Mystery Class Update: April 11, 2003
Today's Report Includes:
One Week and Counting
In just one more week, your Mystery Friends say they will
run out of clues. They're wondering if you have figured out where they are
located. Take a look at their latest clues and sunrise/sunset data below.
Are you any closer to uncovering their top-secret locations yet? Good luck!
Next Friday, April 18, we'll send the final set of clues, along with
the very important instructions and rules on how to submit your Mystery
Class answer. (Teachers, to give you a head start on these instructions
we're including an advance set for you below.)
Time Slipping
Away? Discussion of CQ #4
In last week's update, we asked "What do you notice in this week's
sunrise/sunset times for Mystery Classes #5 and #9? What do you think
happened? Why doesn't this change the photoperiod trend lines on your
graph for these Mystery Classes?"
The correct answer didn't slip past Wes, from Mrs. Lodge's E
Period Science class at RHAM Middle School in Hebron, CT:
"I noticed all the times went up about 1 hour. This happened because
Daylight Savings Time started. It did not affect the graph because they
still have the same amount of sunlight just at different times."
Right you are, Wes! Here's what happened from one week to the next at
MC #5 and #9. Both locations experienced a one hour adjustment or shift
in their times from the prior week. After weeks of having the sunrise
time grow earlier each week, suddenly the sunrise seemed to dramatically
"slip" later by almost an hour, and so did the sunset. Why?
Because daylight savings time started at these locations.
Why didn't this shift affect the photoperiod? Because the one hour shift
affected both sunrise and sunset equally. More importantly, however, is
the fact that regardless of what time we say it is, the sun stays up the
same amount of time.
Please note that in the coming weeks, due to daylight savings time starting
or ending, you may see similar one hour changes at other locations. Again,
remember that these changes will not affect the photoperiod.
Find Anything "Eggciting"?
Discussion of CQ #5
A Comic Balance?
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In last week's Update, we asked
you to describe the results of your egg balancing testing, and tell us whether
you were able to draw any conclusion "about whether eggs balance any
better on the Equinox than during the other four weeks of testing?"
Mr. Fahrendorf at Hillcrest Elementary School in Ellsworth, WI reported
that his Fifth Grade students "tested the egg balancing theory two
weeks before the equinox, on the equinox, and then two weeks after the
equinox. The results were the same for the three dates tested. On each
date, approximately half the students were able to balance eggs, the major
variable being the type of surface they were trying to balance the eggs
on. Our results would indicate that the idea of some type of 'cosmic balance'
being present on the equinox is false, at least in terms of balancing
eggs."
Astronomy expert Rod Nerdahl reached the same conclusion, calling this
story "one of the oldest pieces of seasonal folklore". Read
Rod's full explanation on the web.
This Week's Sunrise/Sunset Times
Remember, the secret Mystery sites recorded their times last Monday, the
same day you collected your own local sunrise/sunset data.
Journey North Mystery Class
Sunrise/Sunset Data
Data For: Monday, April 7, 2003
MYSTERY CLASS |
SUNRISE |
SUNSET |
#1 |
06:19 |
19:23 |
#2 |
06:19 |
18:48 |
#3 |
05:58 |
17:46 |
#4 |
05:39 |
18:04 |
#5 |
06:54 |
20:19 |
#6 |
06:59 |
19:19 |
#7 |
00:00* |
00:00* |
#8 |
06:21 |
18:28 |
#9 |
07:14 |
20:30 |
#10 |
05:29 |
17:44 |
* Journey North Mystery Class #7 reported 00:00
for their times and said "Still dark and cold all night and day!"
(Note: Military time is usually expressed without any punctuation.
We have used a ":" between the hours and minutes for clarity.)
CLUES
From Your Mystery Friends
Mystery
Class |
Clues
|
#1: |
"We
live in Orleans County." |
#2: |
"Our
city has a palace, named after a bird, which is said to be the only
royal palace in our country. It was the last residence of the king
and queen before we became a territory and later a state of our
country." |
#3: |
"Our
country's tallest mountain is just under 9,500 ft. An important
cultural ritual for many people is to remove a deceased family member
from their grave years after they have died, and to wrap them in
new shrouds or clothes, and then return them to their grave. This
ritual is accompanied by a festival of great exuberance and joy,
with food and music."
|
#4: |
"Our
country is said to have become the first black republic in the early
1800's, after revolution by former slaves who declared their independence
from another country. Most of the people here are one of these three
religions: Catholic, Protestant or Vodou."
|
#5: |
"Our
city is located in the north of our country. There is a large 'gasbulb'
or gas reserve beneath the province where my city is located."
