It is Rocket Science!

15 June 2014Mr. David McCarthy, Director of Academics

What to do when AP exams are over and senior AP classes have a few more weeks still to go? Rocket science of course! In Mr. Tate’s AP physics classes, students design, build and launch rockets, applying the principles they have studied all year long in a fun final project. Meanwhile, in one of the chemistry AP classes students have constructed a greenhouse on campus. They have researched and designed a system to circulate water through plant-growing beds back to a tank that houses fish which then cycles the nutrients back to the plants. This method of agriculture is called aquaponics and it integrates a number of topics in chemistry, physics and biology. The physics of a solar array powering a battery which operates the pump involves calculation, estimation and engineering principles. The chemistry of the solar array, the lead-acid battery, the nutrient cycles and the buffering of pH are all being incorporated into a website that other students will be able to access via smart phones and a QR code from various stations inside the greenhouse. Big issues such as climate change, world hunger and the need for alternate energy sources are all part of our increasingly interconnected global society. Solutions to these huge problems will require teamwork, an engineering mind-set, and an appreciation of how systems function. Hands-on project based learning is an enjoyable and memorable way for students to develop these skills. Mr. David McCarthy, Director of Academics

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