Cool STEM Careers
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One of the things that drew me most to a unit focused on engineering in the fields of biology, health, and medicine is the ability to expose my students to even more opportunities available to them through STEM careers. My students are knowledgeable about many careers in science and mathematics, but often don't gain as much exposure to careers in technology and engineering. My female students in particular often shy away from showing interest in STEM careers. I found two websites to meet this problem called Engineer Your Life (http://www.engineeryourlife.org) and Engineer Girl (http://www.engineergirl.org).
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Edheads
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What is Edheads?
Edheads is a non-profit organization that provides free high-quality Internet activities educational activities for teachers and students. I've already found that this innovative and unique learning experience was highly motivating for my students. It makes hard-to-teach and difficult science, technology, engineering, and math concepts understandable and exciting for students. And by promoting exploration beyond the classroom we, as teachers, can increase life-long interest in science and science careers. This site is growing rapidly as more funding becomes available, so continue to check it regularly for brand new activities.
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Bringing Edheads into the Classroom
All the activities at the Edheads site also have connections to National and State standards under each of the activities teacher section. You can look for these standards under the heading "Teacher's Guide" for each activity. The Teacher's Guide also contains recommended grade levels, tips for using the site with students, student handouts, quiz questions and answers, class discussion questions, and wonderful follow-up activities. This is also a glossary available for each activity to build student vocabulary.
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Students can complete these activities by working individually or in groups of two o three. Please note: These activities do depict real surgeries and several contain graphic photographs and procedures. Some students may feel queasy during these activities. As a result, students should be closely monitored while experiencing these activities, especially when experiencing this site for the first time. Below you will find a variety of recommended activities for students to try out using a computer lab or mobile computer lab in your classroom. You might also find it helpful to assign some of these activities as extension activities for students to try at home.
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Musculo-Skeletal System Repair and Regeneration Activities
Each of the following activities will allow students to play the role of surgeon. Students will learn about a variety of procedures patients undergo each and everyday. At the same time they will gain an understanding of medical technology, and health risks and benefits to each surgery.
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Choose the Prosthetic – Students become orthopedic surgeons as they assist a doctor in selecting the appropriate knee replacement and perform surgery on five patients.
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Virtual Hip Replacement Surgery – Students take on the role of a surgeon and complete a hip replacement surgery.
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Virtual Hip Resurfacing Surgery – Students again act as a surgeon and perform a hip resurfacing surgery.
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Virtual Knee Replacement Surgery – Students become surgeons and aid in a total knee replacement surgery.
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Cardiovascular System Repair and Regeneration Activities
Aortic Aneurysm Surgery – In this activity, students help Dr. Dixon repair a weakened aorta using grafts by performing an abdominal aortic aneurysm surgery.
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Stem Cell Heart Repair – Student compare two different stem cell medical therapies to see if they can be used to repair the human heart. This research is currently in clinical trials to be approved for further use by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Students help determine which therapy will produces the best result for patients.
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The below Create a Stem Cell Line activity is a great way for students to gain background knowledge on stem cells if you do not cover this topic in your classroom. If you do cover stem cells then it is a great re-teaching or refresher activity. I highly suggest having students complete it if you plan to use the Stem Cell Heart Repair activities in your classroom. The other activity Stem Cell Transplant is a great extension activity and has student see how stem cells are currently being used to treat leukemia. These three stem cell activities can be used together or individual as you see best to meet the needs and interests of your students. Each activity provides students with examples of how stem cells are currently being used and it also sheds light on future areas of impact for stem cells in human medicine.
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Create a Stem Cell Line – This activity is an introduction to stem cells. It explains what they can do and teaches students the vocabulary used by stem cell biologists.
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Stem Cell Transplant – Students apply their knowledge of stem cells to help scientists perform a stem cell transplants.
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Other Edhead Activities Related to Engineering in Biology, Health and Medicine
The following activities relate to the field of engineering in biology, health, and medicine, and would serve as extensions or expansions of my current unit topic, which focuses specifically on the human musculo-skeletal and cardiovascular system.
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Deep Brain Simulation – Students perform brain surgery and help Dr. Mei cut, probe, and drill into the brain in order to help her patient cope with Parkinson's Disease.
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Nanoparticles and Brain Tumors – Students help develop nanoparticles with Dr. Winter. By using these extremely small particles Dr. Winter hopes to find a way to mark brain tumors so doctors can better see them during diagnosis and surgery. Therefore this nanoparticle must be magnetic, florescent, and small enough to pass the blood brain barrier.
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Sickle Cell DNA – Students can help a family determine if they might be a genetic carrier for sickle cell anemia, which is a genetic mutation of blood cells.
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COSI Surgical Suite: Total Knee Replacement Video Conference Program
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Columbus, Ohio's Center of Science and Industry (COSI) seeks to inspire future scientists, inventors, and dreamers. They offer an amazing opportunity for students to experience a real surgery in real time through the COSI Surgical Suite: Total Knee Replacement Video Conference Program. Students can watch a surgery through videoconference equipment and then ask questions to the surgeon and other medical personnel throughout the surgery. More information is available at this URL: http://www.cosi.org/educators/educator-ivc/item/total-knee-replacement#. There is a cost associated with the video conference of anywhere from $285-$325, but this cost does include a kit of materials so students can conduct both pre- and post-activities such as building a knee joint, diagnostic x-rays, treatment options, and suture knot tying.
