Riccardo's Science Blog

Summary:  Galaxies come in three different forms, spiral, elliptical, and irregular. Spiral galaxies have a distinct winding or twisting shape. The Milky Way galaxy (above) is an example of a spiral galaxy. Elliptical galaxies have more of a spherical shape and look similar to circles. Irregular galaxies look unique compared to spiral and elliptical galaxies, hence their name. Irregular galaxies appear misshapen and lack a distinguishable form because they are within the gravitational influence of other galaxies close by. During nuclear fusion, four hydrogen atoms fuse into one helium atom. This makes hydrogen the most common chemical element in stars. When the core of a star starts losing Hydrogen, the star begins to collapse. Black holes form from the collapse in the core of a supernova. S&EP: Analyzing Data:  I used tables to display and analyze data on different planets, noticing the differences and similarities between them. I no...

Summary : Stress takes a variety of forms. Some stress happens as the result of a short-term event such as having an argument with a loved one. Other stress happens due to recurring situations, such as working a demanding job. When recurring situations cause stress that is both intense and sustained over a long period of time, this is known as chronic stress. Even though all stress triggers physiological reactions, chronic stress is a big problem because of the significant harm it can do to the body and the brain. When someone experiences a stressful event, an area of the brain that contributes to emotional processing sends a distress signal to the hypothalamus. This area of the brain functions like a command center, communicating with the rest of the body through the nervous system so that the person has the energy to fight or flee. This “fight-or-flight” response is responsible for the physical reactions most people correlate with stress including increased heart ...

15) What type of tide would this arrangement of earth-moon-sun create?  My answer: Spring tide. Correct answer: The correct answer is spring tide. This is the correct answer because when the moon and sun are aligned, they combine their gravitational pulls. This is also why spring tides have the biggest difference between the high tides and low tides. On the mastery quest, this answer was marked wrong even though it was correct. 17) Why do we experience the changing of seasons on the earth? My answer: Rotation of the Earth Correct answer: The correct answer is the tilt of the Earth's axis because when the Earth revolves around the Sun, the axis affects the position of the northern and southern hemispheres in relation to the sun, which causes a change in the seasons. 37) What is your science teacher's full name?  My answer: Mariana Garcia-Serrato Correct answer: The correct answer is Mariana Garcia Serrato. This is the correct answer because in all other ...

Summary : The relationship between frequency and pitch is that frequency influences pitch. If there is a low frequency, there will be a low pitch. A wave changes with a change in the pitch because the higher the pitch the shorter the wavelength. The appearance of the wave changes with a change in the volume because the louder the sound, the larger the amplitude. When you play higher notes, the waves are closer together. Yet, when you play louder, the waves are taller. Backward-Looking: How much did you know about the subject before we started? Before we started this unit on musical waves I knew next to nothing about how musical instruments worked. I knew you could tune them and amplify them but I didn't know that vibrations created sound and how these vibrations were made. Another thing I didn't know about this subject before we started was the difficulty of construction for some instruments and how much precision goes into making musical instruments. Inward-Looking: What...

Summary: The vibration of some device, such as a wire, drum, or reed, creates musical sounds. As well as moving air can be made to vibrate at certain frequencies. All of the devices involve a vibration of some source to create a musical sound. When you pluck or tap a wire of some sort, the vibration creates compression waves in the air, resulting in sound. When you strike the head of the drum, it causes it to vibrate and make a sound. In reality, the head of a drum is like a string in two-dimensions. You can also blow on things to create sounds. By blowing through or across a chamber of air you can create sound vibrations. The best example of this is whistling. You can also tune musical instruments to your desired pitch. By adjusting the tension of the wire, the frequency can be changed slightly until it is exactly at some set pitch. SP2 - Using Models: I created a model this week when my group and I started to create our musical instrument. We created a bass flute out of PVC p...

Summary : There are two types of signals, analog and digital. An analog signal changes in frequency and amplitude all the time in a way that matches the changes in the voice or music being transmitted. A digital signal has just two values, which we represent as 0 and 1. An analog signal varies in frequency and amplitude. A digital signal has two values, 0 and 1 (or ‘on’ and ‘off’). The signal is converted into a code using only the values 0 and 1. The signal becomes a stream of 0 and 1 values. These pulses are added to the electromagnetic wave and transmitted. The signal is received and then decoded to recover the original signal. Both analogue and digital signals can pick up unwanted signals that distort the original signal. Digital signals can be cleaned up in a process known as regeneration because each pulse must be a 0 or a 1, so other values can be removed. Analogue signals can be amplified, but the noise is amplified too. This is why digital signals give a...