Data Activities Portfolio
The Data Portfolio is a compendium of particle physics classroom activities organized by Data Strand, Level of student engagement, Curriculum Topics and NGSS Standards. Follow the links provided for information about using the Data Portfolio to plan your students’ experience. Level descriptions explain the data analysis skills that students apply at each level: tasks in Level 0 are simpler than those in Levels 1 and 2. While each level can be explored individually, students who start in one level and progress to more complex levels experience increasingly engaging and challenging tasks. These activities are aligned with NGSS Standards, particularly NGSS Practices.
Each Curriculum Topic provides connections between topics routinely covered in physics class and particle physics content and methods. Use the menus to find activities related to the content you are currently covering. Watch this screencast to learn more about sorting these activities.
We are making Spanish Language versions of the activities. To find the activities with Spanish versions, use the Curriculum Topics menu, scroll to the bottom, select Spanish Language then Apply.. Special thanks to Danelix Cordero-Rosario from the Puerto Rico Center for providing these translations.
QuarkNet has entered the world of data science. Use the Curriculum Topic menu to locate the Skill: Coding option then Apply.
We want your feedback on how the activities worked for you. Please complete the feedback form to help us improve our activities.
Activity Name | Data Strand | Level | Curriculum Topics | NGSS Practices |
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Research Using Coding This activity provides techniques for guiding students doing an independent research project.
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Cosmic Ray, LHC, Neutrino | Level 4 | Skill: Coding, Skill: Developing Models | 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 |
Mean Lifetime Part 3: MINERvA Students collect data from muons which decay in the MINERvA detector in the Fermilab NuMi beamline to understand particle decay and determine the muon lifetime. |
Cosmic Ray, Neutrino | Level 2 | Half-Life/Mean Lifetime, Kinematics, Nature of Matter, Skill: Developing Models, Skill: Histograms, Skill: Uncertainty | 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8 |
The Case of the Hidden Neutrino Students use momentum conservation to examine the decay of top-antitop pairs to determine what is missing from the event. |
LHC, Neutrino | Level 1 | Conservation Laws, Special Relativity, Standard Model, Skill: Developing Models, Skill: Uncertainty, Spanish Language | 2, 4, 5, 6, 7 |
What Heisenberg Knew Heisenberg knew that, at the quantum level, we cannot know everything, at least not all at once. Students explore uncertainties in measurements of complimentary variables to find this out for themselves. |
Neutrino | Level 1 | Kinematics, Quantum Mechanics, Skill: Developing Models, Skill: Graphing | 2, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 |
Histograms: Uncertainty Students construct histograms, identify the best value to represent the data, and report the uncertainty in their answers. |
Cosmic Ray, LHC, Neutrino | Level 1 | Skill: Developing Models, Skill: Histograms, Skill: Uncertainty | 4, 5 |
Energy, Momentum, and Mass Students examine data to find how energy, momentum, and mass are related. |
Cosmic Ray, LHC, Neutrino | Level 1 | Conservation Laws, Electricity & Magnetism, Special Relativity, Skill: Developing Models, Skill: Graphing | 2, 4, 5, 7, 8 |
Making Tracks II Students analyze tracks in a bubble chamber. |
Cosmic Ray, LHC, Neutrino | Level 1 | Conservation Laws, Nature of Matter, Standard Model, Skill: Developing Models | 1, 2, 4, 6, 7 |
Particle Transformations Students discover the rules of particle transformations using transformation diagrams. |
Cosmic Ray, LHC, Neutrino | Level 1 | Conservation Laws, Nature of Matter, Standard Model, Skill: Developing Models | 1, 2, 4, 6, 7 |
Histograms: The Basics Students build basic histogram skills required in many of the other activities in the Data Activities Portfolio. |
Cosmic Ray, LHC, Neutrino | Level 0 | Skill: Histograms, Skill: Uncertainty | 4, 5, 7 |
Making Tracks I Students analyze tracks in a cloud chamber. |
Cosmic Ray, LHC, Neutrino | Level 0 | Nature of Matter, Standard Model, Skill: Developing Models | 1, 2, 4, 6, 7 |