The Environmental Journal of Southern Appalachia
STEAM

STEAM (36)

STEAM stands for Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics. These are study subjects in which U.S. pupils are generally not at par with their peers in other developed countries. That reduces our chances of finding timely solutions to the dire crises that face our planet. It also diminishes the chances for the U.S. economy to remain competitive.

More people already know the STEM abbreviation. Some states and communities are now implementing STEM education programs. Many experts believe that Art education is important, too. Scientific studies have shown that STEM students and professionals who attended art classes are more likely to find crative solutions to new problems.

Wanda DeWard with butterly netWanda DeWaard has spent 30 years studying and tagging monarch butterflies. Here she leads a volunteer group of citizen scientists tagging monarchs in Cades Cove.  Photos courtesy of Wanda DeWaard

Successful Smokies monarch tagging project is a product of the people

Every winter, way up in the oyumel firs in Mexico’s high elevation forests, millions of North American monarch butterflies that have traveled from as far north as Canada cluster in colonies to overwinter before flying north again to lay eggs in spring. Tens of thousands of monarchs might adorn a single tree like a papery gown, sometimes weighing it down enough to break off branches.

To get to the oyumel forests several miles above sea level, which provide a perfect microclimate for the weary travelers, they migrate south using different aerial paths, or flyways, that merge together over Central Texas. This migrating generation can live up to nine months and might travel anywhere from 1,000-3,000 miles to the forests they seek, yet have never been to. Mysteriously, they find their way and sometimes even make it to the exact tree where their ancestors four or five generations back once clustered. 

Monarchs are the only butterfly that makes a long two-way migration. Despite much research on the species, science still hasn’t fully unraveled the secrets of their incredibly accurate homing system. This makes them one of the true marvels of the natural world.

Elanmonarch3A tagged monarch feeds on nectar in the Great Smokies before joining the migration to Mexico for the winter.

Last modified on Thursday, 21 November 2024 13:37
Tuesday, 06 August 2024 16:33

Compare notes on environmental education at annual conference

2024 Conference Docs 1350 x 1350 px

NATCHEZ TRACE — The 2024 Tennessee Environmental Education Association annual conference is set for Sept. 19-21 at Natchez Trace State Park.

The conference is open to any adult interested in education with the natural world as the foundation. Earn up to 31 PD/CE credits and network with an amazing and diverse group of educators from across Tennessee. The conference welcomes K-12 formal educators, informal educators, and more.

Sessions are diverse, and strands include historic practices and the environment, equity and inclusion and community engagement. A preconference workshop with Project Learning Tree and the Tennessee Forestry Association is set for 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sept. 19.
 
Enjoy Friday and Saturday sessions from organizations such as Cumberland River Compact, WaterWays and Tennessee State Parks.
 
Last modified on Saturday, 21 September 2024 23:05

ORNL, TSU to partner on research education programs

The Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory and Tennessee State University have signed a memorandum of understanding to strengthen research cooperation and provide diverse undergraduate students enriching educational research opportunities at the lab. This collaboration will further cement relationships between the lab and minority serving institutions, encouraging students from underrepresented backgrounds to achieve their professional goals.

ORNL is devoted to accelerating the pipeline of future workforce by offering educationally oriented, mission-aligned STEM student experiences with world-class researchers and staff.

“It is important to foster students’ natural curiosity in STEM education and research,” said Susan Hubbard, ORNL’s deputy for science and technology. “Through ORNL’s partnership with Tennessee State University, we will offer hands-on learning experiences, helping students to develop critical skills and a passion to impact their communities through research opportunities.

“The programs also provide an opportunity for diverse students to learn about how national laboratories work to address complex, pressing challenges. Helping to develop the STEM workforce of tomorrow’s problem-solvers is important to ORNL and the nation,” Hubbard said.

While adhering to Tennessee State University’s curricular requirements, students will gain access to educational programs at ORNL as interns during their undergraduate studies.

“This collaboration will strengthen and support our students’ overall preparation and contributions particularly as it relates to the mission of ORNL and the Department of Energy. Furthermore, this opportunity will broaden TSU’s research capacity and capabilities via access to state-of-the-art facilities and resources at ORNL,” said Quincy Quick, TSU’s associate vice president for Research and Sponsored Programs.

