Alabama Science in Motion

The Biggest Stories in Science and Technology from 2024 We’re closing out the year with a roundup of the science stories that stood out to our editors in 2024.

Infusing Native Culture into STEM and More: Spotlight on the Paris Gibson Education Center The garden at the Paris Gibson Education Center, an alternative high school in Great Falls, Montana, is much more than a spot where plants grow. ...

You still have 6 more days to nominate an AMAZING science teacher!
Nomination form: https://forms.gle/5vPmLmfSwc4ddU2E9
Nominations are due November 18, 2024.

For , check out some of the many resources we offer to share science with your family, students, and others.

Learn more from our NASA STEM team: https://go.nasa.gov/3CodIZC

We remember the first woman to be awarded a Nobel Prize, the first individual to be awarded two Nobel Prizes and still today the only individual with two Nobel Prizes in two different scientific categories: Marie Skłodowska Curie.

Curie was born in 1867.

Did you know that an artificial neural network is designed to mimic the brain?

Inspired by biological neurons in the brain, artificial neural networks are large collections of “neurons”, or nodes, connected by “synapses”, or weighted couplings, which are trained to perform certain tasks. An artificial neural network processes information using its entire network structure. The inspiration
initially came from the desire to understand how the brain works.

In the 1940s, researchers had started to reason around the mathematics that underlies the brain’s network of neurons and synapses. Another piece of the puzzle came from psychology, thanks to neuroscientist Donald Hebb’s hypothesis about how learning occurs because connections between neurons are reinforced when they work together.

Later, these ideas were followed by attempts to recreate how the brain’s network functions by building artificial neural networks as computer simulations. In these, the brain’s neurons are mimicked by nodes that are given different values, and the synapses are represented by connections between the nodes that can be made stronger or weaker. Hebb’s hypothesis is still used as one of the basic rules for updating artificial networks through a process called training.

At the end of the 1960s, some discouraging theoretical results caused many researchers to suspect that these neural networks would never be of any real use. However, interest in artificial neural networks was reawakened in the 1980s, when several important ideas made an impact, including work by this year’s laureates John Hopfield and Geoffrey Hinton.

Learn more about this year’s physics prize awarded for work on artificial neural networks: https://bit.ly/4gK57jl

Understanding the regulation of gene activity has been an important goal for many decades. If gene regulation goes awry, it can lead to serious diseases such as cancer, diabetes, or autoimmunity.

This year's Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine focuses on the discovery of a vital regulatory mechanism used in cells to control gene activity. Genetic information flows from DNA to messenger RNA (mRNA), via a process called transcription, and then on to the cellular machinery for protein production. There, mRNAs are translated so that proteins are made according to the genetic instructions stored in DNA. Since the mid-20th century, several of the most fundamental scientific discoveries have explained how these processes work.

In 1993, this year's Nobel Prize laureates published unexpected findings describing a new level of gene regulation, which turned out to be highly significant and conserved throughout evolution. They discovered microRNA, a new class of tiny RNA molecules that play a crucial role in gene regulation.

The 2024 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine has been awarded to Victor Ambros and Gary Ruvkun for the discovery of microRNA and its role in post-transcriptional gene regulation.

Learn more
Press release: https://bit.ly/3BiM2o9
Advanced information: https://bit.ly/3N6vAtK

APT presents a virtual professional development series for Media Literacy and STEM. These session will delve into the essential concepts of media literacy and ecomedia literacy, guide you in producing engaging educator-created media and designing impactful student media projects. Explore a variety of tools and platforms to ignite creativity, foster collaboration, deepen problem-solving skills, and explore effective techniques for media analysis to use in your lessons. You will also learn to assess student learning effectively through media-based projects. Participants can attend as many sessions as they wish.
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1OKcmfhaKkh5rCdk7JW7pL6EMtRCtosOn3i42S2n5Kyw/edit?usp=sharing

Have you been positively impacted by AMSTI?
We would love to hear your story!
Share it with us here:

https://wkf.ms/3Y01A9T

Great News! You have access to Plasma Games resources at NO cost to your school district. Our platform features a variety of interactive, game-based learning tools and exceptional curricular resources designed to save teachers time, excite students, and improve learning. These resources are proven to enhance motivation and confidence in chemistry, physical science, and
STEM courses. Join our virtual AMSTI training sessions to learn how to make the most of these engaging and effective tools. To register click on the registration link in the document. https://docs.google.com/document/d/1IWxWl73c3Zmhh9-XUSQrKVqnWk3SjowuFUTWnyBSu1s/edit?usp=sharing

QuantHub gives you teaching superpowers with comprehensive data literacy, analysis, and science activates and supporting resources. We offer an adaptive micro-learning platform tailored to ease the challenges of differentiated learning and standardized test preparation while preparing students for today's workforce. QuantHub courses align perfectly with state course of study across a multitude of classes, from mathematics and science to computer programming and career discovery. What do improved test scores, high-demand work skills, and smart decision-making have in common? Data Literacy! Join us for a quick update on the Alabama Data Literacy and Data Scholars programs facilitated by QuantHub. Gain a refresher on implementation strategies and product updates for classes. Talk with a member of the QuantHub team about the support you need for your best school year yet!
We have several insightful QuantHub virtual training opportunities for teachers in the coming weeks. Upcoming webinars include:

Integrating Data Literacy into Secondary Science Classes Using QuantHub
Thursday, August 22nd, 4PM - 5PM CDT

2b888e94-9a7e-489d-a840-561a65cd98f9@cb944f8c-80d1-4afa-8c94-6f9db64ee142" rel="ugc" target="_blank">https://events.teams.microsoft.com/event/2b888e94-9a7e-489d-a840-561a65cd98f9@cb944f8c-80d1-4afa-8c94-6f9db64ee142