Mystery Class
Jim Gilbert


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Mystery Class

Tracking Changes in Photoperiod Around the Globe

Mystery Class Update: April 24, 1998

Today's Update Includes:


It's Finally Time To Make Your Guesses!
The race is on--the final sunrise/sunset data and clues have arrived and now it's your turn! Read the instructions carefully and see if you can figure out where each Mystery Site is hiding. Be sure to place your guess no later than Friday, May 1st.

The important instructions are below, but first, let's share a few words of thanks and appreciation for some of the people who helped put the Mystery Class together each week.

A Fond Farewell From And To Mrs. Berger's Class

Thank you Mrs. Berger's 5th Grade Class at East Hills School in NY!

"As the sun slowly sinks into the west, Mrs. Berger's class bids a fond adieu. Our large graph of the photoperiods for these sites came out stupendously. Learning how to subtract time measures was a challenge, what with borrowing 60 minutes from the hours column, but we did it! And what a charge to see all the lines meet at the equinox. Good luck to all of you on guessing where every site is!"


Hurray--three cheers to Mrs. Berger and her students for the terrific job of gathering the sunrise/sunset times each week! This is very hard work, and they did a great job all season long. We really appreciate all of your hard work and assistance. Thanks again!

  • If you'd like to drop a note of thanks to Mrs. Berger's class, you can reach them at: K12robzj@hofstra.edu or jberger@dorsai.org


Special Thanks And Black Holes
We'd also like to thank one of the "behind the scenes" contributors, Rod Nerdahl, Program Coordinator at the Minneapolis Planetarium. Rod helped keep our weekly sunrise and sunset listings "on time" by researching and providing standard sunrise/sunset and latitude/longitude data. Many thanks, Rod!

Check out the Planetarium's website below which is full of "Black Holes and Dinosaurs In The Dark Of Night"!

Thanks Also To...(Shhh, you know who you are! )
Of course, our final thanks go to all ten secret Mystery Sites for participating this year. You all worked very hard the whole season, and we'll tell the world more about you in just a few weeks. In the meantime, thanks again!


The Mystery Class Contest Begins
The race is on! Read the contest schedule and instructions below very carefully--good luck!

CONTEST SCHEDULE:
  • So that this contest is fair to everyone, your guess MUST be receivedby no later than Friday, May 1st.
  • On May 8th we'll identify all ten sites and announce contest winners.
  • On May 15th you will be able to "meet" each of the 10 sites, and see some great photos too!


How To Place Your Guess

IMPORTANT: To place your guess, carefully follow the same steps as when answering a Challenge Question, and be sure to list your guess for all 10 Secret Mystery locations in ONE message:

1.Send your Mystery Class guess by E-mail to: jn-challenge-mclass@learner.org
2.In the Subject line write: Challenge Question # 3
3.In the Body of the message tell us YOUR GRADE LEVEL and then answer this question:

Challenge Question # 3
"Where in the world do you think our 10 Mystery Sites are located?"

Your answer MUST include all of the following information about each Mystery Site:

  1. The name of city.
  2. The name of country.
  3. Its exact latitude and longitude

DON'T FORGET: Because we judge the contest by YOUR GRADE LEVEL, you must tell us your grade. If you do not include your grade, your answer will be judged with the 12th grade level answers.


*NOTE TO TEACHERS: Students sometimes focus heavily on "winning" the Mystery class contest, so please be sure to remind them that the contest portion is only a small part of this Activity. Also, we are aware that there is a wide range of grade levels participating, and we will factor that in during the judging.


Final Sunrise/Sunset Data
Here are the Final Sunrise/Sunset data for this week, and you'll also find another set of clues below.

Remember, these times were recorded on Monday, the same day you recorded your sunrise/sunset times.

Here's the final data:

Sunrise/Sunset Data

Data For: Monday, April 20, 1998

Mystery Class

Sunrise

Sunset

# 1

07:21

18:24

# 2

06:26

20:05

# 3

10:51

14:52

# 4

06:29

20:15

# 5

06:55

17:44

# 6

06:23

20:27

# 7

06:00

18:45

# 8

06:06

17:43

# 9

06:59

19:08

# 10

05:00

21:57


FINAL CLUES From Your Mystery Friends:

Read today's clues below carefully and see if you can figure out where each Mystery Site is hiding. These are the final clues of the contest--have fun and good luck!!

Mystery Class #:

# 1 In 1978 our city hosted several matches (i.e. kick-off and final) of our favorite
sport's world championships.

# 2 It's a town near the river "Danube".

# 3 Our town was founded in 1902 by an English sea captain, Sir Robert Falcon
Scott.

# 4 Our city has the largest population in the province, but is not the capital city.

# 5 Although the mountains in our country's interior get winter snow, our weather
is overall very mild. This is due to the huge oceans surrounding us that take
"all summer to heat up, & all winter to cool down ". Hence summer daytime
temps. peak at about 30C ( 90F), with winters about 10C(50F). Almost no
homes have a furnace or air conditioner ... they're not needed. However wood
fireplaces are common. It can get windy here however, but overall we get
LOTS of sun ( even in winter) to compensate... 1997 saw 2000 hours of
bright sun in our nearby city, with some regions getting 2500 hours.

# 6 Our school is on an American Air Force Base.

# 7 We live in a city that has the longest bridge in Asia and the longest escalator in
the world.

# 8 Our capital starts with an "H"

# 9 Our country was founded by Sir Stamford Raffles in 1819.

# 10 A Game and Fisheries Research Institute is situated in our village. They are
engaged in research work and do among other things some electric fishing
here.


The Next Mystery Class Update Will be Posted: May 1, 1998


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