Scale in the Universe
Powers of Ten, Scientific Notation, Logarithms, Scale, Estimation
“How wide is the Milky Way Galaxy?” “How small is a carbon atom?” Such questions may sound simple, but their answers are virtually impossible to comprehend since nothing in our realm of experience approximates either of these measures. To grasp the magnitude of such dimensions is perhaps impossible, but it is relatively easy to express such dimensions by scaling up or down (expressing them in orders of magnitude greater or smaller) from things with whose dimensions we are familiar. An order of magnitude is the number of powers of ten contained in the number and gives a shorthand way to describe scale. An understanding of scale allows us to organize our thinking and experience in terms of size, and gives us a sense of dimension within the universe. Collaborate to represent powers of ten by including photos of the following in this (blank backup file)
NGSS Standards
Engage - How Big is the Universe?
Teacher: Watch: How to make an EdPuzzle Video [6:01]. Create an EdPuzzle of this Powers of Ten Video with 5 or more questions and/or annotations of various formats.
Student: Watch this video on scale in the universe: Powers of Ten Video. [9:35] and answer the EdPuzzle Questions.
Explore - How well can you estimate, rank, and organize?
If the Moon were a Pixel - If a scale is defined with the moon represented by a single pixel on your screen, predict far away do you think the Earth will be from the Sun.
Estimates and scales - Given these standard values, estimate the following in metric units: The length of your room and width of your room. Check your measures with LIDAR app such as Measure.
Organize this list of items from smallest to largest. To re-order the list, click on the row number and drag to the appropriate location.
Google Earth Overlay (KML) - Solar System Scale model. Change the scale for the earth (yellow square) in this spreadsheet of scale in the Solar System - Spreadsheet. Create a KML overlay showing the relative distances of the planets from the Sun, plotted on a map of your neighborhood.
Explain - Why do we use Logarithmic scales?
VIDEO - Why do we use Powers of Ten - Scale in the Universe [17:51]
Use the Scale in the Universe or UniverScale (Nikon) to compare the wavelengths of em radiation (Radio, microwave, IR, visible, UV, X-ray, gamma). Plot the frequencies and wavelengths of common forms of em radiation on linear and log scales. Why do we use log scales?
Graph this data in linear and log-linear formats. Provide a link to your plots and describe when we should use log scales.
Elaborate - Using Scientific Notation to Understand Scale and Magnitude
VIDEO - Scientific Notation [9:29]
Explain why mathematicians, scientists, engineers, and others who deal with very large and very small numbers use Scientific Notation? Estimate complex calculations using scientific notation.
VIDEO - Doing math with a slide rule [6:11]
Create a brief video showing how to do calculations with a Slide Rule.
Evaluate - How can we collaborate to represent scale in the Universe?
VIDEO: Developing an interactive formative assessment activity with Desmos [16:23]
Complete the Desmos activity assigned
Create your own Desmos activity and share the link.
VIDEOS: Watch the following videos to learn how to create your own activity
VIDEO: How to make an EdPuzzle Video [6:01].
Create an EdPuzzle of this Powers of Ten Video with 5 or more questions and/or annotations of various formats.
VIDEO: Creating a collaborative slide show: Powers of Ten [11:13]
As a class, create a Powers of Ten show that shows scale in the Universe from the smallest to the largest items ever observed. Example