Too much screen time means too little eye lubrication – how to fix this?

Screen time for people aged between 5 and 17 should be kept to 2 hours per day (MAX).  Learn why

 

 

 

How many satellites are orbiting the Earth in 2023?

How Many Satellites are orbiting around Earth? 

Canadians are back in space: Jeremy Hansen is part of the four person Artemis II Mission

NASA Names Artemis II Crew for Mission to Fly by Moon in 2024

 

Astronauts are expected to travel 6,400 miles beyond the moon’s far side before speeding back to Earth

NYTIMES:  Science April 3, 2023

Humans have not ventured more than a few hundred miles off the planet since the return of Apollo 17, NASA’s last moon mission, in 1972. After Artemis’s experience on the moon, NASA hopes to chart a path to putting humans on Mars, while scientists expect to use what is found there to answer questions about how the solar system formed.

Astronauts in 2023 are much different from those when the United States was in a race to beat the Soviet Union to the moon. During the Apollo program, 24 astronauts flew to the moon, and 12 of them stepped on the surface. All of them were Americans. All of them were white men, many of whom were test pilots.

They are Reid Wiseman, the mission’s commander; Victor Glover, the pilot; Christina Koch, mission specialist; and, Jeremy Hansen, also a mission specialist. The first three are NASA astronauts, while Mr. Hansen is a member of the Canadian Space Agency.

“When we were selecting astronauts back then,” Mr. Glover said in an interview, “we intended to select the same person, just multiple copies.”

Ms. Koch will be the first woman to venture beyond low-Earth orbit, and Mr. Hansen, as a Canadian, the first non-American to travel that far.

Mr. Hansen noted that the United States could have undertaken the Artemis missions by itself but instead chose to pull together an international collaboration with Canada and the European Space Agency. That agreement reserved a seat for a Canadian astronaut on Artemis II. “All of Canada is grateful for that global mind-set and that leadership,” Mr. Hansen said.

Science 8 plans a light party

Light has multiple uses, to entertain, to improve our health and to learn more about the natural world.

Get ready to be entertained and educated in the light fair

The Exploratorium has many interesting science Snacks to help up learn more about light

Science Snacks:  “Bird in a Cage

Bird in a Cage:  How to get started?

 

Cell Phone Use when learning science – when your phone slows you down

What the Research says:

Use this list to decide when to ditch the smartphone when learning:

DON’T USE YOUR PHONE IF:

  • Learning requires a lot of focus

  • You are required to read complex information

  • You are being asked to read for a long time

  • Your eyes are tired

  • You feel like you cannot concentrate

AVOID THESE LEARNING TASKS ON YOUR PHONE:

  • Reading

  • Taking quizzes or exams that require writing

  • Listening to a lecture and taking notes

DO USE YOUR PHONE IF LEARNING:

  • Requires quick access

  • Calls for basic internet searches

COMPLETE THESE LEARNING TASKS ON YOUR PHONE:

  • Answering a quick survey or poll

  • Listening to a short lecture

  • Watching a short video


References

[1] Pew Research Center. (2021, April 7). Mobile fact sheet. https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/fact-sheet/mobile/

[2] Sage, K., Jackson, S., Fox, E. et al. (2021). The virtual COVID-19 classroom: surveying outcomes, individual differences, and technology use in college students. Smart Learn, 8 (27). https://doi.org/10.1186/s40561-021-00174-7

[3] Wheelwright, T. (2019, April 10). 2022 Cell phone usage statistics: How obsessed are we? https://www.reviews.org/mobile/cell-phone-addiction/

[4] Golebiowski, B. et al. (2020). Smartphone use and effects on tear file, blinking and binocular vision. Curr. Eye Res, 45 (4), 428–434. https://doi.org/10.1080/02713683.2019.1663542.

[5] Honma, M., Masaoka, Y., Iizuka, N. et al. (2022). Reading on a smartphone affects sigh generation, brain activity, and comprehension. Scientific Reports, 12, https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-022-05605-0

[6] Umejima, K. et al. (2021). Paper notebooks vs. mobile devices: Brian activation differences during memory retrieval. Frontiers in Behavioral Neuroscience, 19, https://doi.org/10.3389/fnbeh.2021.634158

Doomsday clock has updated the time – 90 seconds to Midnight

Learn more about the Atomic Scientist who set the Doomsday Clock:

Learn more about the Atomic Scientists:

Site selection for Canada’s Nuclear Waste Geological Repository – Canada stands on the brink of a momentous decision: selecting a final resting spot for its spent nuclear fuel waste

Canada: An impending decision despite roadblocks

Canada generates around 15 percent of its electricity generation from 19 nuclear reactors at four power plants—all of which are of the CANDU (Canada Deuterium Uranium) design, a heavy-water reactor that uses natural (unenriched) uranium fuel (National Energy Board 2018). Canada’s four nuclear power plants, three of which are located in Ontario and one in New Brunswick, have produced a stockpile of approximately 3.1 million spent nuclear fuel bundles that increases at a rate of about 90,000 bundles per year (Gobien and Ion 2021). If all the currently operating plants live out their licensed lifetimes, Canada estimates that it will have to dispose of 5.5 million bundles.

 

 

The Honey Bee needs a vaccine

Learn about the structure of the honey bee eye:

 

Learn more about how bees identify flowers:

How to vaccinate a honey bee?

Seeing The Universe in a Brand New Way – CHROMOSCOPE

The Electromagnetic Spectrum shows a visual representation of all the energy in our world.

Link to Learning: https://chromoscope.net/

Learning Tip:  Different Waves have different amounts of energy

Ever wanted X-ray specs or super-human vision? Chromoscope lets you explore our Galaxy (the Milky Way) and the distant Universe in a range of wavelengths from gamma-rays to the longest radio waves.

Change the wavelength using the slider in the top right of the screen and explore space using your mouse. For more information we have a quick video tour or you can read more on our blog. If you get stuck, click “Help” in the bottom left.

Chromoscope is kindly funded by the Cardiff University Astronomy and Astronomy Instrumentation Groups.

Looking Back & Looking Forward – Science highlights from 2022

Space & Astronomy: Artemis Missions 1, 2 & 3

The first Artemis mission launched in 2022.  Artemis I was staffed by 3 mannequins equipped with radiation detecting sensors.  The goal of the mission was to gather data about the effect of space radiation on organs like the lungs and uterus. 

Artemis II is scheduled for 2024.  Artemis II will carry 4 astronauts from Earth to Mars.  Artemis II will orbit Mars.

 

Learning Link:  click here to learn more about the Artemis missions.

Christmas Science Show – 2022 Faraday Show – UBC Dec. 4, 2022

Plan to attend the Free Faraday Science Show – Science Fun for Everyone

MICHAEL FARADAY – FIND OUT MORE ABOUT THE SCIENCE GUY

Farada Science Show – Sunday Dec. 4th, 2022 – Free Science Fun for everyone.