Very exciting day here spurred by an article about Science Cheerleader’s efforts to increase adult science literacy in the Chronicle of Higher Education and today’s FOX News “headline news story” about our Brain Makeover! The traffic brought this site to its knees. Might still be slow at times.  Thanks for your patience and persistence. We should have it all fixed soon.
And, welcome, to all of our new subscribers!

Cheers,
Darlene

All Matter is Made of Atoms

Professor James Trefil (author of Science Matters, Why Science?, and 30 other books on science literacy) identified 18 key science concepts every adult should know to be a science literate. We’re here to reintroduce adults to science, in a fun way! It’s all part of our Brain Makeover project to increase adult science literacy. Here’s concept #4, presented by 76ers Cheerleader Lauren and explained by Professor James Trefil.  We’ll post one each week (more or less) and it to the Brain Makeover collection.

#4. All matter is made of atoms.

As the science of chemistry developed in the eighteenth century, it became clear that there are two kinds of  materials in the world: there are materials that can be broken down by chemical means (think of wood burning) and those that cannot. The latter class of materials are called ‘elements’. In the early nineteenth century, it was proposed that to each of these elements, there is a small structure called an atom (the term was borrowed from classical Greek philosophy), and that all the other materials are made by combining atoms.

In the early twentieth century, experiments showed that the atom has a definite structure. In the center is a small, massive, positively charged nucleus, which the electrons circle in orbits. The development of the science of quantum mechanics further showed that electrons can change orbits in the atom, absorbing light when they move away from the nucleus, emitting it when they move in the opposite direction.

Brain Makeover #2. The energy of a closed system is conserved, but energy always goes from more useful to less useful forms.

Professor James Trefil (author of Science Matters, Why Science?, and 30 other books on science literacy) identified 18 key science concepts every adult should know to be a science literate. We’re here to reintroduce adults to science, in a fun way! It’s all part of our Brain Makeover project to increase adult science literacy. Here’s concept #2, presented by Danielle and explained by Professor James Trefil.  We’ll post one each week (more or less) and it to the Brain Makeover collection.

The Energy of a Closed System is Conserved, but energy always goes from more useful to less useful forms.

You do work when you exert a force over a distance (think of pushing a heavy piece of furniture over the floor). Energy is defined as the ability to do work (i.e. to exert a force over a distance). Power is the amount of work done (i.e. the amount of energy expended) divided by the time it takes to do the work.

There are three important things you need to know about energy: (1) it comes in many forms, (2) it can be changed form one form to another, and (3) the total amount of energy in a closed system cannot change (in the language of physicists, it is conserved).

There is energy associated with motion (kinetic energy)—think of a moving train exerting a force on something it hits. There is energy associated with position – think of a rock balancing on a hilltop. There is energy associated with arrangements of electrons in atoms—think of the energy in the gasoline in your car. There is energy associated with heat, which is actually the kinetic energy of moving atoms. There are many other forms, but you get the idea.

When an archer draws a bow, she changes the chemical energy in her muscles to elastic energy in the bent bow. When she releases the arrow, that energy becomes the kinetic energy of the moving arrow, and that energy becomes heat when the arrow pushes into the target. Energy is always changing from one form to another.

No matter what you do, however, no matter how much you change the form of the energy, the total amount stays the same. This is called the First Law of Thermodynamics.

There is an additional fact about energy that deals with the direction of the universe. Heat, left to itself,  always flows in one direction—from hot to cold. In the same way, systems left to themselves always become more disordered. This is called the Second Law of Thermodynamics.

Stay tuned…the girls recorded each of Dr. Trefil’s 18 science concepts based on his book, Science Matters (which every adult needs to know to be considered a science literate). The videos will be posted here along with an online quiz. Pass it and you’ll win a Science Cheerleader T-shirt and certificate to prove you are a Science Literate (only 7% of the adult American population can lay claim to that!).

Here’s a picture of me from back in the day when I was a 76ers girl. Never realized the power of gravity until I started to age….

I was a cheerleader for the Philadelphia 76ers NBA team during the 90-91, 91-92 and 92-93 seasons. First year was awesome. Easy to bust some moves in modest uniforms and hightops?! (left) when the entire stadium was cheering on the Atlantic Division champs (Barkley/Jordan era).  I was a senior in college at the time. Just a couple of years prior, I was a cheerleader for the incredible Temple Owls basketball team (ranked #1 in the nation for some weeks). Traveled everywhere. Sold out games, die-hard college fans and an entire city–craving any type of championship–behind us. Dated a football jock. Held a Beer Bong record. Very cliche. Life was good. But I digress.

After my first or second year with the 76ers, Barkley left, the team lost lots of games and despite a radical redo of our outfits (looking more like today’s dance team, above), the fans turned sour. I figured that as long as I could still scalp my free tix, all was not lost. Everyone else, it seemed, had given up on the 76ers during what was called the Dark Ages.

What’s this have to do with science? Glad you asked.  I never gave up on the team. In a few short years, they found The Answer in Allen Iverson. See, I had faith in the 76ers like I have faith in YOU. Stay with me.

USA Today ran an article “Are we science-savvy enough to make informed decisions?” that included the results of a Harris Interactive Survey showing that only 26 percent believe that they themselves have a good understanding of science.  And, 70 percent believe that the United States is no longer the leader in science achievement.

Not to worry. We’ve taken the first step here by admitting we have a problem when it comes to understanding science. Test your science skills, see how you measure up, and learn a few critical science facts in the process. USA Today posted this short quiz.

Next step: we’ll work with the renown science literacy expert Dr. James Trefil who created a formula for success. Together, we’ll learn the basics: the framework of science, or “spiderweb” approach as Trefil calls it. (I interviewed Dr. Trefil several weeks ago then got a little side tracked with ScienceDebate2008 activities and, um, the beach.)

Why? Another great question! The point of the USAToday article is this: If 3rd graders can outscore us on science tests, we have no business weighing in on policy issues. Stem cell research, energy resources, modified foods, nuclear plants, cancer research, space exploration, defense spending, etc. They all require a very basic level of science literacy. We’re not talking rocket science here. Fairly simple stuff likely taught to you in the driest possible manner years ago. And a crash course on what is NOT science (like, astrology!).

The Science Cheerleader is working to open doors so we can start having a say in major science policy issues. See here and here. For decades, calls to include the public in science policy decisions have been wasted on some elitist scientists and some lazy policy makers. Typical response from them goes something like this: [Full belly laugh. Wipe away tears of laughter. Another uncontrollable fit of laughter.] “Oh, Lordy, that was a good one! My Jimmy-the-Greek bobble head knows more about science than the public!”

If the best defense is a good offense then we should remove our “Stupid American” label now.

A variety of factors are converging to form the perfect storm for us. Scientists and policy makers are warming to the idea of inclusivity. The public is starting to take science by the horns in the form of “citizen scientists.” We can make history. It’s going to happen but it can only happen if we step up and get a better handle on some key science facts. Start with the short science quiz. Remind your girlfriends that astrology should not be considered as science. Keep your questions coming. And, I’ll be back soon with Dr. Trefil.

PS: At the very least, you will seem smarter than your friends at the conclusion of our social network science experience.