tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-82420946850244756662010-03-14T22:22:26.585-06:00The life and times of a homeschooling father of two - thoughts, stories, ideas, and links of interest.Kevin M. Bellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03075011779215747762noreply@blogger.comBlogger80125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8242094685024475666.post-89338762901016927392010-01-11T02:38:00.000-07:002010-01-11T02:38:45.283-07:00

Our children are too young to remember Chernobyl, the town destroyed by the worst nuclear accident to ever take place.  It is worth remembering; poor technology, dangerous tests of equipment, and human error created a situation that killed many and left a large area uninhabitable.  A government's attempts to disguise what had happened caused many more deaths.  This young lady takes us on a

Kevin M. Bellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03075011779215747762noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8242094685024475666.post-53188214659156007162010-01-06T01:08:00.000-07:002010-01-06T01:08:45.038-07:00

Slinging.org has an array of interesting information on slings - you know, David and Goliath kind of stuff.  Young students and hunters may have an interest both practical and historical.

Kevin M. Bellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03075011779215747762noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8242094685024475666.post-35923142002740641722010-01-05T23:08:00.000-07:002010-01-05T23:08:28.785-07:00

One of the arguments students will encounter repeatedly is that of causation and correlation.  Whether the argument is about Anthropogenic Global Warming, or minority incarceration rates, or gun control, or smoking, or whatever subject, all too often students (and voters, and taxpayers) fall prey to this logical fallacy. The blog that this graph links to concerns drug discovery and the

Kevin M. Bellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03075011779215747762noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8242094685024475666.post-60805385293477861512009-12-21T23:14:00.001-07:002009-12-21T23:40:04.281-07:00

Our science this year will include astronomy.  Nice, because it was a particular interest of mine (although my mathematical skills fell short when it came to advanced work).  The girls have an interest as well, in part because we have a telescope (similar to this, but without the computer assist): Unfortunately we lack the space to be able to keep it up and available, but we do set it up and

Kevin M. Bellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03075011779215747762noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8242094685024475666.post-30678846510524399412009-12-19T00:42:00.003-07:002010-01-11T03:11:21.752-07:00

First is an enterprising gent who decided that building Stonehenge should be no big deal, as long as you have a bit of engineering know-how (and the family to cheer you on): When we were recently in Savannah, Georgia, I was fascinated by the size of the cargo ships that ran the river. Of course someone has to build them - not hard to picture. But getting them into the water... well, you

Kevin M. Bellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03075011779215747762noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8242094685024475666.post-47536065982323846902009-12-18T00:45:00.000-07:002009-12-18T00:45:20.509-07:00

Still not meaning to get political, I intend this next example to be a warning about looking at data.  The fact is, anyone with an agenda can manipulate the presentation of data in this way.  Students need to know not only how graphs work, but how the data set can be presented to appear to be something other than it actually is.  This video examines a graph commonly used in AGW (Anthropogenic

Kevin M. Bellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03075011779215747762noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8242094685024475666.post-26803259767826829422009-12-15T03:46:00.002-07:002009-12-18T00:45:56.324-07:00

Devoutly religious types are often accused of accepting faith over science.  I think it an unfair characterization; I find that most of the devout people I know are highly educated, and understand science as well or better than the average fellow.  Some may disagree with some current scientific theories, but have the historical perspective to understand that today's accepted science can become

Kevin M. Bellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03075011779215747762noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8242094685024475666.post-68687719931192652912009-11-29T01:32:00.000-07:002009-11-29T01:32:03.165-07:00

We had a tremendous Thanksgiving this year.  We started the day with pastry and the Thanksgiving Day Parade.  The parade was pretty poor - too much promotion, not enough parade.  Then to church for Morning Prayer, and back home to get dinner ready. The turkey was started the night before.  We brined the turkey using a recipe from the Food Network.  Alton Brown is one of our favorites, and this

