Hey All,
In addition to the final requirements in your journal (posted May 3rd), please do a brief self- and peer-assessment for your planned town.
For yourself and each of your teammates, please identify one thing done well, and one thing that could have been improved upon. Please be as honest and descriptive as possible.
All of your work must be handed in by this Thursday at the absolute latest!
Tuesday, May 20, 2008
All Students - Thursday's Quiz
Please make sure that you are comfortable working with the following information for Thursday's quiz:
Understanding the "macronutrients" of carbs, proteins, and fats. All of this info is in your notes, including:
*composition of each
*sources for each
*importance of each
*different types of each
Be able to explain the four shifts in food in recent generations that Michael Pollan writes about:
*Whole Food to Refined Food
*Complexity to Simplicity
*Leaves to Seeds
*Food Culture to Food Science
Be able to apply the concept of whole foods vs. processed food-like products (according to Pollan) to your diet.
Understanding the "macronutrients" of carbs, proteins, and fats. All of this info is in your notes, including:
*composition of each
*sources for each
*importance of each
*different types of each
Be able to explain the four shifts in food in recent generations that Michael Pollan writes about:
*Whole Food to Refined Food
*Complexity to Simplicity
*Leaves to Seeds
*Food Culture to Food Science
Be able to apply the concept of whole foods vs. processed food-like products (according to Pollan) to your diet.
All Students - What to have in your notebook
Hey All,
Thursday is our last science class (fight those tears). We will be having a quiz (see details in the above post), after which I will be collecting your science notebooks. From earliest to most recent, the following items from our food unit should be in your notebooks:
1. Food log
2. Research on Carbohydrate, Protein, Fat, Sodium, or Potassium
3. Notes on the food chain (from the Chaparral House garden)
4. Reflection on Unhappy Meals (see the May 5th blog entry)
5. Reflection on your diet (see the May 13th blog entry)
6. Notes on Carbs, Protein, and Fat from May 19 and 20.
Thursday is our last science class (fight those tears). We will be having a quiz (see details in the above post), after which I will be collecting your science notebooks. From earliest to most recent, the following items from our food unit should be in your notebooks:
1. Food log
2. Research on Carbohydrate, Protein, Fat, Sodium, or Potassium
3. Notes on the food chain (from the Chaparral House garden)
4. Reflection on Unhappy Meals (see the May 5th blog entry)
5. Reflection on your diet (see the May 13th blog entry)
6. Notes on Carbs, Protein, and Fat from May 19 and 20.
Tuesday, May 13, 2008
Dietary Reflection
Hey Everyone,
Please do the following two analyses of a representative breakfast, lunch, and dinner:
1. (The Michael Pollan Filter) Look at each item in these three meals and determine whether you are eating whole foods or processed food-like products.
2. Based on the handout and the information that we have about carbohydrates, proteins, and fats, do you feel like you are consuming an appropriate balance of these? Remember, not all carbs and fats are equal!
Sorry this got posted so late!
Please do the following two analyses of a representative breakfast, lunch, and dinner:
1. (The Michael Pollan Filter) Look at each item in these three meals and determine whether you are eating whole foods or processed food-like products.
2. Based on the handout and the information that we have about carbohydrates, proteins, and fats, do you feel like you are consuming an appropriate balance of these? Remember, not all carbs and fats are equal!
Sorry this got posted so late!
Monday, May 5, 2008
Food Science
Hi All,
Sorry I'm out today.
Finish reading Michael Pollan's "Unhappy Meals", and please write good thoughtful responses to the following prompts for Thursday, May 8th:
1. As you think about your diet, do you feel that you consume more "real food" (as defined by Michael Pollan), or processed food-like products? Please cite specific examples to explain your sense of your own diet.
2. Michael identifies four problematic shifts in how our diets have changed over the last few generations. In a sentence or two for each shift, explain why it is something to be concerned about:
From whole foods to refined
From complexity to simplicity
From leaves to seeds
From food culture to food science
3. Michael gives many tips at the end of the article about how to shift from a nutritionism-based diet to eating real complex foods. Which of these tips could be most useful to you? Why do you find these tips useful? Be specific!
FYI, if you Google "Unhappy Meals" you can refer to the article if necessary.
