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The hottest temperature recorded within Africa, which was also the world record, was 57.8 °C (136.0 °F) at 'Aziziya, Libya on September 13, 1922.

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Africa is the hottest continent on earth; dry lands and deserts comprise 60% of the entire land surface.

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Brochure info

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Billboard Examples

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Food Chain Game - Food chains come to life: when a chain is correctly put together, it turns into an animated working chain!

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Zoomable maps reveal the scope of humanity's influence on Earth-and the innovations aiming to create a more sustainable future

From deforestation to irrigation to species loss, the expanding human population has been dramatically re-shaping the face of the Earth. The interactive maps above bring together a wealth of satellite imagery and other data sets to create an atlas of humanity's influence on the planet. Zoom in to see regional effects, or click through some selected examples, including a gallery of international extinctions and a virtual tour of the world's protected sites.

At the same time, projects are underway to make our species more resilient to a changing world and to make our activities both secure and sustainable. Explore a sampling of sites around the United States via maps that reveal innovations such as dedicated bicycle networks, in-land desalination plants and lush rooftop gardens.

We Recommend

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See How Humans Have Reshaped the Globe With This Interactive Atlas

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Zoomable maps reveal the scope of humanity's influence on Earth-and the innovations aiming to create a more sustainable future From deforestation to irrigation to species loss, the expanding human population has been dramatically re-shaping the face of the Earth.

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Activity Questions

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Ecosystems

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Human Impacts on Biodiversity | Ecology and Environment | Biology | FuseSchool

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Worksheet

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Chart

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Food Web

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Food Webs: StudyJams! Science | Scholastic.com

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Organisms can be a part of more than one food chain. This student activity will teach students all about the food web and why it is important.

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Symbiosis

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Symbiosis: StudyJams! Science | Scholastic.com

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Plants and animals depend on each other from time to time. This StudyJams! activity will teach students about the different kinds of symbiotic relationships.

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Unit 2 Lesson 1

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Worksheet

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Page 53

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Identify each item

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Identify the Forms of Energy

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Identify and Explain the forms of Energy

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Science is a systematic and logical approach to discovering how things in the universe work. It is also the body of knowledge accumulated through the discoveries about all the things in the universe.

The word "science" is derived from the Latin word scientia, which is knowledge based on demonstrable and reproducible data, according to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary. True to this definition, science aims for measurable results through testing and analysis. Science is based on fact, not opinion or preferences. The process of science is designed to challenge ideas through research. One important aspect of the scientific process is that it is focuses only on the natural world, according to the University of California. Anything that is considered supernatural does not fit into the definition of science.

The scientific method

When conducting research, scientists use the scientific method to collect measurable, empirical evidence in an experiment related to a hypothesis (often in the form of an if/then statement), the results aiming to support or contradict a theory.

"As a field biologist, my favorite part of the scientific method is being in the field collecting the data," Jaime Tanner, a professor of biology at Marlboro College, told Live Science. "But what really makes that fun is knowing that you are trying to answer an interesting question. So the first step in identifying questions and generating possible answers (hypotheses) is also very important and is a creative process. Then once you collect the data you analyze it to see if your hypothesis is supported or not."

The steps of the scientific method go something like this:

1. Make an observation or observations.

2. Ask questions about the observations and gather information.

3. Form a hypothesis - a tentative description of what's been observed, and make predictions based on that hypothesis.

4. Test the hypothesis and predictions in an experiment that can be reproduced.

5. Analyze the data and draw conclusions; accept or reject the hypothesis or modify the hypothesis if necessary.

6. Reproduce the experiment until there are no discrepancies between observations and theory. "Replication of methods and results is my favorite step in the scientific method," Moshe Pritsker, a former post-doctoral researcher at Harvard Medical School and CEO of JoVE, told Live Science. "The reproducibility of published experiments is the foundation of science. No reproducibility - no science."

Some key underpinnings to the scientific method:

The hypothesis must be testable and falsifiable, according to North Carolina State University. Falsifiable means that there must be a possible negative answer to the hypothesis.

Research must involve deductive reasoning and inductive reasoning. Deductive reasoning is the process of using true premises to reach a logical true conclusion while inductive reasoning takes the opposite approach.

An experiment should include a dependent variable (which does not change) and an independent variable (which does change).

An experiment should include an experimental group and a control group. The control group is what the experimental group is compared against.

Scientific theories and laws

The scientific method and science in general can be frustrating. A theory is almost never proven, though a few theories do become scientific laws. One example would be the laws of conservation of energy, which is the first law of thermodynamics. Dr. Linda Boland, a neurobiologist and chairperson of the biology department at the University of Richmond, Virginia, told Live Science that this is her favorite scientific law. "This is one that guides much of my research on cellular electrical activity and it states that energy cannot be created nor destroyed, only changed in form. This law continually reminds me of the many forms of energy," she said.

A law just describes an observed phenomenon, but it doesn't explain why the phenomenon exists or what causes it. "In science, laws are a starting place," said Peter Coppinger, an associate professor of biology and biomedical engineering at the Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology. "From there, scientists can then ask the questions, 'Why and how?'"

