Thursday, December 22, 2022

Wednesday, December 21, 2022

122122 Warm Up

Today's GrokIt:

Enjoying a barrel ride on my digital surfboard, surfing the net last night, I found an interesting site. Wanna play a game, entirely text-based, 300,000 words, without graphics or sound effects, and fueled by the vast, unstoppable power of your imagination?

Ever dream of being a knight who needs to slay a dragon?  Hit [Play Online] (not [Download This Game]) and have an "adventure":

https://www.choiceofgames.com/category/our-games/

Believe it or not, this is an example of something we could do in computer programming right now.

Leave a comment on Slack!

dmac

Tuesday, December 20, 2022

122022 Warm Up

Today's GrokIt:

It seems y'all have taken a shine to typing, an essential skill for programmers. Did you know there is another keyboard layout besides QWERTY (did you even know they called it that?)

Check it out @:

http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/Q/QWERTY_keyboard.html

http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/D/Dvorak_keyboard.html

Then try out the new arrangement @:

http://www.powertyping.com/dvorak/typing.html (Dvorak or QWERTY, there are some interesting typing games on this site. Try to find them!)

Leave a comment on Slack!

Mr. DeMarco

Monday, December 19, 2022

121922 Warm Up

Today's GrokIt:

What's your name mean?

Find out @ http://www.whatalovelyname.com/

How popular is your name now?

http://www.babynamewizard.com/voyager#

Generate your own name:

https://www.fantasynamegenerators.com/circassian-names.php

Leave a comment on Slack!

Mr. DeMarco

Friday, December 16, 2022

121622 Warm Up

Today's GrokIt:

Into music?

Check it out @ https://experiments.withgoogle.com/shared-piano

Leave a comment on Slack!

Mr. DeMarco

Thursday, December 15, 2022

Wednesday, December 14, 2022

121422 Warm Up

Today's GrokIt:

Scientists in California have developed a way to create nuclear fusion.

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/nuclear-fusion-energy-breakthrough-announcement/

What's the difference between nuclear fusion and nuclear fission?

https://www.diffen.com/difference/Nuclear_Fission_vs_Nuclear_Fusion

Here's how it works:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2W-GEE6YU4M

What does it all mean?

https://www.npr.org/2022/12/13/1142208055/nuclear-fusion-breakthrough-climate-change

Leave a comment in Slack!

Mr. DeMarco

Monday, December 12, 2022

121322WarmUp

Today's GrokIt:

What are time zones? Why do we have them? Do we need them?

Check it out @ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Time_zone.

Look at some neat sites @ http://www.worldtimezone.com/

and http://www.worldtimeserver.com/

and http://24timezones.com/

Leave a comment in Slack!

121222 Warm Up

Today's GrokIt:

Think you're good at puzzles?

Try:

https://www.nytimes.com/puzzles/spelling-bee

How about?

https://www.nytimes.com/crosswords/game/mini

Leave a comment on Slack!

Mr. DeMarco

Friday, December 9, 2022

120922 Warm Up

Today's GrokIt:

Did you know that doodling is good for the brain?

Read all about it:

Why doodling is good for your brain - Youth Mind (theyouthmind.ca)

How about a Doodle challenge?

Check it out @ Quick, Draw! (quickdraw.withgoogle.com)

Leave a comment on Slack!

Mr. DeMarco

Thursday, December 8, 2022

120822 Warm Up

Today's GrokIt:

A much forgotten literary technique is the Six-Word Story.

What's a Six-Word Story?

A Six-Word Story should provide a movement of conflict, action, and resolution that gives the sense of a complete story transpiring in a moment’s reading..using only 6 words.

How do you write one?

https://www.masterclass.com/articles/how-to-write-an-unforgettable-six-word-story

What are some examples?

https://www.dougweller.net/example-of-a-six-word-story/

Even Ernest Hemingway did it!

https://www.newyorker.com/humor/daily-shouts/ernest-hemingways-six-word-sequels

Now, it's your turn. Write a Six-Word Story about tech, for example: "Why is my toaster pinging China?"

Post it up on Slack!

Mr. DeMarco


Wednesday, December 7, 2022

120722 Warm Up

Today's GrokIt:

In life, what you see is not necessarily what you get!

Check out these optical illusions @ http://www.optillusions.com/.

