Science in Motion Offers Summer Science Teacher Workshops

The Westminster College Science in Motion Program at Westminster College is sponsoring workshops for teachers in biology, chemistry, and physics June 12-14 from 8 a.m.-3:30 p.m.

Each workshop is free and includes a continental breakfast, lunch, and participants earn six hours a day toward Act 48 credits.

The biology subjects include such experiments as electrophoresis of normal and sickle hemoglobin, DNA fingerprinting, determination of unknown proteins, pond organisms, Gram stain of Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria, simulating blood typing, effects of antibiotics on bacteria, and more.

Participants of the chemistry workshop will check the microdensity of plastics, analyze mouthwash using a drop counter, determine the Avogadro constant using a fuel cell, determine the caffeine in beverages, and more.

The physics agenda includes circular motion and centripetal force, speed of sound, wave motion in a vibrating string, or the energy of a tossed ball, and more.

In addition to providing workshops for educators, the Science in Motion program brings vans equipped with state-of-the-art laboratory equipment and experiments to area Pennsylvania school students. The Pennsylvania Department of State funds this project through the Higher Education Basic Education Science and Technology Partnership.

Contact Bernard Durkin, director of the Science in Motion program at Westminster College, at (724) 946-6295 or e-mail durkinbm@westminster.edu for more information. To view the details of these workshops and complete a registration form, visit www.westminster.edu/sim.

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