Student research how-to’s

An Antarctic cathedral?

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5/29/23 Thank you for subscribing to The Cheat Sheet, from Science News Explores. If you like this newsletter, share it with a friend or colleague. Did someone forward this to you? Sign up for our weekly updates. Got questions, suggestions or comments? Email us at sns@sciencenews.org and put “The Cheat Sheet” in the subject line. We’d love to hear from you. In the News In Dallas last week, more than 1,600 high-school students competed for nearly $9 million in prizes at the Regeneron International Science and Engineering Fair, or ISEF. Some 28 percent of finalists took home prizes. That’s good, as there were so many inspiring projects. At least as hard as competing, however, was each finalist’s first step: finding a project to engage them for months or more. And for a decade, Science News Explores has been helping students on every step along this path to finding such projects. Some stories help students identify a topic for research. These can range from learning how to connect with experts to engineering solutions to long-standing problems — or just building on humble, “garage” projects (initially undertaken as a way to productively kill time after school). We’ve even got tips for kids whose interests take a distinctly theoretical turn. But what about kids who don’t even understand what research is? Most are familiar with demonstrations. We show how to turn any of them (such as that famous Mentos geyser) into an experiment that yields real, graphable data. Ready to test an idea? Find a template for that in some of Dr. Bethany Brookshire’s multi-part investigations, such the five-second rule or how far can a sneeze spew snot? And for a real step-by-step research blueprint, check out her 17-part series on how to make a gluten-free cookie. From hypothesis generation to data collection and statistical analysis, we show kids how to do it right. What we hope to show is that research is not just for competing. It’s for investigating personally meaningful questions or problems so that each of us can better understand our world. A New Magazine for Kids Learn more and subscribe to Science News Explores, a new magazine designed to satisfy young readers’ curiosity about how the world works.      SUBSCRIBE NOW   Catch up with the latest from Science News Explores A natural ‘cathedral’ lurks deep under Antarctic ice: By drilling into this cavern, scientists have opened a window into the mysterious world of hidden lakes, their occupants — and rivers that run uphill. Readability: 7.0. Resources: Classroom questions, power words, word find, video, alternate version at Science News Humans might be able to hibernate during space travel: Scientists are studying how animals hibernate and developing new technologies to help humans sleep through space travel. Readability: 6.6. Resources: Power words One collision could have formed the moon and started plate tectonics: A hypothetical planet slamming into Earth 4.5 billion years ago might have set subduction into motion. Readability: 7.5. Resources: Power words, alternate version at Science News Under the ice, a hidden lake hints at its origin — and coming end: Lake Mercer may serve as a model for better understanding the birth and life of Antarctica’s hundreds of subglacial lakes. Readability: 7.4. Resources: Power words Scientists mapped every nerve cell in this insect brain: It wasn’t easy. Charting a baby fruit fly’s nerve cells and their connections took 12 years. Readability: 7.4. Resources: Power words, alternate version at Science News Let's learn about the science of language: The languages we speak may help shape how we see, smell and hear the world around us. Readability: 6.0. Resources: Power words, word find puzzle Scientists Say: Möbius strip: Möbius strips may be easy to make, but they have some pretty mind-bending properties. Readability: 6.0. Resources: Power words, audio Opportunity  Want to learn more about those hundreds of lakes buried below Antarctic ice? Visit a website devoted to glaciers on that continent at the bottom of the world. The site’s tally of lakes is a little out of date — and therefore low by about one-third , based on a March 2023 report. Still, the site shows how researchers use remote sensing to map these hidden bodies of water. An animation depicts what those lakes can look like and the network of rivers that tend to connect them. A host of other site resources can help educators teach the geography of this land, all but 2 percent of which is covered by ice and snow. Find out more about the resources available for using Science News Explores stories for learning. And if you like this newsletter, please share it with a friend or colleague. Did someone share this with you? Subscribe to this newsletter here. If you’ve got questions, suggestions or comments, email us at sns@sciencenews.org. Thank you for reading! Privacy policy  |  Update Profile  | Manage Subscriptions  |  Unsubscribe This email was sent by: Society for Science 1719 N Street NW Washington, DC, 20036, US