Leave a comment.

Mr. DeMarco

Tuesday, December 6, 2022

120622 Warm Up

Today's GrokIt:

Think you're smart? Mensa smart?

Go to this webpage https://www.mensa.org/public/mensa-iq-challenge and find out! 

Write a comment in Slack. 

Mr. DeMarco

Monday, December 5, 2022

120522 Warm Up

Today's GrokIt:

Think personal computers have been around for a long time?

Behold, the history of personal computing, before your very eyes!

Step into the way back machine and visit an online computer museum @ 

http://www.digibarn.com/collections/index.html#collection.

Find the funkiest computer and tell me about it.

Leave a comment on Slack!

Mr. DeMarco

Friday, December 2, 2022

120222 Warm Up

Today's GrokIt:

I can show you the world

Shining, shimmering, splendid...........

A whole new world

A dazzling place I never knew

But when I’m way up here

It’s crystal clear

That now, I’m in a whole new world with you

Well, I can't show you the world but GeoGeusser can!

Go to GeoGuessr - Let's explore the world!

Sign in with Google.

Leave a comment on Slack!

Mr. DeMarco

Thursday, December 1, 2022

120122 Warm Up

Today's GrokIt?

Who is Jerry Lawson? What did he do?

Don't know?

Go to:

www.google.com

and click on the Google Doodle

Post up your findings on Slack

Mr. DeMarco

Tuesday, November 29, 2022

113022 Warm Up

 Today's GrokIt:

The title of this blog is GrokIt! You have been accessing the site since the beginning of school. But what does it mean?

Look up the definition. 

What's a Grok? When was it first used? By whom? And where?

How is it pronounced? 

GROK meaning | What does "GROK" mean? Definition in Merlin Dictionary #shorts - YouTube

Which other famous (sort of) person has used the term?

What is Grokking Science?

Leave a comment on Slack!

Mr. DeMarco

Monday, November 28, 2022

112922 Warm Up

Today's GrokIt:

Welcome to another year of GrokIt!

GrokIt originally appeared 14 years ago. While teaching at RHS, I conceived it as the digital equivalent of the Do Now or activator you may be used to other teachers giving to you to start the class.

Interestingly enough, I believe the blog has taken up a much more important role in my classes.

I envision using GrokIt as a hi-tech portal to get you and your energies focused on the class topics of the day by hyperlinking around the net to:

•discover state-of the-art technologies

•bump into some engaging topic

•just enjoy a fun and interesting website.

My hope is to try to kindle a spark of interest in computers and technology.

After all, the World Wide Web and everything in it was created by software developers, computer programmers, web designers, all kinds of techie people of which you are the next generation.

I also want to create a class community, a public forum from which you could express your opinions and see the opinions of others about these topics.

So, here's today's GrokIt.

One of my favorite sites is Wired. Check it out @

http://www.wired.com/

Pick one article, read it and leave a comment on Slack.

Mr. DeMarco

Monday, November 21, 2022

Tuesday, November 15, 2022

111622 Warm Up

Today's GrokIt:

More interesting Kodu videos:

How to make a football game:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2WIyNYNeNUg

How to create an underwater world:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uSdr1JEVfjs

How to make a racing game:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BpJTBMe1I98

How to make pages:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-87g-mDfS7g

How to make a maze:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=48BNpjmQ6d4

Leave a comment!

Mr. DeMarco

Wednesday, November 9, 2022

111022 Warm Up

Today's GrokIt:

More about video games:

5 Building Video Games That Are Awesome (& 5 That Fall Flat) (thegamer.com)

And playing video games is not all bad:

15 Surprising Benefits of Playing Video Games | Mental Floss

Leave a comment!

Mr. DeMarco

110922 Warm Up

Today's GrokIt:

What are video games?

Video game - Wikipedia

More on video games to inspire you as you create your own:

The Top 100 Video Games of All Time - IGN

Leave a comment on Slack!

Mr. DeMarco

Monday, November 7, 2022

110722 WarmUp

Today's GrokIt:

We're going to change platforms today.

Check out this website:

Ultimate List of Different Types of Video Games | 49 Genres & Subcategories (idtech.com)

and leave a comment on Slack.

Mr. DeMarco


Friday, November 4, 2022

110422 Warm Up

Today's GrokIt:

If an astronaut yells in space and noone is there to hear it, does she make a noise?