Kevin M. Bellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03075011779215747762noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8242094685024475666.post-59319943431544046332009-11-20T23:29:00.000-07:002009-11-20T23:29:57.254-07:00

This delightful lady gives us some cooking lessons and stories from the Great Depression.  It can be difficult for our kids to understand just how severe the Depression was (and I hope and pray that they won't have to learn the hard way).   This gives one a taste of the experience.  Even without being in a Depression, learning to cook on the cheap frugally can be of great value.  We will

Kevin M. Bellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03075011779215747762noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8242094685024475666.post-37081417540024512242009-11-12T22:44:00.001-07:002009-12-18T23:44:13.679-07:00

Slow motion photography and videography can reveal some very interesting phenomena.  Here we see a drop of water bouncing on a larger volume of water - an unexpected sight. This reaction reminds me of the Leidenfrost Effect; of course, the physics behind each is quite different. When one first sees such an unusual effect, being contrary to what one might believe would happen under such a

Kevin M. Bellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03075011779215747762noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8242094685024475666.post-64873677533128048952009-11-11T23:17:00.000-07:002009-11-11T23:17:15.549-07:00

It is easy to explain to our kids, in a technical way, what Veteran's Day means. How do you capture some of the emotion involved? In this case, video can be a powerful tool.  This is a nice little visit to the Memorial with some WWII Vets.

Kevin M. Bellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03075011779215747762noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8242094685024475666.post-51128116853194205352009-11-09T01:33:00.002-07:002009-12-14T23:27:14.308-07:00

Ah well, travel followed by illness has delayed my posting again.  So, to return with a bang, how about a wonderful pasta dish. This is part of our Italian language coursework.  I decided that Italian would be a good language for study, and so a trip to the Italian market is a great start. The place to go?  Carmine Lonardo's in Lakewood.  They have a great little market, and make some of the

Kevin M. Bellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03075011779215747762noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8242094685024475666.post-54378255401223806562009-10-14T21:43:00.003-06:002009-11-11T23:18:15.564-07:00

I like clouds. I find their shapes and formation beautiful and fascinating. I am not one who sees images in clouds - maybe I am not imaginative enough - but I do like spectacular clouds. In the days when I was a more serious photographer I usually incorporated clouds in my images. Tricky business, that. Sometimes clouds can add to the mood, sometimes distract from the subject. Here is an

Kevin M. Bellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03075011779215747762noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8242094685024475666.post-33592653748739449332009-10-14T02:10:00.002-06:002009-10-14T03:08:00.062-06:00

Normally I am an optimist. However, there are times I get cynical - sometimes it seems there is so much drek out there that it is difficult to see the positive side of a story. This will be three posts in a row in which I point out the negative side of public education. I will post some upbeat pieces next. Meanwhile, here is another example of why we home school: the way in which history is

Kevin M. Bellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03075011779215747762noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8242094685024475666.post-1850581638646134912009-10-10T23:19:00.003-06:002009-10-11T00:06:00.094-06:00

Thomas Sowell has an interesting comment on the recent problems we've seen in the schools. This link leads to Townhall.com, a fine political web site, but be warned that sometimes the readers comments can be rude and crude.I normally don't quote articles at any length, but this section is well worth it:The mindset that sees children in school as an opportunity for teachers to impose their own

Kevin M. Bellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03075011779215747762noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8242094685024475666.post-1407358462527884492009-10-10T14:44:00.003-06:002009-10-10T15:46:10.330-06:00

It seems odd, but I have trouble working up some righteous anger over this - it has gone so far that it is now in the realm of being ridiculous. You may have seen the classroom video (since removed from YouTube) of children singing (chanting) their praises of our President. Well, really, they are singing what the instructors taught, as I truly doubt these young children would sing songs about

Kevin M. Bellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03075011779215747762noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8242094685024475666.post-33623441680279797292009-09-14T02:03:00.006-06:002009-09-25T01:30:35.301-06:00

Man, what a month. Not much time to post new stuff - been testing the kids (standardized tests required by the State of Colorado, assessments for St. Thomas Aquinas Academy), been dealing with church-related stuff, and... well, we are now dog people. More on that later.Meanwhile, just to get back into posting... is that Alan?

