SOLARO

Partial Solar Eclipse This Sunday

crrc-ca — Fri, 18 May 2012 14:43:00 -0600

For our friends in North America, a partial solar eclipse is taking place on Sunday night. This will be visible in the western United States and Canada.

What is a Solar Eclipse?

A solar eclipse occurs when the moon comes between the sun and Earth. During a solar eclipse, the moon’s shadow falls on Earth. A total eclipse occurs when the sun and moon directly align.

Shadows created during an eclipse have two parts: the umbra, which is the inner, cone-shaped part of the shadow, and the penumbra, which is the outer part of the shadow. In the penumbra, the light coming from the sun is only partially blocked, whereas the light is fully blocked in the umbra.

Be Careful Viewing Eclipses
Viewing solar eclipses can be very dangerous. Blindness can quickly result if you view them with the naked eye. Looking directly at the sun is never safe, even if you look for only a few seconds while wearing sunglasses. Do not be fooled because it does not feel like your eyes are being damaged. Eyes do not have pain receptors, so your eyes do not feel pain when they are being damaged, and it can take hours to develop symptoms. In light of the dangers, it is important to plan ahead and use a safe method for watching a solar eclipse. There are several easy, inexpensive, and safe methods that anyone can use to watch these spectacular events.

Pinhole Projector

The safest way to view a solar eclipse is through a pinhole projector. To make your own pinhole projector, you need only two stiff pieces of white cardboard and a pin. In one of the pieces of cardboard, punch a small, clean hole, and allow the sunlight to shine directly through it. Then, allow the light falling through the hole to shine onto the second piece of cardboard, and you will see a projected image of the solar eclipse. The cleaner the punched hole, the better the image you will produce. Try rotating the pin as you slowly press it through the cardboard to round the edges of the hole. You want the pinhole to be as perfectly circular as possible. When viewing projections, hold the piece of cardboard with the pinhole so that its face is perpendicular to the sun’s rays (or any light source) to let as much direct light as possible through. Always use a safe method, such as a pinhole projector, to view a solar eclipse.

The distance between your two pieces of cardboard affects the image you see projected. If you move the cards closer together, your image will become brighter, but smaller. As you move the cards farther apart, the image will become larger, but dimmer. You can test your pinhole projector easily by projecting any light source, such as a candle or TV, onto your cardboard. If your image is not very clear, try changing the size of your pinhole or punching a cleaner hole in the cardboard. A smaller pinhole will produce a sharper image, but it will be dimmer because less light can get through. If you do use a pinhole projector during a solar eclipse, it is important to never look directly at the sun through the pinhole, as this can also quickly cause permanent eye damage or blindness.

Solar Filters

Solar filters can be used to view a solar eclipse safely. These glass, plastic, or metal-coated filters allow only a fraction of light to pass through them. The amount of light allowed to pass through a filter is measured by its optical density rating. If a filter has an optical density of 5.0 or more, it is safe to use for viewing the sun. These filters allow only about 0.01% of the sunlight to pass through them. Fitted solar filters are also sold for viewing solar eclipses safely through cameras and telescopes. When using either of these instruments, only use filters that are specifically designed for binoculars and telescopes, as the magnification of sunlight can damage other filters.

Before using any kind of solar filter, it is important to inspect it for damage. Even a small hole in the filter can result in eye damage from exposure to sunlight. Just to be safe, when you use a solar filter to observe an eclipse, it is a good idea to look away frequently, in case you missed a hole in the filter when you inspected it.

Welding Goggles

Some welding goggles provide excellent protection from bright light during welding, and they can be used to view the sun during an eclipse. Like solar filters, welding goggles follow a rating system to indicate how much light they let through. Goggles with a rating of 14 or higher should be used to view solar eclipses. Standard welding goggles with a rating of 12 do not provide adequate protection from the sun’s rays. Finally, remember not to use welding goggles with binoculars or telescopes. The optics in those instruments can focus the sunlight onto the goggles, causing them to heat and crack.