Are there noises in deep space? If so, what do they sound like?

Find out @ http://www.aliensonic.com/

You can use google to translate your wicked awesome sayings into Spanish and French.

How about R2D2? Try this link: https://lingojam.com/R2D2Droid

Leave a comment in Slack!

Mr. DeMarco

Thursday, November 3, 2022

110322 Warm Up

Today's GrokIt:

Words, Words, Words.

How many words can you create from just one?

Try it out @ http://www.degraeve.com/subwords.php

How about creating your own word?

Try it @ http://www.degraeve.com/invent-a-word/

Leave a comment!

dmac


Wednesday, November 2, 2022

110222 WarmUp

Today's GrokIt:

Robots, Robots, Robots! They seem to be everywhere..going to the moon, playing soccer, helping the elderly, teaching??? (now that's scary!)

What do they look like? What do they really do?

Check out these websites:

https://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/robotics/types-and-applications.html

https://robots.ieee.org/

http://www.boston.com/bigpicture/2009/03/robots.html

http://www.boston.com/bigpicture/2009/08/more_robots.html

Leave a comment on Slack!

Mr. DeMarco

Tuesday, November 1, 2022

110122 Warm Up

Today's GrokIt: 

Think personal computers have been around for a long time?

Behold, the history of personal computing, before your very eyes!

Step into the wayback machine and visit an online computer museum @ http://www.digibarn.com/collections/index.html#collection.

Find the funkiest computer and tell me about it.

Leave a comment!

dmac

Friday, October 28, 2022

102822 Warm Up

Today's GrokIt:

Back by popular demand!

So, what's NASA up to these days? 

https://spaceplace.nasa.gov/

https://www.nasa.gov/

https://www.nasa.gov/specials/artemis/

Leave a comment on Slack.

Mr. DeMarco

Thursday, October 27, 2022

102722 Warm Up

 Today's GrokIt:

A few interesting videos to help you with Photoshop:

How to open multiple images:

Open MULTIPLE Images as Layers In Photoshop [Quick & Easy] - Bing video

How to crop images:

How To Crop an Image in Photoshop With Specific Sizes - Bing video

How to resize images:

How To Resize An Image In Photoshop - Bing video

Leave a comment in Slack!

Mr. DeMarco


Wednesday, October 26, 2022

102622 Warm Up

Today's GrokIt:

Now that we're in the visual design world, let's take a look at some of the most famous art in the world:

http://www.mystudios.com/treasure/treasure.html

http://www.louvre.fr/llv/commun/home.jsp?bmLocale=en

http://www.museodelprado.es/

http://www.nga.gov/

http://www.mfa.org/

Which one is your favorite?

Leave a comment on Slack!

Mr. DeMarco



Monday, October 24, 2022

102422 Warm Up

Today's GrokIt:

Today, we start our stint with Adobe.

What is graphic arts?

The visual arts based on the use of line and tone rather than three-dimensional work or the use of color.

The activity of practicing the graphic arts, especially as a subject of study.

Check it out @ 

Graphic arts - Wikipedia

graphic arts - Bing images

What is Adobe?

Check it out @ 

Industry-leading graphic design apps for designers | Adobe

Digital drawing and painting software | Adobe

Leave a comment on Slack!

Mr. DeMarco

Friday, October 21, 2022

102122 Warm Up

Today's GrokIt:

"The importance of the Internet in a teenager's life increases with every day that goes by. Teenagers are starting to use the Internet in a myriad of ways, which range from doing schoolwork to transporting themselves halfway around the world."

So says David Thelen, a high school sophomore from Michigan who has recently begun publishing his work in Internet E-Zines.

Read the entire article @ http://www.4teachers.org/kidspeak/thelan/index.shtml.

How about Internet safety?

Check it out @:

https://jr.brainpop.com/health/besafe/internetsafety/

https://www.netsmartzkids.org/activities/interactive/

Leave a comment on Slack!

Mr. DeMarco

Wednesday, October 19, 2022

101922 Warm Up

Today's GrokIt:

Yesterday we looked at Google Doodles but what is the origin story?

Check it out @ Google Doodle - Wikipedia

How about entering your own Google Doodle?

Check it out @ What is Doodle for Google - Doodle for Google

How about a Doodle challenge?