Kevin M. Bellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03075011779215747762noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8242094685024475666.post-11768442695759389782009-08-22T22:24:00.005-06:002009-08-23T01:24:10.146-06:00

An interesting site - not very pretty graphically, but it is, after all, a research site. University of Southampton received a grant to research medieval soldiery, and is compiling a database of profiles of soldiers of the time.More of interest to older, history-oriented students, I am sure, but another layer of our improving historical knowledge.And, yes, I was one of those geeky students. I

Kevin M. Bellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03075011779215747762noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8242094685024475666.post-39812885817250456262009-08-19T02:01:00.003-06:002009-08-19T02:06:03.076-06:00

Simple lines conveying basic emotions:

Kevin M. Bellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03075011779215747762noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8242094685024475666.post-70435615714009025622009-08-18T01:21:00.004-06:002009-08-18T01:47:04.443-06:00

Yeah, the Earth has craters. Big craters. Huge honking craters. So, this question can evolve into a lesson in astronomy, geology, and erosion, with some uber-cool pictures, and a book recommendation thrown in for good measure.

Kevin M. Bellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03075011779215747762noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8242094685024475666.post-14722773951974053942009-08-14T01:12:00.003-06:002009-09-27T23:03:53.324-06:00

The folks working at the FTC (Federal Trade Commission), having not much else to occupy their time, have decided that bloggers represent a clear and present danger to the safety and financial well-being of consumers throughout this land. As of this writing, they have not done much beside bluster, but I will take this opportunity to disclose all of the financial benefits I realize through this

Kevin M. Bellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03075011779215747762noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8242094685024475666.post-21373338364046971172009-08-14T00:50:00.002-06:002009-08-14T01:03:19.841-06:00

OK, so I am not a car aficionado - if it runs, I drive it. If it breaks, with a few relatively easy exceptions, I take it to the mechanic. When I do work on cars, it is usually with the assistance of a series of expletives I would rather my children not hear.And knowing the terminology? Well, I think the doomaflogit is connected to the thingamabobber.But I do have a strong interest in things

Kevin M. Bellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03075011779215747762noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8242094685024475666.post-53988035474778230562009-07-31T00:03:00.003-06:002009-07-31T01:35:38.548-06:00

In searching for an image of a volcano (you know how these questions arise during the school day), I came across this powerful image of a newly formed mountain:Contrast that with a classic figure of a volcano, Mt. Fuji:This was a great beginning to a discussion on geology, but the greater find was the website of Yann Athus-Bertrand. Primarily aerial images, he has some stunning photographs

Kevin M. Bellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03075011779215747762noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8242094685024475666.post-71566755628699353002009-07-30T00:10:00.004-06:002009-07-30T00:43:10.700-06:00

For fans of medieval Europe and the Near East, this short look at walled cities is pretty interesting. The aerial photography is nice, there are old maps to peruse, and links to investigate further.By the way, this photo was taken by Klaus Leidorf - look at his site as well. It is not in the English language, but is easy to navigate, and has some superb photography.

Kevin M. Bellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03075011779215747762noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8242094685024475666.post-83131958439806368992009-07-19T22:20:00.002-06:002009-07-19T22:44:10.115-06:00

A neat little page crammed with a ton of information, SpaceWeather.com is well worth the trip. I first came across this site when looking for a report on sunspot activity (yes, I am one of those who believe the sun has more of an effect on Earth's climate than does my car). Well, there on the front page is an image of the Sun with the latest sunspot activity (none, as of this writing).Poke

Kevin M. Bellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03075011779215747762noreply@blogger.com0