Teachers Academy


Creating Access to World Class Science and Engineering for K-12 Teachers and Students

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		Evolution of Matter and Energy in the Universe / Chemical Evolution of the Universe This topic examined the transformation of energy into matter, leading to the synthesis of light and heavy elements. Activities focused on radioactivity.

		Talks Eric Linder - Matter and Antimatter Dr. Linder discussed how cosmology encompasses the entire range of physics. Topics included early conditions of the universe, how inflation created topological defects, and that "freezeout" occurred sooner for weakly interacting matter. The question remains as to why there is any matter left in the universe. Lecture summary. Video clip: Pre-inflation Video clip: Inflation Video clip: Inflation as an example of a phase transition Video clip: Post-inflation - The radiation era Video clip: Universe freezeout Video clip: Antimatter Photo PDF of Powerpoint Presentation _______________________________________________________________________ Peggy McMahan - Nucleosynthesis Dr. McMahan delivered a presentation on key aspects of nuclear physics in cosmology. Topics included radioactive decay, isotope abundance in galaxies, and Big Bang nucleosynthesis. Video clip: Isotope abundance outside of our solar system Video clip: Star elements Video clip: Isotope abundance summary Photos PDF of Powerpoint Presentation Warm up Hands-On Radioactivity - Jennifer Coughlin Students were given Geiger meters in small groups and detected the radioactive emissions from substances such as uranium bowls, radium watches, and kerosene lamp mantles. Photos Worksheets and PPTs Penetrating Power Human Accelerator _______________________________________________________________________ Main Activity Jennifer Coughlin and Peggy McMahan - Radioactive Decay In these activities, students collected data to determine the half-life and types of isotopes. Photos Worksheets and PPTS X-ray fluorescence Half-Life of Barium-137M Half-Life of a Penny GAMMA-GAMMA Coincidence _______________________________________________________________________ Visit to the LBL Cyclotron Students and teachers received a guided tour of the 88-Inch Cyclotron at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. The tour included a thorough explanation of various aspects of the cyclotron as well as it’s history and ongoing research. Participants were then walked through the control room and individual caves where different experimental apparatuses were explained. Everyone then had an opportunity to take pictures and discuss questions with different professionals in this field. Photos _______________________________________________________________________ Wrap-up Work on team video _______________________________________________________________________ Additional Resources and Web Sites: NSD Education and Outreach Site Experiments Site Thinkquest - Nucleosynthesis History and Structure of Universe Evolution of the Universe Standard Model of Particles and Interactions What's Next Workshop Homepage Back to top