Cornell Center for Materials Research

Research Experience for Teachers I 2002

2009 | 2008 | 2007 | 2006 | 2005 | 2004 | 2003 | 2002 | 2001 | 2000 | 1999

The 2002 Team-RET participants were (from left to right):

  • Gerald Meccariello - Cato-Meridian High School, Cato, NY
  • Ranald Bleakley - Weedsport High School, Weedsport, NY
  • Teresa Trupp - Union Endicott High School, Endicott, NY
  • Anne Casper - Nardin Academy, Buffalo, NY
  • Mona Steigerwald - Horseheads High School, Horseheads, NY

The teachers spent most of their time in CCMR's Shared Experimental Facilities. The Team-RET program also included opportunities for the teachers to attend research talks, meet with faculty members and graduate students, and tour other research facilities on the Cornell campus.

The 2002 Team-RET program ran from July 8 - August 16 and included the following activities:

  • "Introduction to Materials Science" (Dr. Alison Shull)
  • Exploration of Physics Demonstrations (Prof. Jeevak Parpia)
  • Spider Silk Research (Prof. David Zax and Post-doc Zhitong Yang)
  • "Applications of Elementary Mechanics in Biology and Medicine" (Prof. Rob Thorne)
  • Soft Condensed Matter Physics (Graduate students Gil Toombes and Marcus Collins)
  • Measuring the Radius of the Earth with a Tape Measure (Graduate student Bill Langin)
  • Rainbow Connection (Graduate student Thalia Mills)
  • Solar Cell with Blackberry Juice (Graduate students Deepak Shah and Simon Garcia)
  • Electron and Optical Microscopy Facility
  • Computing and PowerPoint Training
  • Science of Crystal Radios (Prof. Carl Franck)
  • Dr. Demo (Prof. Frank DiSalvo)
  • Tour of Cornell Nanofabrication Facility
  • Materials Facility
  • UHV-STEM Laboratory
  • Diffraction (Graduate student Aaron Fleet)
  • X-Ray Diffraction Facility
  • Tour of Physical Sciences Library
  • Tour of Cornell High Energy Synchrotron Source

Optional talks included:

  • "My 2 1/2 Years in Silicon Valley Start-Up" (Prof. James Engstrom)
  • "Polymers Meets Ceramics: Structure and Shape Control at the Nanometer Scale" (Prof. Uli Wiesner)

 

Research Experience for Teachers II 2002

Independent-RET: July 8- August 16, 2002

2002 saw six teachers participate in the Independent-RET program.

 

Claire Godlewski teaches sixth grade science and reading at Oneida Middle School in Schenectady, NY. During the summer she worked with Theoretical and Applied Mechanics Professor Petru Petrina and graduate student George Frey on creating a new fishing line for a local company, Cortland Line. Claire originally participated in the Team-RET program in 2001.

 

Mary Kay Hickey teaches Chemistry at Dryden Junior/Senior High School in Dryden, NY. During the summer she worked with Chemistry and Chemical Biology Professor D. Tyler McQuade and graduate student Steven Broadwater. In the lab, Ms. Hickey characterized how light interacts with a series of eight commercially available laser dyes. This was Mary Kay's first RET experience.

 

Ronald Hoodak teaches science in the New Visions Program at the Schuyler-Chemung-Tioga Board of Cooperative Educational Services (SCT BOCES) in Elmira, NY. During the summer he worked with Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering Professor A. Brad Anton on tibology. Ron originally participated in the Independent-RET program in 2001.

 

Sally Horak teaches seventh grade science at Cortland Junior/Senior High School in Cortland, NY. During he summer she worked with Chemistry and Chemical Biology Professor David Zax and postdoctoral associate Zhitong Yang on spider silk research. Sally originally participated in the Team-RET program in 2000.

 

Terri Husted teaches Math at DeWitt Middle School in Ithaca, NY. During the summer she worked with Materials Science and Engineering Professor Ulrich Wiesner and graduate student Phong Du. In her research Terri analyzed the grain size, defects, and angular distribution of the hexagonal hybrid structures she created the previous summer. Terri previously participated in the Team-RET program in 1999 and the Independent-RET program in 2001.

 

Jim Shannon teaches Chemistry at Pittsford Mendon High School in Pittsford, NY. During the summer he worked with Materials Science and Engineering Professor Emmanuel Giannelis and graduate student Daniel Schmidt on polymer nanocomposites. This was Jim's first RET experience.

 

At the end of the RET program, teachers are expected to develop a materials science related lesson plan. These lesson plans, which we refer to as modules, have been as varied as the teacher that have participated and have ranged in topic from geology to biodegradable polymers to balsa wood bridges. The full list of RET developed modules can be found on our RET Modules page.

 
Edited on: 17 August 2009 11:35 am