Sorry I'm out today.
Finish reading Michael Pollan's "Unhappy Meals", and please write good thoughtful responses to the following prompts for Thursday, May 8th:
1. As you think about your diet, do you feel that you consume more "real food" (as defined by Michael Pollan), or processed food-like products? Please cite specific examples to explain your sense of your own diet.
2. Michael identifies four problematic shifts in how our diets have changed over the last few generations. In a sentence or two for each shift, explain why it is something to be concerned about:
From whole foods to refined
From complexity to simplicity
From leaves to seeds
From food culture to food science
3. Michael gives many tips at the end of the article about how to shift from a nutritionism-based diet to eating real complex foods. Which of these tips could be most useful to you? Why do you find these tips useful? Be specific!
FYI, if you Google "Unhappy Meals" you can refer to the article if necessary.
Saturday, May 3, 2008
Environmental Sustainability and Stewardship
Hey 7th Graders,
Thanks for a great week and all of your hard work. Please make sure that you have completed and handed the following work into me by Friday, May 9th:
Journal with:
1. Research Index Card
2. Reflection on the economic, cultural, and environmental importance of the Works Progress Administration
3. Completed Save the Bay Worksheet
4. Point Reyes Observations
5. Any other notes from the week
Outside of journal:
6. Conservation, Preservation, Restoration Art
7. Town Plan
Remember that we will be presenting our Towns on Friday, May 9th, explaining how our choices reflect our interest groups.
Thanks for a great week and all of your hard work. Please make sure that you have completed and handed the following work into me by Friday, May 9th:
Journal with:
1. Research Index Card
2. Reflection on the economic, cultural, and environmental importance of the Works Progress Administration
3. Completed Save the Bay Worksheet
4. Point Reyes Observations
5. Any other notes from the week
Outside of journal:
6. Conservation, Preservation, Restoration Art
7. Town Plan
Remember that we will be presenting our Towns on Friday, May 9th, explaining how our choices reflect our interest groups.
Tuesday, February 26, 2008
Update and Additional Information
Hi Everyone,
Keep studying, and please email if you need clarification!
Please note that we will not get to the discussion of the Genographic Classmates in Wednesday's Science Workshop, but I will make the test a bit shorter than I otherwise might to accommodate a discussion on Thursday. However, the information in the genographic reading packet will help you to further understand the project and how it uses all of the material that we have been studying.
One thing that I want to make sure you all understand is the basics of the cell theory. There are three parts, and very simply put:
1. All living things are made of one or more cells.
2. Cells are the smallest living units, which provide organization for organisms.
3. All cells come from the division of existing cells.
Good luck!
Keep studying, and please email if you need clarification!
Please note that we will not get to the discussion of the Genographic Classmates in Wednesday's Science Workshop, but I will make the test a bit shorter than I otherwise might to accommodate a discussion on Thursday. However, the information in the genographic reading packet will help you to further understand the project and how it uses all of the material that we have been studying.
One thing that I want to make sure you all understand is the basics of the cell theory. There are three parts, and very simply put:
1. All living things are made of one or more cells.
2. Cells are the smallest living units, which provide organization for organisms.
3. All cells come from the division of existing cells.
Good luck!
Monday, February 25, 2008
Genographic Classmates
Hey All,
Great discussion in the classes today - please make sure that you understand why and how the Genographic Project traces one's father's lineage using DNA on the Y chromosome, and the mother's using mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA). To brush up on this, go to www.national geographic.com/genographic and click on "genetics overview."
We will be reviewing for Thursday's test (see the previous post) tomorrow and Wednesday. Please bring clarifying questions for your Tuesday or Wednesday science workshop.
Also for Tuesday or Wednesday, you are reading the genographic results for either, A.T., N.K., or A. M-S. (initials to protect the innocent).
For your classmate, please answer the following:
1. Whose results have you read?
2. Was this student's mother's or father's lineage tested?
3. How can you tell in question #2?
4. What happened in Africa 50,000 years ago that resulted in migration?
5. According to the results, what was the pathway that your classmate's ancestors followed?
6. Do these results seem to make sense? WHY or WHY NOT?
Remember, be descriptive and analytical - you are scientists!
