This is the weather station box that I was talking about http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/lthiery/apitronics-wireless-platform?ref=live

Dividing up the research...

Hi Team members and parents,

    At our last meeting we spent some time discussing our project and how we might divide up our initial research.  Here is what we came up with:

J.L    1)  Does Rolla experience tornadoes?  How often?  Have they caused much damage or deaths?

David  2)  How are people currently warned about tornadoes?  Where do the announcements come from?  Who activates the warning sirens?

Luke   3)  How does a tornado form?  Are there things that help predict when one will form?  

Brooke  4) Does air pressure have anything to do with it?  How is air pressure measured? 

Katie and MacKenzie  5)  Would taking a tour of a TV station's weather department help us?  The closest one would be KRCG, Channel 13 in Jefferson City.  Would talking to weather spotters help us?  Does anyone know one?

Nathaneal and Ryan  6) How many people carry cell phones?  In a town the size of Rolla, about 20,000 people, what percentage might have one?  Would one of the cell phone companies (Verizon, AT&T, for example) give some estimates on this? Is it possible to use cell phones to measure air pressure?    

Everyone keep track of these...  7)  What potential obstacles or problems might we encounter with this project?  

8)  Perhaps you have thought of something related to this project that I haven't!  Go for it!

Parents,  if possible please help your child find resources   Be sure to share your answers, research, links, videos, etc. with everyone using the blog rollaregional.blogspot.com

Please ask if you need more info.  I know this is somewhat abbreviated...

Thanks,

Mrs. Williams

Hi ___________ (something)  Team!

Hopefully everyone felt that today's meeting was productive, both on the project and for the board strategy.

     I just wanted to give everyone an update about what was discussed about the project.  Just to remind everyone, the project consists of choosing a community, identifying what natural disasters can affect it, choosing a problem it has in preparing for, during, or in rebuilding after a natural disaster occurs, and finally  arriving at a solution for that problem. 

       In order to make good use of time and energy, the planning team presented an idea for each team to consider along with their own ideas of what to pursue.  After some discussion, our team decided to go with that idea.  It was recognized that what we lose in being creative in coming up with what to research will be gained in time spent actually working on it, especially since we only have 2 months or so.

       The general idea:   Is there a way to use cell phones to collect data in a more localized area which will better predict tornadoes (direction and intensity) to aid people in moving out of the path of the tornado or taking cover, and then use cell phones to distribute that information back to those affected?  It was decided that our team (which will need a name at some point) will work on the data collection end of this project, and the other team will work on the distribution of that analyzed information.  This will be the first time both teams will be working on a project together, but on different aspects.

        So, to get us started, there are several subjects we will want to find out more information about.  Here are some to get us started:

1)  Does Rolla experience tornadoes?  How often?  Have they caused much damage or deaths?

2)  How are people currently warned about tornadoes?  Where do the announcements come from?  Who activates the warning sirens?

3)  How does a tornado form?  Are there things that help predict when one will form?  

4) Does air pressure have anything to do with it?  How is air pressure measured?  Is it possible to use cell phones to do this?    

5)  Would taking a tour of a TV station's weather department help us?  The closest one would be KRCG, Channel 13 in Jefferson City.  Would talking to weather spotters help us?  Does anyone know one?

6) How many people carry cell phones?  In a town the size of Rolla, about 20,000 people, what percentage might have one?  Would one of the cell phone companies (Verizon, AT&T, for example) give some estimates on this?

7)  What potential obstacles or problems might we encounter with this project?  

8)  Perhaps you have thought of something related to this project that I haven't!  Go for it!

I would like for each team member to pick one of the above to research or work on.  Siblings can work together if they want. Please say which one you are working on so we won't be repeating work.  Also, this way I will know if everyone is using the blog. Be sure to share your answers, research, links, videos, etc. with everyone using the blog rollaregional.blogspot.com

Happy Researching!

Mrs. Williams