We had the pleasure of providing 3 of 6 rotations for this field trip for 150 students to the Austin Nature and Science Center. Students are learning about biomimicry. That is looking to strategies and physical formations in nature to develop ideas for engineering and invention in the man made world. Station 1: Voronoi Regions in turtle shells, dragonfly wings, giraffe skin, cracked much, in the cholera problem, soccer analytics, fire station locations, polling place location, and fast food or chain restaurant placement. Station 2: Fibonacci Numbers in pineapples, artichoke, plants, as a series of cubes in a spiral, tree growth, bee genetics, rabbit populations, stair stepping and stepping stone patterns. Station 3: Building Golden ratio calipers and searching for the proportion in animal and plant specimens including teeth, natural and dentures, zebras and ants. Staffing this event: Megan Do, Naila Hajiyeva, Noe Leon, Melissa Wilkinson, and Lauren Siegel. Here’s t.he field trip outline by AISD teacher James Collins. Here is a brief reflection by UT student and MathHappens Intern Megan Do on her experience leading Station 2
Field Trip: Austin High Biomimicry Cross Curricular Program