Great discussion in the classes today - please make sure that you understand why and how the Genographic Project traces one's father's lineage using DNA on the Y chromosome, and the mother's using mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA). To brush up on this, go to www.national geographic.com/genographic and click on "genetics overview."
We will be reviewing for Thursday's test (see the previous post) tomorrow and Wednesday. Please bring clarifying questions for your Tuesday or Wednesday science workshop.
Also for Tuesday or Wednesday, you are reading the genographic results for either, A.T., N.K., or A. M-S. (initials to protect the innocent).
For your classmate, please answer the following:
1. Whose results have you read?
2. Was this student's mother's or father's lineage tested?
3. How can you tell in question #2?
4. What happened in Africa 50,000 years ago that resulted in migration?
5. According to the results, what was the pathway that your classmate's ancestors followed?
6. Do these results seem to make sense? WHY or WHY NOT?
Remember, be descriptive and analytical - you are scientists!
Saturday, February 23, 2008
Test This Thursday
Hi All,
I wanted to give you a reminder about what to expect on the test this coming Thursday, February 28. If some of you missed school this week, please get back up to speed ASAP. So what's on the test? The following:
1. Cell Theory
2. The basic organelles of the animal cell, as detailed in the ANIMAL CELL THEATER, and how they work together in the functioning of a cell
3. The basic differences between the organelles in plant and animal cells
4. Information on chromosomes in the nucleus of human cells (22 number pairs + the XX or XY = 23 pairs or 46 total chromosomes)
5. Dominant and recessive traits (more to come this week)
6. DNA - sugar and phosphate backbone, nucleic acid bases (adenine, thymine, cytosine, guanine)
7. The importance of the Y chromosome in males, mitchondrial DNA in females, and how mutations (markers) enable us to trace our ancestors from east Africa to where we are today.
I think that is enough. Please email me with any clarifying questions that you have about this information, or bring them to class on Monday. If you are missing notes, please check in with a classmate ASAP.
I wanted to give you a reminder about what to expect on the test this coming Thursday, February 28. If some of you missed school this week, please get back up to speed ASAP. So what's on the test? The following:
1. Cell Theory
2. The basic organelles of the animal cell, as detailed in the ANIMAL CELL THEATER, and how they work together in the functioning of a cell
3. The basic differences between the organelles in plant and animal cells
4. Information on chromosomes in the nucleus of human cells (22 number pairs + the XX or XY = 23 pairs or 46 total chromosomes)
5. Dominant and recessive traits (more to come this week)
6. DNA - sugar and phosphate backbone, nucleic acid bases (adenine, thymine, cytosine, guanine)
7. The importance of the Y chromosome in males, mitchondrial DNA in females, and how mutations (markers) enable us to trace our ancestors from east Africa to where we are today.
I think that is enough. Please email me with any clarifying questions that you have about this information, or bring them to class on Monday. If you are missing notes, please check in with a classmate ASAP.
Sunday, February 17, 2008
Going Nuclear
Hey All,
Sorry for getting this post up later than I wanted to.
This past week was a great one in class. I think that you all did a great job of engaging in the animal cell theater, and asking good questions as we worked to understand how the chromosomes work in the nuclei of human cells. If you missed either of those two classes, or Monday's Cell Theory information, make sure you get up-to-speed ASAP.
Remember:
THERE IS A TEST ON THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 28TH ON CELLS, GENETICS, AND DNA.
For homework due Wednesday, February 20:
1. Spend 20 minutes researching WHAT DNA IS.
2. Spend 10 minutes writing a summary paragraph on WHAT DNA IS.
Of course, I will be interested in the content that you discover and summarize, but I will also be interested in the sources and approaches you use to research and summarize.
Have a great couple of days off!
Sorry for getting this post up later than I wanted to.
This past week was a great one in class. I think that you all did a great job of engaging in the animal cell theater, and asking good questions as we worked to understand how the chromosomes work in the nuclei of human cells. If you missed either of those two classes, or Monday's Cell Theory information, make sure you get up-to-speed ASAP.
Remember:
THERE IS A TEST ON THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 28TH ON CELLS, GENETICS, AND DNA.