*Please exercise extreme cation when viewing the sun. Remember to ask your parents or teacher for help.

Danny Fernandes: Education for Success

crrc-reb — Fri, 18 May 2012 10:22:00 -0600

Platinum-selling recording artist Danny Fernandes, who recently launched his sophomore album, can’t credit luck with his successful career. He credits hard work, dedication, and a solid education.

Danny was fortunate enough to attend an arts-oriented school. Specialized schools exist in most jurisdictions. Many, like Danny’s, cater to the arts, while others are specialized for sciences, mathematics, or sports. Even though spaces are limited in these schools, Danny doesn’t think that should prevent anyone from following his or her dreams. What’s Danny’s solution? Watch the video to find out!

In Depth: Common Core Standards

crrc-reb — Tue, 15 May 2012 11:16:00 -0600

I was looking at the common core curriculum for Grade 5 mathematics yesterday, and one sentence of one outcome got me thinking. The outcome is 5.NF.5.b:

Interpret multiplication as scaling (resizing) by explaining why multiplying a given number by a fraction greater than 1 results in a product greater than the given number (recognizing multiplication by whole numbers greater than 1 as a familiar case); explaining why multiplying a given number by a fraction less than 1 results in a product smaller than the given number; and relating the principle of fraction equivalence
a/b = (n×a)/(n×b) to the effect of multiplying a/b by 1.

The first part of the outcome seems pretty straightforward—if you multiply a number by another number greater than 1, the answer is bigger than the number you started with; if you multiply a number by another number less than 1, the answer is smaller than the number you started with. It was the last sentence about fraction equivalence that stopped me in my tracks.

At my first reading, I could not puzzle out the relationship between creating equivalent fractions and the rest of the outcome. Then I had a flash of insight. It starts like this:

Students may spend their entire student careers blissfully multiplying numerators and denominators by the same number without realizing that they are actually multiplying by 1. This bit of ignorance will never harm them. It will not cause them to make mistakes once they hit more advanced math. It will not incur the wrath of the math overlords, if they do indeed exist.

That said, there is a kind of beauty in including the last sentence in this outcome: multiply by a number bigger than 1, the product is bigger; multiply by a number less than 1, the product is smaller. And when you multiply by 1, boys and girls, the product stays the same, even if it looks a bit different.

SOLARO Testimonial

crrc-reb — Tue, 15 May 2012 09:17:00 -0600

Feedback is critical to educators, and here at Solaro, we think feedback is a really useful tool to help us give our customers the best possible experience. We know that education is one of the most important jobs in the world, as the type of education we impart on the younger generation impacts the future we all share. That’s why it’s so invigorating to receive positive feedback, like this tidbit from Chelsea Edwards from Timmins High (Attawapiskat First Nation and Timmins, Ontario).

Chelsea isn’t just any 16-year-old student. She was also a delegate to the United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child, speaking before them in Geneva in February 2012. A winner of the J.S. Woodsworth award for her outstanding commitment to eliminating racism, she hopes to attend Carleton University to study human rights.

Great Teachers Make Learning Great; Great Teachers Make SOLARO Great

crrc-reb — Fri, 11 May 2012 17:00:00 -0600

SOLARO loves great teachers!

Great teachers can inspire everything we do, from our past-times to our careers. Here at SOLARO, we know our ability to help others learn is due to those who educated us. Our passion for education is only matched by the diversity of experiences and educators that led us here. It’s teacher appreciation week in the USA; have you thanked your favourite teacher yet?

M.F., an editor at SOLARO, describes how her favourite teacher brought the world to her, and encouraged her to take to the world.

Great Teachers make Learning Great; Great Teachers make SOLARO Great

crrc-ca — Fri, 11 May 2012 15:58:00 -0600

D.B., a valued contributor to SOLARO explains how his life was changed completely by a suggestion by his teacher in grade 12. Thanks to great teachers across the world!

Great Teachers make Learning Great; Great Teachers make SOLARO Great

crrc-ca — Fri, 11 May 2012 15:21:00 -0600