pkeeney's picture

NASA’s “Aha!” Moment

Submitted by Pat Keeney on Fri, 12/03/2010 - 12:24pm

The agency that I formerly did contract work for, NASA, created quite a stir yesterday when it announced that a new form of bacteria had been discovered by scientist Felisa Wolfe-Simon in Mono Lake, California and that this form of life uses arsenic for processes that all previously known life forms used phosphorous for. Arsenic, which is poisonous to most forms of life, and phosphorous are two of the 92 naturally occurring elements found in the universe. It has been found that hydrogen, oxygen, carbon, and a few other elements, including phosphorous, are necessary for an organism to work properly. They are needed to make the basic compounds that make us “us”--compounds like water, sugar and salt.

lhammel's picture

The Home Visit

Submitted by Lucy Hammel on Thu, 12/02/2010 - 4:20pm

As a teacher in a virtual school, I believe it’s vitally important that we take a keen interest in our students’ well being and remain extra-attuned to their progress. Recently, one of my students became very difficult to get a hold of. I had telephoned James* at every one of his SIX emergency contacts numerous times. Out of seven phone numbers and many, many calls, I discovered that only one was working, and it was for a person listed as “other” – I left several messages for this individual with no luck.

lbeverage's picture

Parenting Moments: Parenting without a Manual

Submitted by Lori Beverage on Mon, 11/29/2010 - 11:53am

They never gave ANY of us a manual for this, did they? Do you remember having your first child and feeling that no matter how many siblings you had, how much babysitting you did, or how many nieces and nephews you watched, you were still in the dark about this whole parenting thing?

That first night of having your first (only? 4th?) child at home, remember needing to get up twice (3? 5? More?) times just to check and see if the little one was still breathing? Remember calling someone (your mom, a sister, a friend, the pediatrician) to ask the question, “Is this (a certain noise, a sleeping pattern-or lack of it-, a diaper’s content, developmental milestone) normal?  Is this ok?”

mdking's picture

Why All the Fuss About Data?

Submitted by Melissa King on Mon, 11/22/2010 - 9:31am

Most of you are aware that the United States is just completing one of the most ambitious data collection projects ever – the U.S. Census 2010.

Why do this? First of all, it’s required. According to the U.S. Constitution, we must count every resident in our country every 10 years. How come? Well, census data help the government determine which communities receive billions of dollars in federal funds for schools, hospitals, senior centers, bridges and public works projects, job training centers, and emergency services. Census data also determine the number of seats each state has in the U.S. House of Representatives. Yep, those are the folks who speak up for your community.

rletcher's picture

The Great Distraction

Submitted by Rob Letcher on Thu, 11/18/2010 - 2:42pm

We teach kids – lots of them. The kids that I focus on are the older ones, those in high school. 

Can I be frank? We know that the average teenage online student – left to his or her own devices–will not do school all day, every minute of the day.  Heck, they didn’t do that in their brick and mortar schools, why in the world would they do it here? But in their “bricks and sticks” schools, they had these people called "teachers" who did things like walk around the room, make eye contact, and drop the occasional book on their desk when they fell asleep on folded arms (I used to love that move.)

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