For homework due Wednesday, February 20:
1. Spend 20 minutes researching WHAT DNA IS.
2. Spend 10 minutes writing a summary paragraph on WHAT DNA IS.
Of course, I will be interested in the content that you discover and summarize, but I will also be interested in the sources and approaches you use to research and summarize.
Have a great couple of days off!
Monday, February 4, 2008
Cellular Biology
Hi All,
Time to get busy in this genographic unit! As mentioned last week, before we get back to DNA and the genetics work being done in the National Geographic Genographic Project, We need to (re)view some basic cellular biology. In class, we discussed the five kingdoms of life, noting that Monera and Protista tend to be single celled, while Fungi, Animalia, and Plantae are typically multi-cellular. In class, we reviewed the scales of organization in humans from the organismic to the cellular/organelle levels. For homework, due Tuesday 2/5 or Wednesday 2/6 (depending on when you have science workshop), do the following:
1. Finishing reading the animal cell and plant cell handout, and generate whatever questions you have about the two types of cells, their organelles, and how they work.
2. Make a venn diagram with organelles found only in animal cells in the left circle, organelles found only in plant cells in the right circle, and organelles found in both types of cells in both circles (in the overlapping area).
See you in class!
Time to get busy in this genographic unit! As mentioned last week, before we get back to DNA and the genetics work being done in the National Geographic Genographic Project, We need to (re)view some basic cellular biology. In class, we discussed the five kingdoms of life, noting that Monera and Protista tend to be single celled, while Fungi, Animalia, and Plantae are typically multi-cellular. In class, we reviewed the scales of organization in humans from the organismic to the cellular/organelle levels. For homework, due Tuesday 2/5 or Wednesday 2/6 (depending on when you have science workshop), do the following:
1. Finishing reading the animal cell and plant cell handout, and generate whatever questions you have about the two types of cells, their organelles, and how they work.
2. Make a venn diagram with organelles found only in animal cells in the left circle, organelles found only in plant cells in the right circle, and organelles found in both types of cells in both circles (in the overlapping area).
See you in class!
Friday, January 25, 2008
Journey of Man Part 1 and Living Cells
Hi All,
At the halfway point of the Journey of Man, I hope that you are enjoying the scientific and cultural intensity of this film. Spencer Wells sums up the common difficulty of bridging science and culture when he asks, "What do you do when everything you believe in flies in the face of everything you know?" As a good scientist, he sets out with a set of hypotheses to gather data and test those hypotheses. Please answer the following two questions in your science notebooks for Monday, January 28th:
1. For you, what was the most profound or useful scientific information or phenomenon addressed in the film so far? How and why did it affect you?
2. What was the most interesting or profound cultural element addressed in the film so far ? How and why did it affect you?
Finally, also for Monday, 1/28, please freewrite in as much detail as you can in response to this prompt:
What are living cells?
At the halfway point of the Journey of Man, I hope that you are enjoying the scientific and cultural intensity of this film. Spencer Wells sums up the common difficulty of bridging science and culture when he asks, "What do you do when everything you believe in flies in the face of everything you know?" As a good scientist, he sets out with a set of hypotheses to gather data and test those hypotheses. Please answer the following two questions in your science notebooks for Monday, January 28th:
1. For you, what was the most profound or useful scientific information or phenomenon addressed in the film so far? How and why did it affect you?
2. What was the most interesting or profound cultural element addressed in the film so far ? How and why did it affect you?
Finally, also for Monday, 1/28, please freewrite in as much detail as you can in response to this prompt:
What are living cells?
Tuesday, January 22, 2008
Last Gasp for Extra Credit
Hey All,
One last chance for extra credit:
In the previous post, I gave the details for the reflection on Sylvia and David's talk on 1/10. Please follow those guidelines, and have your reflection to me by the end of school this Friday, 1/25. The talk is about 1 hour and 20 minutes long, and it is on all six of the computers in the main room in the Save the Bay folder on the desktop. The file is nearly 1 GB in size, so a high capacity flash drive will be needed to take it home with you (feel free to do so). Please be detailed in your reflections.
One last chance for extra credit:
In the previous post, I gave the details for the reflection on Sylvia and David's talk on 1/10. Please follow those guidelines, and have your reflection to me by the end of school this Friday, 1/25. The talk is about 1 hour and 20 minutes long, and it is on all six of the computers in the main room in the Save the Bay folder on the desktop. The file is nearly 1 GB in size, so a high capacity flash drive will be needed to take it home with you (feel free to do so). Please be detailed in your reflections.
