Math/Engineering Class Update

In the sixth grade math/engineering course, students have recently completed a unit on the physics associated with tsunamis. The class watched footage of recent tsunamis and studied the mathematical nature of their growth and movement. Students were shocked to learn that the loss of life associated with these events was exacerbated by a lack of detection or warning systems in many parts of the world. Using formulas we had practiced in class, students created a tsunami warning program which calculated the speed of a tsunami and its projected landfall time using actual gps coordinates. (Pretty impressive for sixth grade students!!)