The final phase of the student projects was, of course, the presentation itself. The students spent the evening of Day Five and the morning of Day Six graphing the data they had collected and preparing written reports on their materials, methods, and conclusions to accompany their oral presentations. Each presentation was also accompanied by a round of questions, in which the students considered possible sources of error and ways these experiments could be improved in the future.

In the end, some students were able to support their theories, and in some cases the data produced results the students had not expected. But in every case, the students ended their Voyage of Discovery with a greater understanding of the natural world around them.

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Celestial Tracking

Students: Grayson & Jamie
Instruments: Quadrant & directional compass.

Line Graph: Current Speed/Time

Grayson and Jamie used traditional methods of celestial tracking to test their hypothesis that local noon -- the moment when the Sun reaches its highest altitude in the sky -- would be at 1200 hours, which is to say, the same as Standard Time.

According to their findings, they concluded that local noon at Athens Channel actually falls between 1215 and 1220 hours, and that at that moment, the azimuth of the Sun -- which determines the local variation between true south and magnetic south -- was approximately 20˚.

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Students: Alexis & Derrick
Instruments: Lead line, wood chip, stopwatch, calculator.

Line Graph: Current Speed & Water Depth/Time

Alexis and Derrick measured current speeds and took soundings to test their theory that the the current speed of the flood tide would be greater than the speed of the ebb tide.

Over a two-day period, they discovered that the flood tide was indeed usually faster than that of the ebb, largely supporting their hypothesis.

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Dissolved Oxygen

Students: Devin & Elora
Instruments: Titration kit.

Bar Graph: Dissolved Oxygen in Parts per Million/Location in Athens Channel Transect

Devin and Elora collected surface water samples from one shoreline of Athens Channel to the other, including a tidal pool, in order to test their hypothesis that dissolved oxygen levels would be greater toward the middle of the channel.

Their readings actually found more dissolved oxygen at the shoreline, failing to support their hypothesis, but they were able to suggest a range of phenomena which might lead to this result. Possible explanations included water dripping down into the tidal pool, wave action, and the respiration of local fauna and flora.

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Mechanical Advantage

Students: Cheyenne & Nicole
Instruments: Spring scale, lead ballast ingot, block & tackle system.

Line Graph: Force Required to Lift 60 Lbs./Number of Leads (Inset: Distance Lead Pulled to Lift 60 Lb. Weight/Number of Leads)

Cheyenne and Nicole used a block-and-tackle system to test their hypothesis that the more pulleys used by a simple machine to lift a given weight, the less force would be needed to lift it.

In practice, they reached the conclusion that it was the number of downward-leading leads that provides mechanical advantage, with the total amount of force needed being divided by the number of leads.

(During their presentation, they also demonstrated their methods by lifting 90-pound Jamie into the air.)

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Salinity

Students: Ryan & Tyler W.
Instruments: Refractometer, titration kit, sample jars.

Line Graph: Salinity/Distance from Ocean as measured by refractometer and titration

Ryan and Tyler ultimately focused on their hypothesis that the amount of salinity in the Hudson's waters would decrease as one traveled north on the river. They also tested their initial hypothesis by double-checking their results using two different means of measurement, the refractometer and titrations, and compared the results.

Ultimately, they were able to support their hypothesis -- salinity levels did generally slope off as we moved upriver, with spikes likely explained by tidal shifts.

They also found that, although the refractometer and titration tests often provided slightly different readings, there was a strong correlation between them, suggesting that both methods are likely to be generally accurate.

Water Temperature in a Column

Student: John
Instruments: Van Dorn sampler, thermometer, wet thermometer.

Line Graph: Air Temperature/Time (Inset: Water Temperature/Depth)

John conducted his own experiments in temperature within a water column, combining his own Van Dorn readings with air temperature data drawn from the Deck Log.

John ended up devising and testing two hypotheses; first, that temperatures would increase by 1200 hours and decrease by 2400 hours. In this case, he found some correlation, but not enough variation to show a conclusive connection.

Secondly, he predicted that the water temperature would decrease at greater depths. In this case, he was able to support his hypothesis.