Tuesday, January 15, 2008
Reflection on Sylvia McLaughlin and David Lewis
Please respond to the following prompt in a DETAILED PARAGRAPH (1 point):
What are three things that you heard in Sylvia or David's presentations or answers that surprised or impressed you? and why did this information affect you?
Prompt #2 (.5 points):
Based on the information, what is one SIGNIFICANT thing that you can do to protect the Bay? Explain why this action has a significant effect.
What are three things that you heard in Sylvia or David's presentations or answers that surprised or impressed you? and why did this information affect you?
Prompt #2 (.5 points):
Based on the information, what is one SIGNIFICANT thing that you can do to protect the Bay? Explain why this action has a significant effect.
Friday, December 21, 2007
Extra Credit anyone?
Hey All,
After so much hard work this past month, I hope that you all have a joyful and restful break.
EXTRA CREDIT BONANZA! In case you get restless, go through homework withdrawal, or just want to explore a few new and expanded avenues of our environmental studies, below are a few extra credit opportunities. They will all count individually, so you can do as many of them as you wish.
Sustainability Game
The half sheet of paper handed out in class is the worksheet to go with this game that challenges you to balance resource extraction with making money. PLEASE EMAIL ME IF YOU DIDN"T GET ONE. Good efforts, reflections, and insights will boost your final semester grade by one point. Go to www.sustainabilityed.org.
Add to the Planetfesto Ribbon
Check out www.planetfesto.org. This is a website created by a couple of current BMS parents to enable people around the world to express their appreciation and stewardship of the planet on which we live. Customize your images and text, and show us all when we get back in the New Year. Creativity and thoughtfulness will result in up to two extra points on your final semester grade.
Dialoguing with Sylvia McLaughlin
We have a very special event on the evening of Thursday, January 10th, and we need various forms of help:
1. Are there students who would like to represent the MS in discussion with Sylvia? This would include compiling the questions that we posed back in September when we read her “Saving the bay, again” piece from the SF Chronicle. There were many thoughtful questions that will really spark some excellent discussions and insights! Three extra points on your final grade for this.
2. Compiling photos of the scientific and artwork that we did in the Strawberry Creek Watershed. It will be great to display the watershed studies that we have been engaged in over the last couple of months. Two extra points on your final grade for helping with this.
3. Helping at the event with tickets, seating, refreshments, etc. One extra point on your final grade for helping with this.
We should have a big presence at this event to show our engagement in the Strawberry Creek and larger SF Bay Watershed.
On a more mandatory note, if you received a missing work slip, please have it signed for Monday, January 7th, and complete all of the work by Friday, January 11th. If there are worksheets you need, or questions that you have, please email me at shurd@bmsonline.org.
Have a wonderful break, and see you in ’08.
After so much hard work this past month, I hope that you all have a joyful and restful break.
EXTRA CREDIT BONANZA! In case you get restless, go through homework withdrawal, or just want to explore a few new and expanded avenues of our environmental studies, below are a few extra credit opportunities. They will all count individually, so you can do as many of them as you wish.
Sustainability Game
The half sheet of paper handed out in class is the worksheet to go with this game that challenges you to balance resource extraction with making money. PLEASE EMAIL ME IF YOU DIDN"T GET ONE. Good efforts, reflections, and insights will boost your final semester grade by one point. Go to www.sustainabilityed.org.
Add to the Planetfesto Ribbon
Check out www.planetfesto.org. This is a website created by a couple of current BMS parents to enable people around the world to express their appreciation and stewardship of the planet on which we live. Customize your images and text, and show us all when we get back in the New Year. Creativity and thoughtfulness will result in up to two extra points on your final semester grade.
Dialoguing with Sylvia McLaughlin
We have a very special event on the evening of Thursday, January 10th, and we need various forms of help:
1. Are there students who would like to represent the MS in discussion with Sylvia? This would include compiling the questions that we posed back in September when we read her “Saving the bay, again” piece from the SF Chronicle. There were many thoughtful questions that will really spark some excellent discussions and insights! Three extra points on your final grade for this.
