TeacherTECH and the San Diego Air and Space Museum Present - SpaceTECH - Gaseous Plasma: The 4th State of Matter of 1st Step Toward Fusion

Educators teaching grades 4 - 9 are invited to attend a special TeacherTECH Science Series offered in collaboration with the San Diego Air and Space Museum. This exciting workshop is focused on astronomy and space science activities to engage your students while teaching the standards. 

 Wednesday, November 17, 2010

4:30pm- 7:00pm

General Atomics

National Fusion Facility

Upcoming workshops will take pace at various locations, including the San Diego Air and Space Museum and General Atomics. Workshops will be offered in collaboration with the San Diego Space Society, the San Diego Astronomy Association, and General Atomics. 

Workshop Description

Much of the visible universe is made of ionized gas called plasma. Plasma is a distinctive, fascinating, and beautiful state of matter. It’s found in sparks, fluorescent lights, the aurora, commercial and laboratory applications, and the stars. Its fundamental importance in our lives, from understanding the makeup of stars, to an appreciation of the protective nature of the magnetic envelope around the earth, to the making of essential electronic components makes a strong case for improved student and teacher understanding of plasma.   The plasma state is also the first step toward fusion. Experimental fusion devices presently exist, such as the National Fusion Facility, DIII-D ("D-3-D"), in San Diego, that routinely operate deuterium plasma discharges having more than 10 times the temperature of the center of the sun. DIII-D's role is to better understand how to produce stable high-temperature discharges while fusing deuterium ions and releasing enormous amounts of energy with a future eye on producing electricity. 

Teachers will better understand the operating conditions of fluorescent lighting, understand how a plasma ball works and learn how to bring the fascinating topics of plasma and fusion into the classroom.

All participants will receive a workshop certificate endorsed by the San Diego County Office of Education for professional development credit.

Please join us for an exciting and informative session of hands-on learning presented by Dr. Richard Lee, Chief Operator, Fusion Education Manager, DIII-D National Fusion Facility. General Atomics. 

Registration is free. Space is 
limited. Please contact Ange Mason at 858-534-5064 or amason@ucsd.edu to reserve your space.


Please feel free to forward this announcement on to others who may be interested.

For more information on TeacherTECH, including our summer workshops, please visit http://education.sdsc.edu/teachertech.