Not a Drop             

From parched fields to buckling pavement, drought has hammered the nation. It also poses new challenges for the agricultural, civil, environmental, hydro, and other engineers who design and build America's infrastructure. Bioengineered crops or smarter irrigation systems can't make it rain. But they may divert disaster if July's record heat becomes our "new normal." This month's activity will make a splash with your hydrologists. Waste not, want not.  

In this week-long activity, student teams in grades 5 - 7 study the effects of evaporation by observing and measuring the ongoing evaporation of water in pans. They then assess what factors may affect evaporation, including the addition of soil and plants to the water.  

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RELATED LESSONS:

Build a Solar Still (Grades 3-8)

Way to Flow (Grades 6-12)

MORE LESSONS:

Grades K-5  |  Grades 6-8  |  Grades 9-12

Feature: Turning Air into Water

In a world increasingly affected by climate change, unexpected droughts are a harsh reality for many farmers whose livelihoods depend on regular rainfall. That's why Edward Linacre, an industrial design graduate student from Swinburne University of Technology in Australia, decided to invent a device that can literally harvest water from thin air.

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A Human-Powered Drill for Clean Water

The Future of (Urban) Farming

Project CANDLE is a partnership to Create an Alliance to Nurture Design in Lighting Education. It is a collaboration between Penn State University, the International Association of Lighting Designers (IALD) Education Trust, and lighting industry partners. Activities include travel awards that expose students to career opportunities in lighting; the mentorship of a future lighting educator through the IALD Future Lighting Educator Fellowship; an annual Lighting Industry Advisory Group (LIAG) Roundtable; and outreach to high school students.

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