Fall Semester Science Courses
SCIENCE 1. Ecology: Life on Earth. Fall. Mr. Hutcheson. 4 meetings weekly. Block TBA. Open to Class II and III. This course serves as an expansion of ecological concepts introduced in previous biology or life science courses. Students will become familiar with the requirements for life on our planet and explore the biotic and abiotic components of living systems. Energy flow, food webs, population dynamics, major biomes and ecosystems are some of the major topics to be covered. Also of interest will be the mechanisms by which life exists at the extremes, in the harshest conditions on earth. The class will have multiple opportunities to take advantage of outdoor resources and engage in field research on or near the Middlesex campus as part of our regular laboratory schedule.
SCIENCE 2. Applied Science: Engineering. Fall. Mr. Shapiro. 4 meetings weekly. Block TBA Open to Class I and II. This hands-on course will consist of a series of projects that survey the major fields of engineering: structural, chemical, electrical, mechanical, and biomedical. Students will form teams for each unit and will work together to design, build, and test functional prototypes in order to solve various real-world problems. Each project will challenge the teams to think critically and creatively in order to develop their unique solution to the task. Likely challenges will include: developing the farthest traveling wind up car, capturing the most solar energy, launching a water balloon the farthest over Eliot, and designing the most practical surgical tool. Additional challenges will be determined based on the interests of the class. By examining the process by which products are engineered, students will develop their own methods for solving problems and will learn to allocate scarce recourses among competing priorities. Students will be assessed by the success of their prototypes, their analysis of each problem, their reflections on their process and product performance, and on their mastery of each scientific topic being leveraged in each challenge. By the end of the course students will have gained valuable insights into their own style for solving problems, new confidence in their ability to overcome obstacles, and will have a personal portfolio of developed products.
SCIENCE 3. Brain and Behavior. Fall. Mrs. Sheff. 4 meetings weekly. Block G13H23. Open to Class I and II. This semester-long course concentrates on an introduction to the nervous system with an emphasis on the neural mechanisms underlying human and animal behavior. We will focus on the relationship between biology and behavior paying attention to the biological basis of sensory and motor systems such as vision and voluntary movements, and higher mental processes such as memory, learning, language, and attention. Finally the course will look at the consequences that disorders of the nervous system have on behavior and discuss methods of treatment for these disorders. Those taking the course should have an interest in the constantly growing field of neuroscience. Students will be evaluated by examinations, papers, and class participation.
SCIENCE 4. Observational Astronomy. Fall. Ms. May. 4 meetings and 1 evening observation session weekly. Block F1235. Open to Class I and II. This semester-long astronomy course begins with a survey of the night sky. We will then move on to describe and explain astronomical phenomena on both the scale of the very near and the very, very far. Exact topics will depend on the interests of the class and the celestial objects visible during the semester. Possible areas of exploration include tides, lunar phases, the space program, our solar system (including planets and our Sun), stellar evolution (including red giants, supernovae, neutron stars, and black holes), galaxy formation, cosmology (including the big bang and fate of the universe), and extraterrestrial life. In every topic of study, students are expected to write about their understanding and present their knowledge to their classmates. Frequent class presentations should be expected. Students in this course will, through required weekly nighttime observing sessions, learn the basics of naked-eye astronomy and become proficient in the use of our rooftop telescopes in the Middlesex Observatory. Opportunities to use the 18-inch Centurion telescope housed in the dome will also be provided. THIS COURSE WILL NOT BE OFFERED IN 2012-2013.