2. Compiling photos of the scientific and artwork that we did in the Strawberry Creek Watershed. It will be great to display the watershed studies that we have been engaged in over the last couple of months. Two extra points on your final grade for helping with this.
3. Helping at the event with tickets, seating, refreshments, etc. One extra point on your final grade for helping with this.
We should have a big presence at this event to show our engagement in the Strawberry Creek and larger SF Bay Watershed.
On a more mandatory note, if you received a missing work slip, please have it signed for Monday, January 7th, and complete all of the work by Friday, January 11th. If there are worksheets you need, or questions that you have, please email me at shurd@bmsonline.org.
Have a wonderful break, and see you in ’08.
Saturday, December 15, 2007
Genographic Project Update
Thank you to the 14 students who brought in their forms to participate in the drawing to have DNA extracted, analyzed, and shared with the class. The three students chosen were: Aaron, Nojan, and Ana. Sampling will happen early this week so that we will hopefully have the results by the end of January. I have been learning more about this project, and it is extremely cool!
Moving Ahead with the Lab Report
Hi Everyone,
I hope that you are all working away with the data relevant to your hypotheses and experiments.
To stay on track with this assignment, you should have the first drafts of the Performing the Experiment (Experiment Explanation) and Data Analysis completed on Monday. If you are falling behind, please check in with me on Monday.
As part of the Performing the Experiment section (Experiment Explanation), It was mentioned that you should describe the sites at which the data were collected that you are using. The following are some brief descriptions of the sites. Please feel free to use these descriptions if they help - also add your own observations if you were at the site.
Strawberry Canyon
This site is in the upper part of the watershed, just below the University of California Botanical Garden. This stretch of Strawberry Creek is in a narrow forested valley without development upstream. There is a narrow, rocky creek bed, and the banks range from about 10 feet to 30 feet in height. An unpaved recreation trail runs alongside the creek. This trail is primarily used for runners, walkers, and dog walkers (lots of canine evidence left behind).
University of California
After leaving Strawberry Canyon, Strawberry Creek flows underground in a culvert before resurfacing on Cal's campus. On campus, the main branch flows primarily through shaded areas. Near the western edge of campus, in a grove of massive eucalyptus trees, this main branch of Strawberry Creek merges with the smaller north branch, which surfaces as it exits a culvert near the north gate of campus. This north branch runs through more developed areas upstream. On campus, the north branch runs through redwoods and the lawn area near the science building before entering the eucalyptus grove. Below the confluence of the two streams, the creek flows in an exposed shaded creek bed until leaving campus and flowing underground through a culvert. It resurfaces in Strawberry Creek Park.
Strawberry Creek Park
This is a short daylighted stretch of Strawberry Creek, which extends for about 150 yards before again flowing under the city. The creek bed is mostly shaded, and consists of smashed pieces of the culvert that formerly contained the creek in this area. This area of Berkeley is urban with a mix of residences, businesses, streets, sidewalks, and the park, which does provide some protection for the water. After leaving the park, the creek again goes underground, and doesn't surface again it exits the culvert into San Francisco Bay at the bottom of the watershed.
Where Strawberry Creek Meets the Bay
The last stretch of the creek is underground as it passes through the industrial area with warehouses, manufacturers, railroad tracks, the freeway, and traffic congestion. This bottom area of the watershed - where the Amtrak station and Truitt&White are now located - was the site of a large Huichin (Ohlone) shellmound. This mound was built over the 3,700 years that these people inhabited Strawberry Creek before European settlers took over the area. The actual spot where the creek hits the Bay can only be sampled when the tide is low. Otherwise, the tidal influence mixes salt water in with the creek's freshwater, and results are not accurate.
I hope that you are all working away with the data relevant to your hypotheses and experiments.
To stay on track with this assignment, you should have the first drafts of the Performing the Experiment (Experiment Explanation) and Data Analysis completed on Monday. If you are falling behind, please check in with me on Monday.
As part of the Performing the Experiment section (Experiment Explanation), It was mentioned that you should describe the sites at which the data were collected that you are using. The following are some brief descriptions of the sites. Please feel free to use these descriptions if they help - also add your own observations if you were at the site.
