This activity centers around the Modified Mercalli Intensity Scale, which contains brief descriptions of what people might have felt in an earthquake and what might have happened to buildings and natural features. The different levels of the scale are designated with Roman numerals, and they correspond to groups of effects that are produced by about the same amount of shaking. During this activity, ... Full description.

"Pieces of Science" is an online gallery of sixteen educational resources related to a collection of historical science objects. These pages discuss the history of Ben Franklin and the lightning rod. There are references for additional information and links to lesson plans and student activities, both on and off-line. Full description.

This interactive activity has elementary and younger middle school students investigate the causes and effects of periodic climate change. A fun crash course in El Nino is followed by a game in which students practice climate predictions. Kids who love the weather will be intrigued by this website, which investigates El Nino and the tools scientists use to monitor and predict the conditions that create ... Full description.

This lesson plan is designed to help students apply the pollution prevention (P2) concept to water. It contains the needed background information about water pollution and provides guidance and activities to help students describe water uses and sources, explain why water conservation is important, and explain how pollution prevention concepts can be used to conserve water and prevent water pollution. ... Full description.

In this module, students pretend to be an environmental consulting firm that has been hired by the County to investigate two cases involving radon exposure. They will prepare a report addressing: the probable causes of the elevated radon values; the extent of the potential problem; the possible routes and effects of human exposure to radon, and ways to educate the public; and strategies for clean ... Full description.

Sci4Kids is a series of stories about what scientists do at the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Agricultural Research Service (ARS). The stories in Sci4Kids are based on some of the articles in the ARS monthly Agricultural Research magazine and other news reports. Sci4Kids stories illustrate how science is not something far away in a laboratory, but is wired right into daily life. Ideas and ... Full description.

This activity has students compare maps of plate tectonics with population density maps and to analyze what these maps imply about the relationship between population and seismic hazards. Students will read about and discuss the theory of plate tectonics, map the regions of the United States that are most susceptible to earthquakes and those that have volcanoes, and list the states that lie on plate ... Full description.

This site describes the machines and remote sensing devices designed to explore the deep ocean. Items covered include the bathysphere developed in the early 1930s by William Beebe and Otis Barton; the bathyscaph designed by Belgian scientist Auguste Piccard (1884-1962); the Alvin submersible which was first designed in 1964 and named for its creator; and the Johnson Sea Link, a nine-ton, 23-foot long ... Full description.

This lesson is designed to help students apply the pollution prevention (P2) concept to household hazardous waste (HHW). HHW includes hazardous materials such as household cleaners, paints, paint thinners, motor oils, gasoline, and pesticides that may pose a threat to human health or the environment if they are not disposed of properly. HHW poses a threat because it is toxic, corrosive, ignitable, ... Full description.

Students will learn that Mars, and each planet in the solar system, is unique due to the materials from which it is made and the processes that shaped it. Images and information from Mars exploration voyages, including the Viking Mission in 1975, the Pathfinder Landing in 1997, the Mars Global Surveyor project, the Mars Odyssey and Mars Express spacecrafts, the Mars Exploration Rovers, and the Reconnaissance ... Full description.