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NY Med
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The program
NY Med
has become a hit primetime show on the ABC television network. This unique reality show gives an in-depth look at medicine through the eyes of some of New York's top surgeons and their patients. The show offers a mix of scheduled procedures and ER cases from the straight from the streets of one of America's most violent cities. ABC posts full episodes for viewing on the NY Med section of their website (http://abc.go.com/shows/ny-med).
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The episode "Doctors Work to Save the Lives of Their Patients" offers direct connections to this unit on repair and regeneration of the human musculo-skeletal and cardiovascular system.
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For example, one of the patients was told by a previous surgeon that she was inoperable due to the large tumor on her heart. Dr. Girari attempts surgery that others say is impossible and uses new medical techniques while doing so. Another patient suffered from a sudden stroke while on vacation with his family and Dr. Oz performs surgery to repair a hole in his patient's heart.
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Another episode, "The Frontlines of Life Saving," shows how innovative surgery is used to repair a ruptured aorta. Viewers also see a kidney transplant and discover how donors are often found.
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Either of these episodes would serve as great real-world connections for students. Students often get fixated on the soap-opera medical shows and don't see the real drama in medicine itself. I believe NY Med will allow some students to really connect with biology, medicine, and health.
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Prosthetic Party
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Through this activity students have the ability to put there own biomedical engineering ideas to the test. Students can work together in small teams of two or three students to create models of prosthetic lower legs. Each team should seek to create the best proshetic leg possible using household materials.
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Materials
Students should have access to a yardstick, scissors, duct tape. For the leg structure students could use: plastic pipes, metal pipes, cardboard tubes. For comfort students could add: sponges, bubble wrap, cardboard. For life-likeness: bath towels, pans, shoes (students can use their own). And for attachment: string, rope, or twine.
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Procedure
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1. Divide students into groups of two or three.
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2. Conduct a pre-activity discussion, in which students brainstorm prosthetic materials and qualities of a good prosthetic.
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3. Compare and contrast the engineering design process to the scientific method.
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4. Give students time to brainstorm the design of their lower leg prosthetic.
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5. Groups should decide which teammate the prosthetic will be made for and materials should fit to where the student's knee bends. Have each group choose one teammate for whom to make the prosthesis. So that the prosthesis fits him/her, measure that student's lower leg from where it bends at the knee.
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6. Allow students to use materials to design a strong, stable, comfortable, and life-like lower leg prosthetic.
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7. Once all groups are finished designing their prototype they should present their prosthesis to the rest of the class. During their presentation, students should explain their design process, the relational behind their materials, and demonstrate its strength by having the student walk with it.
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Broken Bones and Biomedical Materials
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Another activity to get students involved and using the engineering design process is having them design a cast. The problem for this activity is a fellow 7
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grade student has broken his fibula. The cast he has is extremely itchy and he still has five more weeks before the bone in his leg heals. He would like the class of engineers to help him design a new cast to fix the problem. A fun way to get the students excited about this hands-on project is to actually create a hand written letter from a make believe student asking for help from the Engineers at "Casts R Us." Another key feature to this activity is creativity. Students will be given everyday materials, but they can use the materials to represent any material they want, even materials that have not yet been developed. As long as students defend and describe the properties of the materials they choose they should get credit.
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Materials
This project can be completed with Play-Doh, Popsicle sticks, recyclable materials (fabric, cotton, egg cartons, toilet paper or paper towel roles, toothpicks, plastic bottles, milk cartons, rubber bands, straws, plastic tubing), poster board, markers, and a scale.
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Procedure
1. Review with students the job of biomedical engineers and introduce the problem for the engineers at "Casts R Us."
2. Explain to students that they will have to construct a prototype of cast that is less than 300 grams, be stable enough to hold a "broken bone," and must seek to solve the initial problem of itchiness. Students can have the freedom to bring in their own materials from home if they wish. Remind students they can use materials to represent other materials they invasion or brainstorm, but they must explain their rationnel.
3. Give students time to brainstorm their cast, provide paper for sketches to be made, and allow students to begin constructing their prototypes.
4. Since prototypes can be designed with materials students create in their heads the project should be physically evaluated simply for meeting the mass requirements and stability.
5. The final portion of the evaluation comes from their ability to communicate their solution to the rest of the co-workers and their boss (you) at "Casts R Us." Explain to students how important it is for engineers to be able to share their ideas with others. Students should create a poster presentation and 3-5 minute sales pitch of their cast prototype.
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Poster Project
To share their cast prototype with the class students should create a poster to explain their design. The following topics could be included on the poster: engineering design process, problem the group was trying to solve, sketches of the design, description of the prototype, list of materials, description of materials (mass, flexibility, strength), evaluation and analysis describing how cast solves original problem, and possible improvements.
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