Strawberry Canyon
This site is in the upper part of the watershed, just below the University of California Botanical Garden. This stretch of Strawberry Creek is in a narrow forested valley without development upstream. There is a narrow, rocky creek bed, and the banks range from about 10 feet to 30 feet in height. An unpaved recreation trail runs alongside the creek. This trail is primarily used for runners, walkers, and dog walkers (lots of canine evidence left behind).
University of California
After leaving Strawberry Canyon, Strawberry Creek flows underground in a culvert before resurfacing on Cal's campus. On campus, the main branch flows primarily through shaded areas. Near the western edge of campus, in a grove of massive eucalyptus trees, this main branch of Strawberry Creek merges with the smaller north branch, which surfaces as it exits a culvert near the north gate of campus. This north branch runs through more developed areas upstream. On campus, the north branch runs through redwoods and the lawn area near the science building before entering the eucalyptus grove. Below the confluence of the two streams, the creek flows in an exposed shaded creek bed until leaving campus and flowing underground through a culvert. It resurfaces in Strawberry Creek Park.
Strawberry Creek Park
This is a short daylighted stretch of Strawberry Creek, which extends for about 150 yards before again flowing under the city. The creek bed is mostly shaded, and consists of smashed pieces of the culvert that formerly contained the creek in this area. This area of Berkeley is urban with a mix of residences, businesses, streets, sidewalks, and the park, which does provide some protection for the water. After leaving the park, the creek again goes underground, and doesn't surface again it exits the culvert into San Francisco Bay at the bottom of the watershed.
Where Strawberry Creek Meets the Bay
The last stretch of the creek is underground as it passes through the industrial area with warehouses, manufacturers, railroad tracks, the freeway, and traffic congestion. This bottom area of the watershed - where the Amtrak station and Truitt&White are now located - was the site of a large Huichin (Ohlone) shellmound. This mound was built over the 3,700 years that these people inhabited Strawberry Creek before European settlers took over the area. The actual spot where the creek hits the Bay can only be sampled when the tide is low. Otherwise, the tidal influence mixes salt water in with the creek's freshwater, and results are not accurate.
Wednesday, December 12, 2007
National Geographic Genographic Project
Hey Everyone,
Following up on the email that I sent the other day, permission slips for students to participate in the drawing to be one of three students contributing DNA to the Genographic Project are now available. THEY MUST BE RETURNED BY FRIDAY, DECEMBER 14, which is when the drawing will occur.
Following up on the email that I sent the other day, permission slips for students to participate in the drawing to be one of three students contributing DNA to the Genographic Project are now available. THEY MUST BE RETURNED BY FRIDAY, DECEMBER 14, which is when the drawing will occur.
Update on Lab Report Progress
Hi All,
Sorry for the late post. I mentioned to most of you that the Performing the Experiment Section (Experiment Explanation) will be worked on in class tomorrow. Since the dataset will not be ready until then, it would be impossible to have it complete.
The task in class tomorrow will be to sort the data to get those that you want and need for testing your hypothesis.
For Monday, December 17, you should have your first drafts of the the Experiment Explanation and Data Analysis sections, and your revised versions of the Hypothesis and Methodology sections.
Sorry for the late post. I mentioned to most of you that the Performing the Experiment Section (Experiment Explanation) will be worked on in class tomorrow. Since the dataset will not be ready until then, it would be impossible to have it complete.
The task in class tomorrow will be to sort the data to get those that you want and need for testing your hypothesis.
For Monday, December 17, you should have your first drafts of the the Experiment Explanation and Data Analysis sections, and your revised versions of the Hypothesis and Methodology sections.
Monday, December 10, 2007
Field Trips this week
Hi All,
Just a reminder that the 8th grade will be in the field all morning tomorrow, 12/11, and the 7th grade on Wednesday, 12/12. Without permission slips, students cannot go on the trips. Please bring your snack, $1.70 in change for the bus, and a pencil to write with. Be dressed for a clear crisp morning.
Just a reminder that the 8th grade will be in the field all morning tomorrow, 12/11, and the 7th grade on Wednesday, 12/12. Without permission slips, students cannot go on the trips. Please bring your snack, $1.70 in change for the bus, and a pencil to write with. Be dressed for a clear crisp morning.
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