“Slip-sticks” Once Ruled the Math/Science World (and did One go to the Moon?)

slide ruler

Their formal names were slide rules, and folks called them “slip-sticks.” They were literally analog computers. Many years ago, slide rules were de rigeur for engineers and scientists, and especially several generations of high school and college students.

Not only that, but Neil Armstrong used one, according to a recent Wall Street Journal blog.

Eat Smart for a Great Start!

eat smart

This September, PBS KIDS makes it easy for families to stay healthy and active with PBS KIDS Eat Smart for a Great Start. Studies have shown that poor nutrition and lack of exercise can negatively impact children's academic performance. To help start the school year off right, PBS KIDS has developed themed television programming, online content, and partnerships with Allrecipes.com and Produce for Kids -- to provide kids and parents with resources that support health and physical activity.

Science Pub RVA and “Why Black Holes Don’t Suck”

Join other curious minds this Tuesday, September 4th for another Science Pub RVA event. Enjoy food, drink and conversation with Dr. Matthew R. Francis as he demystifies black holes. Dr.

Virginia Tech Students’ Experiments On Board Rocket Launch

Virginia Tech RockSat-X Team

A team from Virginia Tech is at Wallops Island tomorrow morning (Thursday, August 23), for the launch of a suborbital rocket, carrying with it their experiments--and their hopes for a future in space exploration.

Virginia High School Students Explore Health Care Careers at VCU

Governor’s School for Life Sciences and Medicine

Twenty-six of Virginia’s brightest and most promising high school students interested in pursuing health care careers recently completed an intensive Governor’s School program hosted by Virginia Commonwealth University.

Students and Teachers Explore Outer Space

Virginia Initiative for Science Teaching Achievement

This summer, Virginia students and teachers in grades 4-6 explored the possibilities of life on Mars as part of the Virginia Initiative for Science Teaching and Achievement (VISTA) Summer Camp and Teacher Training Institute. VISTA is a partnership among 69 school districts, six universities and the Virginia Department of Education. The goals of VISTA are to improve science teaching and student learning in Virginia.

The Mars Landing: Seeking Key Clues to Our Own Planet's Future

Levine

The Mars Science Laboratory’s spectacular landing August 6 was not only a game-changer in space exploration, but it opened the door for scientists to answer a most compelling question: What happened to Mars? We know that eons ago, Earth and Mars were a lot alike. And in a recent interview with Science Matters, Dr. Joel S. Levine, Research Professor in the Department of Applied Science at the College of William and Mary, offered some tantalizing insight into that question.

Powering the Planet

wind turbines

Take an eye-opening look at some of the world’s most important case studies in energy policy. Learn how great nations and small communities are finding sustainable solutions that provide for people and protect the planet.

Geologist Richard Alley examines countries that are moving toward renewable energy sources. In Spain and Morocco, large-scale solar farms and individual photovoltaic panels atop tents in the Sahara are beginning to bring the vast potential of the sun down to Earth.

NASA’s Langley Research Center Contributions Part 2

WCVE Public Radio’s Charles Fishburne recently reported on the contributions made by researchers at Hampton, Virginia’s NASA Langley Research Center that aided in the success of the NASA Mars Scientific Laboratory mission to deliver the Curiosity rover to Mars.

NASA’s Langley Research Center: Contributions to the Curiosity Rover Mission Part 1

The recent success of NASA’s Mars Scientific Laboratory mission to deliver the Curiosity rover safely to Mars was due in part to the research conducted at Hampton, Virginia’s NASA Langley Research Center, which goes back decades.