Check it out @ Quick, Draw! (quickdraw.withgoogle.com)

Leave a comment on Slack!

Mr. DeMarco




Monday, October 17, 2022

Friday, October 14, 2022

101422 Warm Up

Today's GrokIt:

He didn't do it! He never did nothin to nobody!

How many times have you heard that on the news? Bad behavior--even worse grammar.

So, how's your grammar? Need some work?

Check out this website @ http://www.english-online.org.uk/games/gamezone2.htm

Leave a comment on Slack!

Mr. DeMarco

Thursday, October 13, 2022

101322 Warm Up

Today's GrokIt:

Think you're good at puzzles?

Try:

https://www.nytimes.com/puzzles/spelling-bee

How about?

https://www.nytimes.com/crosswords/game/mini

Leave a comment on Slack!

Mr. DeMarco


Wednesday, October 12, 2022

101222 Warm Up

Today's GrokIt:

Think you're good at spelling?

Try these websites:

https://www.visualthesaurus.com/bee/play

Can't do it? Try:

https://freebee.fun/play/

Leave a comment on Slack!

Mr. DeMarco




Friday, October 7, 2022

100722 Work Plan

Today's GrokIt!

Minute mysteries are micro chronicles where you have to try and solve the riddle. They are called minute mysteries because they are a bit more complex than your average riddle.

  1. In the old West a man rides into town on Friday. He stays for three days, and leaves on Friday. How can this be?
  2. There is a man walking down the road dressed entirely in black. There are no lights on anywhere and no moon. A car with no lights comes down the road and manages to avoid the man. How?
  3. A father and son are in an auto accident. The father dies and the son is rushed to the hospital in critical condition. The doctor looks at the boy and says, “I can’t work on him, he’s my son.” How can this be?
  4. You are in a cabin with four walls all facing south. There is a bear outside. What color is the bear?
  5. You walk into a room with only one match. You must light a lantern, a gas stove, the pilot light of a water heater and a fire in a fireplace. What do you light first?
Leave your answers on Slack!

Mr. DeMarco

Thursday, October 6, 2022

100622 Warm Up

Today's GrokIt:

Ever start to sing a song -- and can't remember the lyrics?

Try these sites:

http://www.lyrster.com/

http://www.lyricsmode.com/

http://www.elyrics.net/

Now find the end of these lyrics and finish off these songs!

Set me free ______

I'm in the mood ____

When I was younger ______

Here I stand _______

Anyday, anyday, ______

Yesterday, ________

Lady of Spain, _______

Darling, won't you _______

Oh Darling _____

Unforgettable, _______

Leave a comment on Slack!

Mr. DeMarco


Wednesday, October 5, 2022

Tuesday, October 4, 2022

100422 Warm Up

Today's GrokIt:

What's your carbon footprint? Find out at http://www.carbonfootprint.com/. Write a comment telling us how much it's going to cost you to offset your carbon footprint.

Then watch this video to learn about Snap:

Introduction to Block Programming with Snap! - Bing video

Mr. DeMarco

Monday, October 3, 2022

100322 Warm Up

Today's GrokIt:

In life, what you see is not necessarily what you get!

Check out these optical illusions @ http://www.optillusions.com/.

Go to https://snap.berkeley.edu/

Create an account using your school id, password and school rpsk12 gmail account

Watch the video at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YND4swViSwA

Leave a comment.

Mr. DeMarco

Friday, September 30, 2022

093022 Warm Up

 Today's GrokIt:

What's the coolest city in the world? New York, Paris, London, L.A.?

How about Dubai?

Read about it at:

Incredibly Expensive Things Can Only Be Found in Dubai | Investing Magazine

Leave a comment on Slack

Mr. DeMarco

Thursday, September 29, 2022

Wednesday, September 28, 2022

092822 Warm Up

 Today's GrokIt:

Winter is approaching--the Martian winter! Temperatures will drop as low as minus 238 Fahrenheit and the sun will sink below the horizon for three months.

What happening with the Phoenix rover?

Check it out @ http://www.boston.com/news/nation/articles/2008/11/11/mars_lander_succumbs_to_the_winter/.

While you're at it, have a Mars adventure @ https://spaceplace.nasa.gov/menu/play/

Leave a comment on Slack!

