Clearlake >> Yuba College’s Dr. Harry Lyons hosted a workshop for this year’s Academic Decathlon students. On Saturday decathletes explored ecology through several hands-on lessons at the college.
Students started the morning dissecting owl pellets to investigate the dietary preferences of the barn owl and how changes to prey and the environment could have long term effects. Among the findings were several vole skeletons and a rat skull. As one student described the exercise, “it smells like healthiness”.
In the “Survivorship in Bubbles” experiment, students used the logistic equation to chart the life cycle of bubbles. While it might have appeared that groups of students were enjoying outdoor play on a Saturday morning for sheer fun, they were conducting scientific experiments. The information gathered was used to compare the life cycles of different life forms.
The third activity looked at habitat formations and the threats to biodiversity. Students discussed and hypothesized the changing climate at different elevations and made predictions of survival based on temperatures, soil types and partnerships.
Lyons was able to connect much of the curriculum to the recent fires and environmental devastation as well as the constant change of Clearlake. The day was wrapped up with a terrific performance by Lyons as he put the newly learned terminology to music.
It is obvious that Lyons enjoys ecology and his passion for teaching is evident by his enthusiasm. His continued support of Academic Decathlon as both presenter and volunteer is greatly appreciated by the decathletes and staff.
For information on the Lake County Academic Decathlon visit the Career & College Readiness Department of the Lake County Office of Education at www.lakecoe.org.
