Matt's Lab

The physics behind the tippe top toy have been the subject of studies by scientists for years - dating back to the early 1890s. The tippe top is spun just like any other top, but pulls a surprise stunt. The top flips over and spins on its stem when given a strong twist. Why does the tippe top flip over? What does this mean for anyone planning to make one on a 3D printer? Nobel Prize winners, Wolfgang Pauli and Niels Bohr, take a break with a tippe top at the 1954 inauguration of the Institute of Physics in Lund, Sweden. Early Top Patents The first patent for the top, listed as “Wendekreisel”, was filed in Germany by Helene Sperl in 1891. While the patent seems to describe the top’s inversion property, reproductions of the top have proved unsuccessful. The patent expired after one year because the fee wasn’t paid. During a trip to South America, Danish engineer Werner Østberg noticed kids spinning a small, round fruit. While spinning, the fruit would flip over (or...

A number of coding instruction books for kids are available, but what about fictional stories about kids who code? I take a look at two fictional book series for young coders that weave computer science concepts through tales of mystery, adventure, and teamwork. These books are great for older elementary students who love to read and are curious about technology. I’ve also thrown in a review of my favorite publisher of instruction books for budding coders. Girls Who Code In late August 2017, Girls Who Code , a non-profit organization, released a non-fiction coding book and the first two fiction books in a 13-book series. Book 1: The Friendship Code, written by Stacia Deutsch, takes Lucy, Sophia, Maya, and Erin through a cryptic mystery while they learn the value of persistence with coding and friendship. Reshma Saujani, CEO & Founder of Girls Who Code, explains that it’s difficult for girls to envision themselves as computer scientists when they aren’t often portrayed in...

Using SparkFun’s micro:bot kit and their gamer:bit breakout board, I programmed the micro:bot to be controlled by a second micro:bit microcontroller. The two micro:bits transfer data packets over low-energy Bluetooth antennae. The micro:bot can also be programmed to follow a line using its three line sensors and has the capability to control a couple of servos that come with the kit. The SparkFun moto:bit, also in the kit, breaks out the 21 pins on the micro:bit and sets it up to control DC motors and servos. Additional power is provided through a barrel power jack and four AA batteries nicely secured on the lower level of the micro:bot. The entire bot takes about 30 minutes to assemble. Programming it can take as long as you want… A moto:bit package can be added to Microsoft’s MakeCode micro:bit code editor . I used this package to control the micro:bot’s motors. If you have the gamer:bit, micro:bot, and a couple of micro:bits lying around, feel free to download my program to ...

SparkFun’s micro:arcade kit comes with the gamer:bit breakout board and some awesome, retro, arcade-style buttons and a joystick. Sliding your micro:bit microcontroller into a breakout board gives you access to all 21 pins on the micro:bit. The gamer:bit board connects some of those pins to additional game-controller-style buttons for navigation and action commands. With Microsoft’s MakeCode micro:bit code editor , I tinkered with a drop game program. Feel free to download, edit, or just play my program. It uses the gamer:bit package. Code

The benefits of learning programming or coding in schools are quickly becoming accepted by education professionals. As more studies point to the cross-curricular applications of computational thinking skills, teachers of all certifications and licenses are starting to seek out resources, coding instruction programs, and extra curricular opportunities to provide learners with the opportunity to learn these skills. Given this uptick in teaching computer science, it’s imperative that educators understand instructional approaches for coding. Let’s take a look at two different approaches and a third that I’d like to propose. Some Clarification Before we dive into coding instructional approaches, let me clarify a couple of important points. I strongly believe young learners should learn code and algorithmic thinking skills, but programming alone does not constitute computer science education. Therefore a true computer science education requires attention to more practices than jus...

I used the MicroPython editor to program a fireworks animation that controls the brightness of the LEDs as the firework explodes on the LED display. For young computer science students, this is a great introduction to text-based programming, arrays, and animating LEDs. Code # Display message and show pacman with firework option from microbit import * firework1 = Image("00000:00000:00000:00000:00200") firework2 = Image("00000:00000:00000:00200:00100") firework3 = Image("00000:00000:00200:00100:00000") firework4 = Image("00000:00000:00900:00000:00000") firework5 = Image("00000:07870:08580:07870:00000") firework6 = Image("60706:01210:72127:01210:60706") firework7 = Image("30503:00000:50005:00000:30503") firework8 = Image("10201:00000:20002:00000:10201") all_firework = [firework1, firework2, firework3, firework4, firework5, firework6, firework7, firework8] while True: if button_a.is_pressed(): ...

I attended the 2017 ISTE Conference in San Antonio where I had the privilege to explore the latest trends and movement in educational technology. New platforms for teaching computer science skills to new technologies, like virtual and augmented reality, are really taking off in education. But is that enough? Virtual & Augmented Reality Let me get these two technologies out of the way first. Virtual reality puts learners in another environment. When they put on VR goggles or use a smartphone with the popularly cost-efficient Google Cardboard , students are given access to new worlds and locations they might never get to explore in real life. Virtual reality, I believe, is still in its infancy, both in the consumer and educational markets. Currently in education, I see virtual reality used to take students on virtual field trips. They can explore national monuments, tour the Louvre in Paris, or visit animals deep in the Pacific Ocean. In addition to exploring our world, other ...