Author: Lensyl Urbano

Video: From a Single Cell to an Alpine Newt

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Watch a single cell become a complete organism in six pulsing minutes of timelapse. A film by Jan van IJken (www.janvanijken.com).

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An exceptional timelapse of the developing of an Alpine newt by Jan van IJken

How to make a Boxplot in R

Guest post by Grace Appell.

What is a Boxplot?

A box plot is a graph that helps you to analyze a set of data. It used to show the spread of the data. In it you use five data points: the minimum, the 1st quartile, the median, the 3rd quartile, and the maximum.
The minimum is the lowest point in your data set, and the maximum is the largest. The median is the number in the middle of the data set when you have the number lined up numerically.
For example if your data set was this:

 5, 6 ,11, 18, 12, 9, 4

First you would put them in order lowest to highest.

4, 5, 6, 9, 11, 12, 18

Your median would be 9, because it is the middle number. The minimum would be 4, and the maximum would be 18.
The first quartile would be 5, the median of the numbers below 9, and the third quartile would be 12, the median of the numbers above 9.
So the data you would use in your boxplot would be

(4,5,9,12,18)

The boxplot would look like would look like this.

Example boxplot #1.
Example boxplot #1.

What is R?

R is a software program that is free to download that you can use for calculating statistics and creating graphics.
Here is their website: https://www.r-project.org/

Boxplots in R

In R you can create a boxplot by using this formula.

> Name of data set <- c(minimum, quartile 1, median, quartile 3, maximum)
> boxplot(Name of data set)

First you have to name your data set. In our project where we analyzed the number of times people repeated their Shakespeare lines that they performed, I used the name Macbeth. So the formula looked like this:

> Macbeth <- c(1,9,18,48,93)
> boxplot(Macbeth)

Using this data set, your box plot should look like this

Example boxplot #2.
Example boxplot #2.

Making 3D Periodic Tables

Laser cut, 3d periodic tables.
Laser cut, 3d periodic tables.

Ms. Fu’s chemistry class were given a project to make 3d periodic tables based on the properties of the elements. A few groups went with Makerspace options, using the new vinyl cutter and laser.

3d Periodic Table showing electronegativity.
3d Periodic Table showing electronegativity. Laser cut.
Periodic Table relief based on ionization energy. The blocks on this one have 1.5 inch square bases. The colors for the different regions use stains including tea (assam) and blackberry juice extracted from berries from the canes on campus.
Periodic Table relief based on ionization energy. The blocks on this one have 1.5 inch square bases. The colors for the different regions use stains including tea (assam) and blackberry juice extracted from berries from the canes on campus.

The part that took the longest was marking all the columns for cutting. A worthwhile assignment would be to write a program to automatically make the cut-marks in an svg file that can be etched with the laser.

Periodic Table column heights based on density.
Periodic Table column heights based on density. Laser cut.
Paper columns and vinyl cut lettering on this periodic table.
Paper columns and vinyl cut lettering on this periodic table.

Thinking About Design Then Thinking About Culture

This year, as part of orientation, we showed a couple videos to students to get them thinking about the key questions:

  • Why are we here?
  • What do we want our culture to be like?
  • What do we need to do to make our culture the way we want it to be?

The one I showed, a TED talk by Tony Fadell focuses on how he sees the world as a designer: looking for those small nuisances to which we’ve become habituated by paying closer attention to detail, looking for the big picture, and trying to see things with new, childish eyes.

I think it was successful in that I’ve been hearing it come up–particularly the term habituation (although the students could often not remember the actual term)–a few times already this semester.

Programming Lesson: Distance Between Two Points

Assignment: Write a program to find the distance between two points.

To find the distance (c) between two points (x1, y1) and (x2, y2) you use the equation:

c = \sqrt{a^2 + b^2}

where a and b are:

a = x_2 - x_1
b = y_2 - y_1

So, let’s find the distance between the points (1,7) and (5, 2) using python:

# define inputs
x1 = 1
y1 = 7
x2 = 5
y2 = 2

# calculate distance
a = x2 - x1
b = y2 - y1

c = (a**2 + b**2)**0.5   

# output the result
print("Distance between two points.")
print("Point 1:", x1, y1)
print("Point 2:", x2, y2)
print("Distance:", c)

The result should look like:

Distance between two points.
Point 1: 1 7
Point 2: 5 2
Distance: 6.40312

Coatis

Coati at the Pocosol Research Station in the Children's Eternal Rainforest , Costa Rica.
Coati at the Pocosol Research Station in the Children’s Eternal Rainforest , Costa Rica.

White-nosed Coatis (Nasua narica) are diurnal and, unusually for most Central America carnivores, highly social. They seem to fill a similar niche to raccoons. Ran into this one wandering around the Pocotal Research Station in the Bosque Eterno de los Niños, Costa Rica. It did not seem too perturbed that we were within 10 meters of each other.

Trophic Cascade: The Effect of Wolves on Yellowstone

The reintroduction of wolves to Yellowstone National Park resulted in enormous changes to the ecology: more plants and animals as the wolves reduced the deer population and changed the deers’ behavior. The change in vegetation resulted in stabilization of the rivers, so the wolves changed the geomorphology of the park as well.