This document provides instructions for students to work on solving a human impact problem. It discusses the design process scientists use to address problems by defining the issue, collecting and interpreting data, and identifying solutions. As an example, it describes how discarded tires can be used to build houses to address the problems of tire stockpiling and lack of affordable housing. Students are directed to choose a problem to research with their partner and collect data on it in the library the next day. They will then present their findings.

1. PHYSICAL SCIENCE
Human Impacts

2. Bell Ringer
Think about a Human Impact problem that you would
like to solve. Feel free to browse the bulletin board for
ideas if you don’t have any of your own!
Write down the problem that you have chosen to work
on, Discuss it with your shoulder partner. If you agree on
the problem, you are on track! If you disagree, write
down what the disagreement centers on, and we’ll talk
about it!

3. Objectives ForToday:
•Today’s essential questions:
1.) How do we go about solving difficult
worldwide issues?
2.)How do we reduce the severity of these
impacts?

4. Agenda/Announcements
•Bell Ringer
•Creating a design solution
Announcements:
Remediation and Retakes available today after
4:30,Tomorrow,Thurs and Fri till 5:30 or later.
BRING HEADPHONES to the Library tomorrow.Write
that in your agenda, or wherever you keep reminders…

5. Design Process Refresher
•THE PROCESS:
•When scientists want to solve a problem, they need to
•define the problem
•Once a problem is defined, scientists must
•collect data
•Once data is collected, it must be
•interpreted to gain an understanding of the nature of the
problem
•Once data has been collected and interpreted
•corrective action must be identified and applied

6. REAL Scientists don’t Have to be old crusty nerds...
•In the following clip, follow along with your observation
notes as you listen to 19 yr old Boyan Slat tackle a
worldwide human impact problem.
•Some background: The Great Pacific Garbage Patch is the
name given to the biggest garbage patch. In reality, there
are 5.The GPGP is larger than the state of texas. It is killing
large amounts of wildlife as it festers under the sunlight in
the ocean.

8. Example Project:
•Example Ideas: EARTH SHIPS
•Pollution:
•Problem – Discarded tires don’t biodegrade, build up over time
and give mosquitoes places to breed

9. Example Project:
•Data:
•About 27 million scrap tires (9.3%) are estimated to be disposed of
in landfills or monofills
•In 1994, the estimated number of scrap tires in stockpiles in
the US was 700 to 800 million
•Tires typically don’t break down, although toxic
components of them can leach out into the groundwater
over time.

10. Example Project:
•Interpretation of data:
•Tires will continue to pile up unless a way is found to remove them
in a way that doesn’t further harm the environment.
•Tires must be shielded from the elements to prevent leeching of
chemicals into the environment
•This means that my solution needs to find a way to
take tires OUT of landfills in a creative way that
shields them from the environment

11. Example Project:
•Solution:
•Using discarded tires to build low-cost, environmentally friendly
housing
•This removes tires from landfills, encases them in cement and
provides low cost housing

12. FORTOMORROW:
•You and your partner will pick a human impact to research
and will collect data tomorrow.You need your notebook to
collect data.
•If you want to use an online method to keep track of your
sources (edmodo, online corkboards, word documents
saved to your Z drive…) that is OK, but if you lose your
data, you will get a zero for this standard…something to
keep in mind.

13. FORTOMORROW:
•We will meet HERE INTHIS CLASS and then walk down to
the library.You will sit with your shoulder partner that you
will be presenting with.
•We will also be thereThursday – groups that finish early can
practice and finish their presentations in the hallway.
Markers and scissors will be provided.

14. FORTOMORROW:
•You will not be able to use the computers until you and your
partner have decided on a problem that you would like to
research.Take the time you have now to:
•Brainstorm what problem you would like to work on
•Think of questions that you will need to find answers to in
order to pull the data that you will need.