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...

Activity Name Data Strand Level Curriculum Topics NGSS Practices
dicedecay Mean Lifetime Part 1: Dice

Rolling dice serves as the model for decaying particles.

Cosmic Ray, LHC Level 1 Half-Life/Mean Lifetime, Skill: Developing Models, Skill: Histograms, Spanish Language 2, 4, 5, 7
quad-350 Making it ‘Round the Bend - Qualitative

Students explore the effects of electric and magnetic fields on particles. 

LHC Level 1 Electricity & Magnetism, Kinematics, Spanish Language 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 7
ttbar 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, Skill: Developing Models, Skill: Uncertainty, Spanish Language, Special Relativity, Standard Model 2, 4, 5, 6, 7
rwr_marblediagram Rolling with Rutherford

Students use statistics to make an indirect measurement they can easily confirm.

Cosmic Ray, LHC Level 1 Nature of Matter, Skill: Developing Models, Skill: Histograms, Skill: Uncertainty, Spanish Language 1, 3, 4, 5, 7
totem TOTEM 1

Students use TOTEM data to determine if protons (quantum objects) obey classical conservation of momentum.

LHC Level 1 Conservation Laws, Nature of Matter 4, 5, 8
epmlogy 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, Skill: Developing Models, Skill: Graphing, Special Relativity 2, 4, 5, 7, 8
totem TOTEM 2

Use quantum physics and LHC data to estimate the size of the proton.

LHC Level 2 Instrumentation, Kinematics, Nature of Matter, Quantum Mechanics, Skill: Developing Models, Skill: Histograms, Skill: Uncertainty, Waves & Interference 2, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8
mltplotlet Mean Lifetime Part 2: Cosmic Muons

Students learn how physicists measure muon lifetime.

Cosmic Ray Level 2 Half-Life/Mean Lifetime, Nature of Matter, Skill: Histograms, Skill: Uncertainty, Spanish Language, Special Relativity 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8
This image illustrates the experimental set up. Heisenberg's Laser

The students will investigate the relationship between uncertainty in momentum and the uncertainty in position and how these relate to Heisenberg's uncertainty principle.

Cosmic Ray, LHC, Neutrino Level 2 Quantum Mechanics, Skill: Developing Models, Skill: Graphing, Skill: Uncertainty 4, 5, 8
zmass-icon Z Mass Spreadsheet Extension

Students use spreadsheet coding to determine the Z Mass for a large data set.

LHC Level 2 Conservation Laws, Nature of Matter, Skill: Coding, Skill: Histograms, Special Relativity, Standard Model 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8