book “Brave New Words.” Khan, the founder of Khan Academy, shows how generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) might finally solve one of education’s most persistent challenges: providing personalized learning experiences for each student. It sure would have… Continue reading Sal Khan Says AI Will Transform Education:
The Last Clear-Cutting:
How Bottom Trawling is Destroying Earth’s Final Frontier What if bulldozers were clearing ancient forests the size of San Francisco (47 square miles) every day—leveling everything from the historic buildings of Chinatown to the vibrant streets of the Mission District, from the towering redwoods of the Presidio to the protected wildlife areas of the Bay?… Continue reading The Last Clear-Cutting:
Debunking the Tongue Map Myth:
How Taste Really Works! Imagine a classroom of second-graders, tongues sticking out, dabbing cotton swabs across their tongues. On the wall hangs the familiar tongue map diagram, dividing the tongue into distinct regions. “Did you taste the sweetness at the tip?” the teacher asks eagerly. I nod along with my classmates, but I’m confused. The… Continue reading Debunking the Tongue Map Myth:
Are You a Supertaster?
An Easy at Home Test Some people can see better than others with eagle-like vision. Some people can hear better than others, detecting subtle sounds as a dolphin detects the sounds of small fish swimming. And some people are more sensitive to taste than others. A recent post of [add link] discussed supertasters and their… Continue reading Are You a Supertaster?
Supertasters:
How an Explosion Revealed a Taste Talent “It’s just a matter of taste,” you might say to a friend when debating your favorite foods. But what if it’s more than personal preference? Science reveals that some people experience tastes more intensely than others. People with a heightened ability to taste are called supertasters. These individuals… Continue reading Supertasters: