MICROOBSERVATORY ONLINE CHAT SESSION
TUESDAY, JULY 15, 1997
GUEST:  Phil Sadler, Principal Investigator of MicroObservatory
TOPIC:	Participant Introductions (tell about yourself how 
you hope to use MicroObservatory with your students).

You have just entered room ÒmicroobservatoryÓ
PSadler:	hi beth
BHoff1:	hi--Linda will be here in a minute to greet everyone.  
She will chair the discussion today.
LFrench637:	Hello everyone!
PSadler:	hi linda
PSadler:	i am working on an article about microobservatory at 
home
PSadler:	i suggested to beth that we save these sessions
LFrench637:	Good idea.  I'll turn on the Meeting Log.
BMellin503:	BMellin signing on from Reading MA
PSadler:	hi bruce
BMellin503:	Hi Phil - is Arizona down for the evening
JCatanz1:	Hi everyone -- this is Joe Catanzarite Cypress, CA
LFrench637:	Ah, new faces!  Welcome Joseph, Bruce, John.
LFrench637:	Arizona still seems to be down, Bruce.  It's a Net 
problem.
JCatanz1:	Hi Linda, what did I miss yesterday?
LFrench637:	We practiced using this format in the meeting, and 
people expressed an interest in different projects.
Everhartj:	!
JCatanz1:	what projects were discussed?
LFrench637:	We can bring you up to speed as we go along, I think.
JCatanz1:	ok, good deal
Everhartj:	Hello everyone
PSadler:	!
LFrench637:	Does everyone know about the workshop page?
JCatanz1:	no
BMellin503:	no much!
Everhartj:	yes
LFrench637:	Beth, can you send new folks the addres for 
the workshop page?
LFrench637:	John, did you have a comment?
Lwaxman:	Hi everybody
Everhartj:	No, just saying hello
LFrench637:	Is everyone ready to start the meeting?
R Maki:	yes
BMellin503:	Yes!
JCatanz1:	y
SheM2G:	yes, this is sheila
Lwaxman:	yes
RobOchs:	yes
Everhartj:	Do the telescopes still have a max exposure time of 
60 sec?
LFrench637:	Welcome to today's MicroObservatory Online Meeting.  
I'm Linda French, the project astronomer.
LFrench637:	Also present online are Beth Hoffman, the Project 
Director, Roy Gould, the Education Specialist, and PHil Sadler, the 
Principal Investigator.
LFrench637:	Our meetings are conducted in protocol to ensure a 
smooth flow of conversation.
LFrench637:	If you have a question or a comment, please type "!", and 
you will be recognized in turn.
LFrench637:	When you have finished, type "GA" to let others know you 
are done. Side conversations are possible by using Instant Messages (IM's).
LFrench637:	If you have questions about protocol or about using AOL, 
please IM Beth (BHoff1) or me.
LFrench637:	Does anyone have any announcements?  Phil, would you like 
to say anything to the group?
PSadler:	yes
PSadler:	hi everyone
PSadler:	i guess i have been with thr eproject longest, all the 
way from the time that we outfitted tv cameras to celestrons
PSadler:	i am working on a chapter on microobservatory for a book on 
technolgy in  ed
JCatanz1:	!
PSadler:	i wanted to know whether teachers have seen any patterns in 
student use
PSadler:	i think i see kids looking at brig visible objects that they can 
see with thier naked eye and then to more exotic objects over time GA
LFrench637:	Thanks Phil.
JCatanz1:	will our students have access to the scopes during the
academic year?GA
LFrench637:	That's a good topic for discussion, and I think it ties 
into something Beth and I want to
LFrench637:	discuss later.
LFrench637:	Joe...yes.
Lwaxman:	!
LFrench637:	Any other quick announcements from staff or others?
LFrench637:	GA Larry.
Lwaxman:	Students need to have very specific assignments at the 
secondary level because the become
Lwaxman:	frustrated if things don't go alright .  GA
LFrench637:	Good point.  So do astronomers at times!!
LFrench637:	Now that many of us have practiced using protocol, 
we would like each person to
LFrench637:	give a brief introduction of her/himself.  So would 
you please briefly tell the room:
LFrench637:	1)  A bit about yourself
LFrench637:	and 2) how you hope to use the MicroObservatory with
LFrench637:	your students.
LFrench637:	I'll start.
LFrench637:	I've taught astronomy and physics at many age levels, 
although I am
LFrench637:	primarily a college teacher and astronomer.
LFrench637:	Observing is the most exciting part of science to me, and I 
welcome the opportunity
LFrench637:	to make observations with my students,even though they are
 in downtown Boston.
BMellin503:	Hello - Bmellin from Reading MA - I've been connected with 
MO almost as long as Phil
LFrench637:	Bruce...just a second, please..
BMellin503:	I am interested in big bright objects like the Sun/Moon
/Planets/comets
LFrench637:	I plan to use the MicroObservatory with my students to make 
their own observations
BMellin503:	sorry  I got carried away
LFrench637:	of phenomena they only read about before, like 
Jupiter's moons.
LFrench637:	It will also be nice just to see star clusters 
and galaxies for real.
LFrench637:	GA
LFrench637:	Bruce?
BMellin503:	Hello  I am here - sorry again
LFrench637:	GA Bruce
BMellin503:	I am about finished- I've stumbled thorough most of what 
I could say
LFrench637:	Ok.
BMellin503:	I am also interested in how to implement this with students 
during the next school year GA
RGould50:	Bruce, why bright objects?  Not faint galaxies?
LFrench637:	I forgot one thing...could you please tell us what you like 
to be called?  It's hard to
LFrench637:	tell from screen names.
Lwaxman:	I have been teaching for 38 years.  From Colorado, 
California, Arizona and finally Alaska. I
BMellin503:	Of course - the solar system is closer and better known
LFrench637:	Wait a second, folks.
LFrench637:	We all need to use protocol.
LFrench637:	If you want to ask a question or make a comment, you need to 
be recognized by the chair.
LFrench637:	This is not a power trip...it just gets crazy without it.
LFrench637:	Larry, would you like to introduce yourself next?
Lwaxman:	!  Sorry I got in a hurry
LFrench637:	GA Larry.  It happens to us all!  :-)
Lwaxman:	I have beeen teaching astronomy out of a book since I got to 
Alaska.  Now my students can
Lwaxman:	see what we are teaching about it is so exciting when they 
get their first picture.
Lwaxman:	GA
LFrench637:	Thanks Larry.  You have already used Micro in your 
classroom, correct?
Lwaxman:	Yes for the past year. the first semester unsuccessfully 
but this last semester WOW GA
LFrench637:	Thanks.  Who is next?
Everhartj:	!
LFrench637:	GA John.
Everhartj:	I have taught science for 20 years at the high 
school level and until last year integrated astronomy in my Senior 
level Advanced Science course
Everhartj:	Last year (spring semester) I taught a full course in 
astronomy for the first time
Everhartj:	What a great time to start a course, what with the comet 
and eclipse
Everhartj:	During the last few weeks of the course, we were able to 
use the scopes for student use
Everhartj:	I had taken some comet images earlier in the semester when 
the comet was a pre-dawn object
Everhartj:	by coming in early to school and using the time-zone 
differences to take the pictures
Everhartj:	My students were impressed and could not wait to use 
the 'scopes on their own
Everhartj:	The enhancement added in May to allow for an image 
to be taken at a specific time was a
Everhartj:	great addition.  I'm through GA
SheM2G:	!
LFrench637:	Thanks John.
LFrench637:	GA sheila.
SheM2G:	I just finished my third year teaching physics at the high
SheM2G:	school level.  I also have taught astronomy for a full year 
two years ago.
SheM2G:	I was ill-prepared to teach the course.  I spent much time 
learning the material myself.
SheM2G:	Now, I am trying to figure out how my students can learn 
as much as I did.
SheM2G:	I started to use MO this past year as part of a work study 
project.  (I just finished
SheM2G:	work for my masters degree in ed.).
SheM2G:	I also was able to introduce some of my students to the 
telescopes, but not in the
SheM2G:	classroom.  Next year I hope to do the same with the students 
in the
SheM2G:	astronomy club, and I hope to start a course the following year.
SheM2G:	I remember how excited I was when I found comet hb in the fall,
SheM2G:	and then much fainter objects as I used the telescopes more.
SheM2G:	I hope students can share in that excitement.  GA
LFrench637:	Thanks Sheila. We've all been in that "ill-prepared" state.
LFrench637:	Who's next?
Fsdeutsch:	!
LFrench637:	GA Freeman
Fsdeutsch:	hi, I am the software engineer for MicroObservatory
Fsdeutsch:	I have written various educational computer simulations
Fsdeutsch:	and have outmated the MicroObervatory Telescope
Fsdeutsch:	I have been working on the Micro Observatory software for
Fsdeutsch:	EIGHT years, GA
LFrench637:	Thanks Freeman.
LFrench637:	Next?
Nazin:	!
LFrench637:	GA Nazin (What do you like to be called?)
Nazin:	Bill
Nazin:	I'm a first year teacher in Yonkers NY.  Most of my studentdo not 
have a computer at home.
Nazin:	I'm interested in patterns of behavior in the use of computers
Nazin:	Are they user friendly for a 5th grader and that.
Nazin:	My idea for this year is to bring tech. and personal 
history together by using MO
Nazin:	An example might be to find a star that is about 100 light years 
away from Earth
Nazin:	and then investigate what your family was doing at that time.
Nazin:	I might start with each child picking a birthday star  GA
RGould50:	!
LFrench637:	Thanks Bill.  That's an interesting twist.
LFrench637:	GA Roy.
RGould50:	This would be an interesting project to develop for 
the workshop
RGould50:	The telescope can see objects from about
RGould50:	two light-seconds (the Moon)
RGould50:	to about 1 billion light-years (distant galaxies).
RGould50:	The question is, how could students determine how far away
RGould50:	in space or time an object is.
RGould50:	Could one use other resources on the Net to help?
RGould50:	GA
LFrench637:	Good points, Roy.
R Maki:	!
Zubby:	!
LFrench637:	We'd like to have a discussion of resources on the Web in 
the future.
LFrench637:	GA Dick.
R Maki:	Dick Maki, Sterling, MA ...34 yrs teaching earth sciences.
R Maki:	Want to us MO to study sunspots, either own obs. or canned 
ones to show
R Maki:	sun's rotation and axis.  Done it with solar filter and graph 
paper and it was OK. GA
LFrench637:	Thanks Dick.
LFrench637:	You might want to chat with Freeman about making solar 
observations.
LFrench637:	GA Zubby.  (Richard?  Dick? Rick?)
Zubby:	Rich...
Zubby:	I have been teaching Earth Science and physics for 5 years and
Zubby:	this will be my second year with my new astronomy elective in 
which
Zubby:	I would like to have my students use MO to complete their 
observation projects
Zubby:	I also am having a great time using the telescopes  GA
JCatanz1:	!
Zubby:	ps...from Long island
LFrench637:	Thanks Rich.
Fsdeutsch:	!
LFrench637:	GA Joe.
JCatanz1:	I am a community college astronomy teacher. I am putting 
together
JCatanz1:	an astronomy laboratory course this summer and I am looking
JCatanz1:	for ways to incorporate an observing component using MO
JCatanz1:	I have a passion to understand how we know what we know,
JCatanz1:	and every detail about how raw data gets transformed about
JCatanz1:	(I mean into) meaningful knowledge about nature.  I hope to
JCatanz1:	get my students thinking about this. GA
LFrench637:	Thanks Joe.  How we know what we know is the basis of all 
critical thinking, I think.
LFrench637:	Have we missed anyone?  Rob?
RobOchs:	!
LFrench637:	GA
PSadler:	!
RobOchs:	My bio is on the web page so I won't repeat it here.  I am 
really excited about using the
RobOchs:	Scopes because astronomy has been difficult to have 
"hands on."  We have a telescope
RobOchs:	but teens work at night and the thought of having them 
come in for 18 straight days wouldn't
RobOchs:	go over well.  I am working with Linda on the Jupiter mass 
project and have managed
RobOchs:	to get 3 of my former students to help me with the project.  
Really looking forward to the
RobOchs:	next year! ga
LFrench637:	Thanks Rob!
LFrench637:	And thanks to everyone.
LFrench637:	Beth, would you like to share any new business?
LFrench637:	Oops...GA Phil.
BHoff1:	Yes
LFrench637:	Phil, then Beth.
PSadler:	I am a science ed. prof., inventor of Starlab. I watch how 
college students use MO
PSadler:	for trivia enthusiasts MO was born on an airplane ride back 
from the nSF
PSadler:	when Chuck Whitney and I were complaining that it was too 
cold to observe
PSadler:	i am very interested in how kids get connected emotionally to 
the MO ga
LFrench637:	Thanks Phil!
LFrench637:	GA Beth.
BHoff1:	I wanted everyone to be aware that they can use this room for 
discussion purposes if there a
BHoff1:	are 2 or more people that want to have an online discussion.  
Just arrange a time.  GA
LFrench637:	Thanks.
RobOchs:	!
LFrench637:	GA Rob.
RobOchs:	Could we have a discussion some time about the mechanics of 
how to use the scopes
RobOchs:	like how to focus, what zoom in and zoom out is etc.?
RobOchs:	ga
LFrench637:	Certainly.
SheM2G:	!
LFrench637:	There are general guidelines given on the control 
scopes page.
LFrench637:	Sheila GA
SheM2G:	I just wanted to say that I have been working on the scopes
SheM2G:	for almost a 9 months now, and I know that they can be 
frustrating
SheM2G:	when first using them.  I would be happy to try to answer 
questions about using them, or about the image software.
SheM2G:	GA
RGould50:	!
LFrench637:	Sheila, are you willing to do it now? Or should they 
send questions to you?
SheM2G:	Either.
JCatanz1:	!
LFrench637:	GA Roy.
RGould50:	We will put up on the Web an updated instructions page 
to go with the new control panel.
RGould50:	Your questions will help... GA
LFrench637:	Ok, how about some questions for Sheila?  We can go 
a few minutes later--til 4:15 or so.
JCatanz1:	Does Quantum Image have a (X,Y ) pixel coordinate readout?
SheM2G:	Yikes, you have to ask about PCs...
SheM2G:	MOst of my experience is on the MAC but I spent my day 
learning
Nazin:	!
SheM2G:	about imaging software for the PC
SheM2G:	I have an easier time accessing Image Tool, than QUantum 
image, so I cannot answer
SheM2G:	questions about that software package.  I have emailed
SheM2G:	Steve here, and he should be able to help.
SheM2G:	He is the PC expert.  GA
LFrench637:	GA Bill.
Nazin:	When trying to take a picture last night any of the galaxies
Nazin:	I was confronted witha notice Cgi-lib.pl: an so on got any ideas
LFrench637:	That's a new one to me.  Freeman, Roy, Sheila...?
Nazin:	GA
SheM2G:	Did it say anything else?!
Nazin:	maybe I should continue with the message-unknown content
Nazin:	type text html  Ga
Fsdeutsch:	!
LFrench637:	GA Freeman.
Fsdeutsch:	This is the a message from the Web software
Fsdeutsch:	What did you exactly do?
Fsdeutsch:	Often these go away if you do a refresh!, GA
Nazin:	I was taking a timed picture  I will try the refresh  Ga
LFrench637:	Other questions on operating the telescopes at this time?
LFrench637:	We'd like to make these sessions as useful as possible 
for you.
Everhartj:	!
LFrench637:	It will help as you think of topics you'd like to discuss, 
if you send an
LFrench637:	email to Beth.  Then we can put it on the agenda.
LFrench637:	GA John.
JCatanz1:	!
Everhartj:	Is the max exposure time for the 'scopes still 60 sec?
RGould50:	!
LFrench637:	GA Roy.
RGould50:	You can take a longer exposure...
Everhartj:	It is easier to take asteroid images on longer exposures
RGould50:	Up to 300 seconds (I'll check) but
RGould50:	above 60 seconds there may be problems with tracking...
RGould50:	GA
LFrench637:	GA Joe.
JCatanz1:	On another topic -- if anyone needs it
JCatanz1:	there are 2 very good resources for planning observing 
sessions.
JCatanz1:	One is SKYGLOBE a shareware program (PC's) avail on
JCatanz1:	the web -- it gives views of the sky at any time, from any
JCatanz1:	location on earth.  the maps can also be printed.
JCatanz1:	The other is the almanac service provided by the
JCatanz1:	Naval Observatory, also on the web.
JCatanz1:	You can get rise, set and transit times for major solar
JCatanz1:	system objects, and also, times of astronomical twilight
JCatanz1:	for any location on earth.
JCatanz1:	GA
LFrench637:	Thanks Joe.  Would you be willing to post the URLs for 
those resources on our message board?
JCatanz1:	Sure.
LFrench637:	Thanks.
LFrench637:	There will be a couple of new things coming up on the board 
and on the workshop page.
BHoff1:	!
LFrench637:	Someone asked me why Jupiter looks the way it does on our 
images...like a long spike.
LFrench637:	That has to do with the way a CCD stores data and
 reads it out.
LFrench637:	I'll write a bit up on that and post it.
LFrench637:	Also, Sheila has done quite a bit of work on activities 
with the Moon which will be coming
LFrench637:	up on the workshop page.
LFrench637:	Sorry, got hung there.
LFrench637:	GA Beth.
BHoff1:	Everyone should check the bulletin board around 2 pm each 
day so that
BHoff1:	they can see the topics that have been suggested prior to the 
online session.
BHoff1:	gh
BHoff1:	i mean ga
LFrench637:	Any other new business for today?
Everhartj:	!
LFrench637:	GA John.
Everhartj:	I am embarrassed to ask, but where is the message board?GA
BHoff1:	!
LFrench637:	There is an area of AOL called the Electronic School House.
RobOchs:	!
LFrench637:	You can reach it by going to Go To and choosing 
"Keyword"...then type in "ESH".
LFrench637:	We are under "Projects to Join".
LFrench637:	GA Beth.
BHoff1:	YOu answered the question.  GA
LFrench637:	GA Rob.
RobOchs:	On a real serious note ... has anyone thought about MO 
jackets or T-shirts?
LFrench637:	LOL!  virtual ones, I presume!
LFrench637:	That's your mission! :-)
RobOchs:	:)
LFrench637:	I think that's it for today!  Feel free to stay and chat.
LFrench637:	*********protocol is off***********
Lwaxman:	Bye
LFrench637:	See you all tomorrow, or via email.
JCatanz1:	Thanks everyone.  See ya tomorrow.
RobOchs:	bye
Everhartj:	Gotta go , there is a big storm in Dixie
Nazin:	Bye all  send e-mail
BHoff1:	Anything else?
SheM2G:	Bye!