Huron Expositor, 2009-10-28, Page 17News
The Huron Expositor • October 28, 2009 Page 17
St. James class experiments with growing
tomatoes under `Mars -like conditions'
Dap Schwab
Consider them "Tomatonauts."
Angela Carter's Grade 7-8 class
at St. James School are participat-
ing in the T4matosphere project,
along with 11,000 classrooms across
Canada and the U.S., by studying
the germination process of tomatoes
subjected to "Mars -like" conditions.
Two packages of different types of
tomato seeds were sent to the class-
room. One contained regular toma-
to •seeds. The other contained seeds
that came from the Kennedy Space
Centre in Florida, where they were
exposed to a simulation of the Mars
atmosphere.
Carter and her students weren't
told which seeds were exposed to
Mars -like conditions and which
were ordinary tomato seeds, when
they planted them in two separate
plastic trays last week.
For the next few weeks, the stu-
dents will be recording their obser-
vations in journals to compare the
growth rates of the two types of
seeds.
They've also hypothesized which
seeds will grow faster, taking into
consideration the cold, barren atmo-
sphere of the Red Planet.
Students will water- the plants ev-
ery day except on weekends and en-
sure they get enough sunlight.
The'll also record the amount of
time it takes for each seed to suc-
cessfully germinate and send the re-
sults to the Zbmatosphere website.
The class will then be notified which
of the seed packages were the ones
exposed to Mars -like conditions.
The data compiled by the students
will then be added to information
collected by thousands of other
classrooms across the country that
participated in the experiment. Re-
searchers at the University of Guel-
ph will then produce a national re-
port based on analysis of the data.
The report will be used to help
scientists deal with problem of food
availability in space, which is a ma-
jor limiting factor in extended space
travel.
The tomato seeds were subjected
to Mars -like conditions because, ac-
cording to the Tomatosphere web-
site, the planet "will be the next
major global space program after
the International Space Station and
the establishment of a base on the
Moon."
The website also says "Canada is
positioning itself to play a signa-
ture role in the exploration of Mars
and in the provision of life support
and closed environment systems for
space travel."
Carter says she found out about
the project while browsing the In-
ternet, looking for a science experi-
ment her students could take part
in.
"Science is a love of mine and the
idea of hands-on experience is inte-
gral to their learning," Carter says.
"The whole idea is that not every
kid will get to be an astronaut, but
they can help people get to Mars."
Sometime next year, the class will
take the experiment a step further,
when they're provided with two more
sets of packaged tomato seeds.
Addressing Risks in Today's Landscape
You're invited to a seminar with
special guest speaker, Ken McCowan
from Credential Financial Strategies
Inc. Refreshments and door prizes will
be provided.
When: Nov 3, 7pm-8:30pm
Where: Betty Cvrdno Memorial Center
317 Huron St, Clinton
Cost: Non-perishable donation
to the local foocibonk
Credential'
-Financial Strategies
Credential Financial Strategies Inc. is a member company under Credential Financial Inc.,
offering financial planning, life insurance and investments to members of credit unions and
their communities.tredential is a registered mark owned by Credential Financial Inc. and
is used under licence.
4641
OP 'United
Communities Credit Union
Again, one
package will con-
tain ordinary to-
mato seeds. The
second package
will contain seeds
that have been
on the Interna-
tional Space Sta-
tion for a period
of six months
with Canadian
astronaut Robert
Thirsk.
Carter's class
will then perform
the same experi-
ment using the
new set of zero -
gravity seeds.
Carter says af-
ter the tomatoes
germinate and
the data regard-
ing their growth
rates is submit-
ted, the class will
continue to grow
the tomatoes un-
til they ripen.
At that point,
the students will
each get to take
home a tomato.
•
Holding a map of Mars, Jake Nigh, Hannah Garrick, Nikki Van
Miltenburg and Isaac Bruxer show off their growing experi-
ment.
A Public Meeting on the Future of
Schools in Huron East -North Perth
Accommodation Review Committee
Wednesday, November 4, 2009
7:00 PM - Brussels Public School
This is the first official meeting of the Huron East North Perth Accommodation
Review Committee (ARC). This committee is reviewing the current student
accommodation at Brussels, Grey Central, Elma Township, Listowel Eastdale,
Listowel Central and Wallace Public Schools. The Accommodation Review
could result in the restructuring and/or closure of one or more schools in
. this review area.
All meetings are open to the public. Requests for delegations to the ARC
can be made by calling the number below or through the website at
www.yourschools.ca.
• For more information call Avon
519-527-0111 ext 110 or visit our website. 41P1 Maitland
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,,,rt(Ir of Cctuc .iticri
www.yourschools.ca