Measuring Beetle Bodies

In this lesson, learners measure the lengths of various insect body parts from scanning electron micrographs using WebImage, a Web-based customized version of ImageJ. The lesson introduces students to setting scale in making the measurements and to units of measurement, as well as entomology.

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Relevant standards

NSES Standard: Science as Inquiry, Grades 5-8, Content Standard A
• USE APPROPRIATE TOOLS AND TECHNIQUES TO GATHER, ANALYZE, AND INTERPRET DATA: The use of tools and techniques, including mathematics, will be guided by the question asked and the investigations students design. The use of computers for the collection, summary, and display of evidence is part of this standard. Students should be able to access, gather, store, retrieve, and organize data, using hardware and software designed for these purposes.

NSES Standard: Life science, Grades 5-8, Content Standard C
• Living systems at all levels of organization demonstrate the complementary nature of structure and function. Important levels of organization for structure and function include cells, organs, tissues, organ systems, whole organisms, and ecosystems. (Structure and Function in Living Organisms.)
• Biological evolution accounts for the diversity of species developed through gradual processes over many generations. Species acquire many of their unique characteristics through biological adaptation, which involves the selection of naturally occurring variations in populations. Biological adaptations include changes in structures, behaviors, or physiology that enhance survival and reproductive success in a particular environment. (Diversity and Adaptations of Organisms).

NCTM Standard: Geometry, Grades 6-8
Instructional programs should enable students to use visualization, spatial reasoning, and geometric modeling to solve problems:
• recognize and apply geometric ideas and relationships in areas outside the mathematics classroom, such as art, science, and everyday life.

NCTM Standard: Measurement, Grades 6-8,
Instructional programs should enable students to understand measurable attributes of objects and the units, systems, and processes of measurement:
• understand, select, and use units of appropriate size and type to measure angles, perimeter, area, surface area, and volume.

NSES Standard: Science and Technology, Grades 5-8, Content Standard E
• Science and technology are reciprocal. Science helps drive technology, as it addresses questions that demand more sophisticated instruments and provides principles for better instrumentation and technique. Technology is essential to science, because it provides instruments and techniques that enable observations of objects and phenomena that are otherwise unobservable due to factors such as quantity, distance, location, size, and speed. Technology also provides tools for investigations, inquiry, and analysis.