Students will engage in research activities through internship programs in DOE mission areas including renewable energy and materials, neutron scattering, fusion and fission energy technologies, national security research, manufacturing, environmental sciences and computer sciences.

Additionally, interns may have the opportunity to work with ORNL’s premier research facilities such as the Oak Ridge Leadership Computing Facility (home of the world’s fastest supercomputer Frontier), the High Flux Isotope Reactor, the Spallation Neutron Source and the Center for Nanophase Materials Sciences — all DOE Office of Science user facilities — plus the DOE Manufacturing Demonstration Facility at ORNL.

ORNL and TSU will commit to increasing the number of students in science, technology, engineering and mathematics, or STEM, fortifying the talent reservoir for workforce development and fostering collaborative mentoring opportunities for students.

For more information, please visit energy.gov/science— Natori Mason

Green floater mussel Ryan Hagerty USFW A green floater mussel (Lasmigona subviridis).  Ryan Hagerty/USFWS

WASHINGTON — The green floater, a freshwater mussel native to the waters of Southern Appalachia, is now formally considered at risk of extinction due to the loss and fragmentation of its aquatic habitat. 

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service determined the green floater, historically found in 10 eastern U.S. states, is likely to become endangered due to existing and emerging threats. The service is proposing to list the mussel as threatened under the Endangered Species Act

The green floater is still found in its native range in North Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia and West Virginia. It is considered locally extinct in Alabama and Georgia. 

While the species has strongholds in places, green floaters are rare in nearly 80 percent of the watersheds where they naturally occur. More than 75 percent of the nation’s native freshwater mussel species are endangered or threatened, considered to be of special conservation concern, or presumed extinct, according to USWFS.

Last modified on Wednesday, 01 November 2023 22:56

David EtnierCourtesy JR Shute

Etnier left behind a legacy of research and ambitious students

KNOXVILLE Dr. David Etnier, a professor at the University of Tennessee internationally known for his research on freshwater fishes and caddis flies, died May 17 at the age of 84.

Etnier, known as “Ets” to his students, joined the UT faculty in 1965 and retired in 2001. Three aquatic insect species he helped discover are named after him, and those are just three of the more than 410 insect species he helped discover.

Last modified on Sunday, 21 May 2023 00:06

summer2021 jon michael mollishConservation Fisheries Executive Director Bo Baxter (second from right) leads young students in an inventory of Little River fish. The “Stream School” collaboration with Little River Watershed Association gets kids in creeks and rivers.  Michael Mollish /Tennessee Valley Authority

‘It’s very good for the soul.’ Bo Baxter and Conservation Fisheries focus underwater to save our Southern fishes.

This is the latest installment of an occasional series, Hellbent, profiling citizens and organizations who work to preserve and improve the Southern Appalachian environment.

KNOXVILLE  For more than 35 years, an obscure nonprofit headquartered here has grown into one of the most quietly successful champions of ecology and environmental restoration in the Eastern United States.

Conservation Fisheries, which occupies a 5,000-square foot facility near the Pellissippi State University campus on Division Street, has spent nearly four decades restoring native fish populations to numerous waterways damaged years ago by misguided governmental policies. 

In fact, the mid-20th century saw wildlife officials frequently exterminating key aquatic species to make way for game fish like trout.

“It was bad science, but it was the best they had at the time,” said Conservation Fisheries Executive Director Bo Baxter. “A lot of the central concepts of ecology, like food webs and communities, were not developed back then.”

Last modified on Monday, 01 May 2023 14:13

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How to use free satellite data to monitor natural disasters and environmental changes

This story was originally published by The Conversation. Qiusheng Wu is assistant professor of geography and sustainability at University of Tennessee.

KNOXVILLE — If you want to track changes in the Amazon rainforest, see the full expanse of a hurricane or figure out where people need help after a disaster, it’s much easier to do with the view from a satellite orbiting a few hundred miles above Earth.

Traditionally, access to satellite data has been limited to researchers and professionals with expertise in remote sensing and image processing. However, the increasing availability of open-access data from government satellites such as Landsat and Sentinel, and free cloud-computing resources such as Amazon Web ServicesGoogle Earth Engine and Microsoft Planetary Computer, have made it possible for just about anyone to gain insight into environmental changes underway.

work with geospatial big data as a professor. Here’s a quick tour of where you can find satellite images, plus some free, fairly simple tools that anyone can use to create time-lapse animations from satellite images.