Laws are generally considered to be without exception, though some laws have been modified over time after further testing found discrepancies. This does not mean theories are not meaningful. For a hypothesis to become a theory, rigorous testing must occur, typically across multiple disciplines by separate groups of scientists. Saying something is "just a theory" is a layperson's term that has no relationship to science. To most people a theory is a hunch. In science, a theory is the framework for observations and facts, Tanner told Live Science.

Some of the things we take for granted today were dreamed up on pure brainpower, others by total accident. But just how much do you know about the origin of things? Here, we've invented a quiz about 15 of the world's most useful inventions, from adhesives

Quiz: The World's Greatest Inventions

A brief history of science

The earliest evidence of science can be found in prehistoric times, such as the discovery of fire, invention of the wheel and development of writing. Early tablets contain numerals and information about the solar system. Science became decidedly more scientific over time, however.

1200s: Robert Grosseteste developed the framework for the proper methods of modern scientific experimentation, according to the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy. His works included the principle that an inquiry must be based on measurable evidence that is confirmed through testing.

1400s: Leonardo da Vinci began his notebooks in pursuit of evidence that the human body is microcosmic. The artist, scientist and mathematician also gathered information about optics and hydrodynamics.

1500s: Nicolaus Copernicus advanced the understanding of the solar system with his discovery of heliocentrism. This is a model in which Earth and the other planets revolve around the sun, which is the center of the solar system.

1600s: Johannes Kepler built upon those observations with his laws of planetary motion. Galileo Gallilei improved on a new invention, the telescope, and used it to study the sun and planets. The 1600s also saw advancements in the study of physics as Isaac Newton developed his laws of motion.

1700s: Benjamin Franklin discovered that lightning is electrical. He also contributed to the study of oceanography and meteorology. The understanding of chemistry also evolved during this century as Antoine Lavoisier, dubbed the father of modern chemistry, developed the law of conservation of mass.

1800s: Milestones included Alessandro Volta's discoveries regarding electrochemical series, which led to the invention of the battery. John Dalton also introduced atomic theory, which stated that all matter is composed of atoms that combine to form molecules. The basis of modern study of genetics advanced as Gregor Mendel unveiled his laws of inheritance. Later in the century, Wilhelm Conrad Röntgen discovered X-rays, while George Ohm's law provided the basis for understanding how to harness electrical charges.

1900s: The discoveries of Albert Einstein, who is best known for his theory of relativity, dominated the beginning of the 20th century. Einstein's theory of relativity is actually two separate theories. His special theory of relativity, which he outlined in a 1905 paper, " The Electrodynamics of Moving Bodies," concluded that time must change according to the speed of a moving object relative to the frame of reference of an observer. His second theory of general relativity, which he published as " The Foundation of the General Theory of Relativity," advanced the idea that matter causes space to curve.

Medicine forever changed with the development of the polio vaccine in 1952 by Jonas Salk. The following year, James D. Watson and Francis Crick discovered the structure of DNA, which is a double helix formed by base pairs attached to a sugar-phosphate backbone, according to the United States National Library of Medicine.

2000s: The 21st century saw the first draft of the human genome completed, leading to a greater understanding of DNA. This advanced the study of genetics, its role in human biology and its use as a predictor of diseases and other disorders.
Additional resources

Alina Bradford is a contributing writer for Live Science. Over the past 16 years, Alina has covered everything from Ebola to androids while writing health, science and tech articles for major publications. She has multiple health, safety and lifesaving certifications from Oklahoma State University. Alina's goal in life is to try as many experiences as possible. To date, she has been a volunteer firefighter, a dispatcher, substitute teacher, artist, janitor, children's book author, pizza maker, event coordinator and much more.

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Science is a systematic and logical approach to discovering how things in the universe work. It is also the body of knowledge accumulated through the discoveries about all the things in the universe. The word "science" is derived from the Latin word scientia, which is knowledge based on demonstrable and reproducible data, according to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary.

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Compare and Contrast ACES

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A Five-Step Process

Because the EiE Project serves young children, we've created a simple Engineering Design Process (EDP) to guide students through our engineering design challenges. This EDP has just five steps and uses terms children can understand.

ASK: What is the problem? How have others approached it? What are your constraints?

IMAGINE: What are some solutions? Brainstorm ideas. Choose the best one.

PLAN: Draw a diagram. Make lists of materials you will need.

CREATE: Follow your plan and create something. Test it out!

IMPROVE: What works? What doesn't? What could work better? Modify your design to make it better. Test it out!

It's important to note that the EDP is flexible. There are as many variations of the model as there are engineers. With EiE, students work through all five steps, but in real life, engineers often work on just one or two steps, then pass their work to another team.

Note that the EDP is a cycle-there's no official start or end point. You can begin at any step, focus on just one step, move back and forth between steps, or repeat the cycle. For example, after you improve your design once, you may want to begin all over again to refine your technology. You can use the EDP again and again!

Take a moment to watch one of our EiE Spolight videos about the EDP. Visit our Video Collection for more videos and other useful video resources.

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A Five-Step ProcessBecause the EiE Project serves young children, we've created a simple Engineering Design Process (EDP) to guide students through our engineering design challenges. This EDP has just five steps and uses terms children can understand.ASK: What is the problem? How have others approached it? What are your constraints?IMAGINE: What are some solutions?