Awesome Tools !

Throughout the week students learned how to use various tools ranging from

a simple net to a complex GPS hand-held device. These tools made it possible for all

of us to either find, collect, record or measure anything desired. Below are a few of

these tools and a brief description of their function.

This black device is called a conductivity meter. When placed in water, it determined for us the temperature and conductivity of that specific area of water. When conductivity is measured, the machine determines the amount of energy ( in millisiemens) that is capable of passing betweeen the water. The white device is a pH tester. We used this device for measuring the pH of substances such as soil and water. pH is measured on a scale of 1-14. If a substance tests below 7 it is considered acidic and if a substance tests above 7 it is considered basic or alkaline.

This is a Global Positioning System (GPS). It serves as a location device that can determine your position, any where in the world, to within 5 to 10 meters. This accuracy is possible because of the GPS satellites orbiting earth. The GPS sends signals to the above satellites and the satellite then relays data back to the device. A GPS can also determine direction, speed, elevation and distance to certain waypoints. We marked many different locations throughout our lowland site so that we could return to that exact site later on.

This handlens was used to magnify any desired surface. It magnifies 10x the actual size so that students could observe the intricate detail of insects, plants or whatever was desired.

A student is using an increment borer. This device allows one to view the rings of a tree. The drill itself has a hollow end so that as one screws it further into the tree trunk, a small pencil like cylinder is left inside the drill. This can then be extracted from inside the drill. Once extracted, each of the rings (one ring=one year) can be seen. Rings of a tree can tell us many things such as age, past injuries, and annual climate determining quality of growth.

Newcomb's Wildflower Guide is one of the most popular wildflower guides. It is unique in that anyone can use it, regardless of qualification. It can be used by the amateur flower fanatic or can even be helpful to the experienced scientist. It is reknown for its user friendly database type format, yet acclaimed completeness. This guide helped us identify wildflowers in our area.