Published in News, Earth, STEAM
Last modified on Thursday, 16 March 2023 17:04

Knox County mayor honors women leaders in STEAM all month

 

KNOXVILLE — Knox County Mayor Glenn Jacobs is observing Women’s History Month throughout March by sharing videos each Wednesday highlighting time spent in different Knox County Schools’ Science, Technology, Engineering, Art and Math (STEAM) classrooms taught by female teachers.

The March 15 video features a visit with South Doyle High School STEM/Computer Science and 2022 KCS Secondary Teacher of the Year Katie DeVinney who was teaching a class on the principles of advanced manufacturing and practical design. 

“I hope out of courses like this, that young women are able to see the opportunities available in sectors of the economy like advanced manufacturing and hopefully pursue those,” Jacobs said in a press release.

DeVinney is a 10-year educator who began her career as a foreign language instructor but was inspired by her husband who started the Robotics program at South Doyle High School, to switch paths. 

“I just love it. It’s so much fun to see the excitement in kids when they get to take something that they designed on this computer and then hold it in the real world. It’s the coolest process I have ever seen so that’s kind of why I do it.” DeVinney said. 

Mayor Jacobs said celebrating women in STEAM is important for young girls because it shows them that women can succeed in technical fields — industry typically driven by men.

The mayor has already shared his visit with Hardin Valley Elementary STEM Educators Jessica Everitt and Jana Yra and his visit with West Valley Middle science teacher Bethany Saunders.

Later this month, he will share visits with Gibbs Middle School Art Teacher Dorothy Verbick and STEM Teacher Lauren Downs; as well as Karns Middle School Math Teacher Rebecca Layton.

— Knox County Mayors Office

Get a free virtual science lesson in the Smokies this Thursday

A rundown about science efforts in Great Smoky Mountains National Park is set for March 2.

You can learn about myriad scientific studies ongoing in the Smokies from the comfort of your own home.

The park and Discover Life in America are presenting this virtual event from 9 a.m. until 4 p.m. Register for free on Zoom.

Attendees will “learn about a wide variety of scientific topics, from natural history and weather to geology and more, from researchers currently working in the Smokies,” according to an announcement from DLIA.

The schedule is likely to change, but a tentative schedule is available on the DLIA website.

— Ben Pounds

327549472 642836650863409 3091744227317001155 nHigh school students from across East Tennessee got to check out the latest career offerings in fields like robotics and virtual reality at the Jan. 21 Big Orange STEM event.  JJ Stambaugh/Hellbender Press

The TN Lunabotics, science and sustainability get together at BOSS event

Updated March 2023 with notes from a reader:

My name is Allison, and I am a teaching volunteer with Students For Research. I am reaching out because our class found your website very useful while researching STEM resources that can help students discover the various aspects of science, technology, engineering and math. Many of our current students are interested in learning more about how topics associated with STEM work, especially in relation to online research, either for school or for their future careers. Your website ended up being featured by our students, so we wanted to notify you and say thank you!

As a part of the assignment, one of our students, Becky, did some research on her own time and found this informative page for more STEM using this resource. The team found it helpful as it provided guidance on how libraries can introduce children to STEM and continue to provide resources as they progress through their education. 

I was hoping you would be able to include this resource on your website, even if it's only for a short time. I think your other visitors might find it helpful, and it also helps our group of students cite appropriate resources and stay engaged whenever outreach yields positive feedback everyone can see. Please let me know if you would be willing to add it so I can share the exciting news with Sophie and the rest of her fellow students. I appreciate your help!

KNOXVILLE What do environmental, social and economic sustainability have in common?

There are numerous ways to answer that question, but for those who pay close attention to education or economics it’s an accepted fact that the future belongs to societies that invest heavily in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics). 

That’s why educators at all levels are pushing students towards those subjects at every opportunity, as was evidenced Jan. 21 at Big Orange STEM Saturday (BOSS) at the University of Tennessee.

About 150 high school students picked from communities across East Tennessee spent much of their Saturday at John C. Hodges Library, getting a first-hand taste of what awaits them should they choose to pursue careers in STEM through the UT system.

Last modified on Thursday, 30 March 2023 17:42
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