Real World Math & Science

University of Massachusetts > STEM > May 2008 | Real World Math & Science

PROBLEM SOLVING | Battle of the Batteries

The engineers and designers at Motorola face the challenge of creating smaller, better cell phones.  Use this lesson, along with our popular movie that goes inside one of the biggest mobile device companies, to give your students real-world perspective on the importance of problem solving.

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MATH: MORE VALUABLE THAN GOLD  | Undersea Treasure

Suppose you wanted to search for the largest sunken gold treasure in U.S. History. Who would you want on your team? Tom Thompson wanted a mathematician who specialized in probability.

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WATER CONSERVATION | Fish Farming

Water conservation has been making more and more headlines lately.  Have you been wondering what we can do to get the most out of this precious resource? Aquaculturists have found one solution-getting two crops from one water source.  Check out this short video to find out more.

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PROBLEM SOLVING | Timber Cruise

Using a sample of tree heights and diameters, this lesson shows students to see how foresters use problem solving to get an accurate estimate of the total volume of wood in a forest.

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THE MATH OF MUSIC | The Rhythm Track

When students tell you, "I don't need math, I'm going to be a musician!" introduce them to world-renowned drummer Ndugu Chancler.

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UNDERSTANDING OUR OCEANS | Types of Oceanography

From physical oceanographers who study tides and waves to marine geologists who study undersea rock formations, there are many fields of science which seek a better understanding of the Earth's oceans.

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SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY | A Wildlife Refuge

Near the Gulf Coast of Texas extends a 44,000-acre refuge full of alligators, armadillos, coyotes, and lots and lots of birds. The Brazoria National Wildlife Refuge is a sanctuary for nearly 350 different bird species that migrate south for the winter every year. Show your students the science and math wildlife biologists use to maintain a safe haven for these animals.

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PROBLEM SOLVING | Bobcat Stats

Imagine you have been assigned to care for a male bobcat in a zoo. You measure the animal's weight and height (carefully!), and find that it is 24 inches high and weighs 7.2 kilograms. What would you need to know to determine if the bobcat is underweight?

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THE FUTURE OF SPACEFLIGHT | Spaceports

Will spaceports be for today's students what airports were for their great grandparents? The "personal spaceflight revolution" is underway, and building and operating these new launch facilities will require science, technology, engineering, math, imagination and problem solving skills.

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SCORES OF PATTERNS | Music for Movies

Whether he's trying to make the chase scenes exciting or the scary scenes scary, Oscar-nominated film composer James Newton Howard explains that he relies on patterns when he writes the musical scores for movies.

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