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#6: |
"Although
English is our national language, many other languages are spoken
here such as Jola, Fula, Wollof, and Mandinka. We border only one
other country, and that country was in the World Cup in 2002. If
you visit our country from June to October, bring an umbrella." |
#7: |
"If
you visit us here, leave your animal identification book at home.
There are no living animals that can survive here, except for
humans. The average annual temperature here at this secret location
is about -50 Celsius, and generally ranges between about -21 Celsius
in the summer and about -78 Celsius in the winter.
"The extremely arid environment limits annual snowfall, however,
a relatively constant wind speed of 5 - 15 knots compounds the
accumulation and accounts for the heavy snow drifting common to
this site. These photos show the things you might find in a closet
here, and a little outdoor recreation I've seen here too. "
|
#8: |
"A Nobel Peace Prize winning doctor built his hospital and
leper colony about a 4 hour drive away from here."
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#9: |
"Our
country is divided into about 22 regions, and 100 departments (four
of the departments are overseas); and our city is the capital of
our department."
|
#10: |
"Our
location sits on the Pacific Ocean, and occupies more than 40,000
hectares. People come from around the World to experience and study
our plants, birds, mammals, reptiles and overall biodiversity."
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Important Rules
for Preparing Your Answer
When you submit your students' answer on April 25, it is essential that
you follow the instructions and rules. We'll post the full instructions
again next week on April 18, but to get you focusing on this early, we're
giving them today as well.
As teachers who give directions and instructions yourself, we know that
you understand the importance of carefully reading and following directions.
Now it's your turn! Please read and follow the directions below carefully
SO THAT YOU SUBMIT YOUR ANSWERS PROPERLY:
Advance Preview--How to Submit Your
Answer: Instructions and Checklist
To submit your answer, you will be following the same steps as when you
answer a Challenge Question, plus a few additional steps.
Use this list of Instructions as a Checklist, and check it twice before
sending in your answer. Good Luck!
Checklist:
YOU MUST COMPLETE STEPS 1-10 |
___1. |
Send
your answer in the body of an E-mail (NO Attachments)
to:
jn-challenge-mclass@learner.org |
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___2. |
In the
Subject line write: Challenge Question #6 |
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___3. |
In
the Subject line you MUST also
tell us your GRADE LEVEL.
EXAMPLE--your
Subject Line should look like this:
Challenge
Question #6, GRADE ____
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___4. |
In
the body of the message, tell us who you are (teacher name, school
name, etc) and then answer this question:
Challenge
Question #6:
"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:
a. The name of city/town/borough.
b. The name of country.
c. Its latitude and longitude
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___5. |
Give
your answer for all 10 secret Mystery locations in ONE E-Mail
message. |
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___6. |
Doublecheck
your answer before sending! After you've submitted your answer, you
may not change your answer and send it in again. |
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___7. |
Teachers
with several separate classes participating should submit a separate
E-mail answer for each of their separate classes. Be
sure to identify which specific class the answer is from (i.e. "Ms.
Johnson's 1st hour class", or "Ms. Johnson's 4th hour
class", etc) |
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___8. |
Don't
forget: Because we judge the contest by Grade Level, you
MUST tell us YOUR GRADE LEVEL. If you do
not include your grade, we will judge your answer with the 12th grade
level answers. |
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___9. |
DEADLINE
APRIL 25: To be fair to everyone, any answers sent
after that date will not be eligible for the contest.
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___10. |
Congratulate
yourself and your students on a job well done! You have worked very
hard and come such a long way from the beginning of this Activity.
Let us know what you think about the journey! |
Clues Calendar:
Plan Ahead and Mark Your Calendars
Here's the 2003 Mystery Class Schedule so you know what to expect from Journey
North. Please be sure to plan ahead.
Mystery
Class Calendar 2003 |
The Next Mystery Class Update Will Be Posted
on April 18, 2003
Copyright 2003 Journey
North. All Rights Reserved.
Please send all questions, comments, and suggestions to our feedback form
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