In AP® Biology, students have been studying organic molecules, specifically the four classes of biological molecules —the macromolecules— carbohydrates, lipid, proteins and nucleic acids. Molecules in each class will have specific features and structures particular to that class of molecule. Being able to recognize the structures, their similarities and their differences which will influence the structure and function of these molecules, is an important skill to have prior to examining these structures and their functions in living things.
We invite you to watch the video below, where students were given cards with the structural diagrams of 45 unidentified macromolecules which they sorted according to their structure, then determined what specific properties they may have, dependent on what elements are included in the macromolecules or how the atoms are arranged.
The purpose of this Grade 9 Biology lab was to analyze the effect of exercise on cellular respiration. Students were to identify the role of carbon dioxide production, breathing rate, and heart rate in determining the rate of cellular respiration. Carbon dioxide production can be measured by breathing through a straw into a solution of bromothymol blue (BTB), an acid indicator, and observing the color change.
Originally hired as a Resident Assistant in 2017, Max Leicher soon found himself employed as a science teacher and today is the head of the Science Department.
At 27, Max is the youngest of our teaching faculty and brings a lot of enthusiasm and energy to the classroom. He is also a big part of the team at AIS-Salzburg responsible for the continued transition to online teaching and technology upgrades at the school.
Max’s age and experience as a Resident Assistant make him more relatable to his students and also make him a valuable asset in strengthening communications between resident staff and teaching faculty.
As much energy as Max brings to the classroom he also brings outside of the classroom, whether volunteering his time to lead a group on a weekend activity or helping out with scorekeeping a basketball game. Max is a consistent, positive presence at the school making him one of the most popular teachers with the students.
We are hopeful that Max continues to stay on at AIS-Salzburg as a science teacher for years to come!
The purpose of this experiment was to investigate Archimedes’ Principle for an object that is denser than water. Archimedes’ Principle states that an object floating or fully immersed in a fluid is buoyed up by a force equal to the weight of the fluid displaced by the object. The buoyant force on an object immersed in a liquid can also be determined by weighing an object in air and then in water. The apparent loss of weight of the object is equal to the buoyant force of the water. With this information, the students were able to determine the mass density of the different objects and of the fluids.