Mr. DeMarco

Tuesday, September 27, 2022

Monday, September 26, 2022

92622 Warm Up

 Today's GrokIt:

Ever been around the world?

You can go, right now--with Goggle Maps!

Look up the following locations and tell me what's there?

Salar de Uyuni, Bolivia. ...

Northern Lake Baikal, Russia. ...

Kuang Si Falls, Luang Prabang, Laos. ...

Torres del Paine National Park, Patagonia, Chile. ...

Grand Prismatic Spring, Wyoming, USA. ...

Huacachina, Peru. ...

The Door to Hell, Turkmenistan.

Use the the little yellow man or photosphere to geolocate and reconnoiter.

Mr. DeMarco

Friday, September 23, 2022

092322 Warm Up

 Today's GrokIt:

What is a graphic format? 

Check it out at:

JPEG, GIF, PNG? How to Pick the Best Graphic Formats (thesoftwarepro.com)

Graphic File Formats | Computerworld

Leave a comment on Slack.

Mr. DeMarco

Wednesday, September 21, 2022

092222Warm Up

 Today's GrokIt:

So you're creating icons. What do you need to think about?

Check it out @ 10 Tips for Designing Icons | Domestika

And how about Creating Great Icons: What to Consider When Designing (marketing4ecps.com)

Leave a comment!

Mr. DeMarco


092122 Warm Up

 Today's GrokIt:

What is an icon?

Among many definitions:

a graphic symbol on a computer display screen that represents an app, an object (such as a file), or a function (such as the command to save)

Icons can represent people as well.

Find an example of an icon and post it on Slack

Mr. DeMarco

Tuesday, September 20, 2022

092022 Warm Up

 Today's GrokIt:

Ever hear of the following towns?

Belchertown, Florida, Freetown, Halifax, Holland, Hubbardston, Monterey, Peru, Wales, Washington.

Believe it or not-they're all in Massachusetts!

Use Google maps @ http://maps.google.com/maps?hl=en&tab=wl to find them. Then leave a note in Slack as to each town's location/general whereabouts.

Mr. DeMarco

Monday, September 19, 2022

091922 Warm Up

 Today's GrokIt:

And NASA? Check it out @

NASA

NASA Artemis

Leave a comment on Slack.

Mr. DeMarco

Friday, September 16, 2022

091622 Warm Up

 Today's GrokIt:

So, what's NASA up to these days? What does NASA even mean?

Check it out at Home | NASA Space Place – NASA Science for Kids.

Leave a comment on Slack.

Mr. DeMarco

Thursday, September 15, 2022

091522 Warm Up

 Today's GrokIt:

Think you're smart? Mensa smart?

Go to this webpage https://www.mensa.org/public/mensa-iq-challenge and find out! 

Write a comment in Slack. 

Mr. DeMarco

Wednesday, September 14, 2022

091422 Warm Up

Today's GrokIt:

What are time zones? Why do we have them? Do we need them?

Check it out @ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Time_zone.

Look at some neat sites @ http://www.worldtimezone.com/

and http://www.timezonecheck.com/

and http://www.worldtimeserver.com/

and http://24timezones.com/

What is the Greenwich meridian? Look it up @ http://wwp.greenwichmeridian.com/

What does it have to do with time zones?

Leave a comment in Slack!

Mr. DeMarco


Tuesday, September 13, 2022

091322 Warm Up

 Today's GrokIt:

Yesterday, we watched videos about coding. But an essential component that we all take for granted is the power it takes to create and run the metaverse and the virtual world: electricity.

How is electricity made?

Check it out at:

https://justenergy.com/learning-center/electricity/

https://sciencing.com/how-is-hydropower-gathered-or-created-13660670.html

https://www.eia.gov/energyexplained/electricity/how-electricity-is-generated.php

Leave a comment on Slack

Mr. DeMarco



Monday, September 12, 2022

091222 Warm Up

 Today's GrokIt:

Looking for the ultimate gift for you or your nerdy friend? 

Try http://www.alienware.com/ and http://www.digitalstormonline.com/pcworld.

These boxes are dirty!

Leave a comment.

Mr. DeMarco


Friday, September 9, 2022

09092022 WarmUp

Today's GrokIt:

Data storage has been growing exponentially over the past decade. Look up the following capacities on the Internet:

byte

kilobyte

megabyte

gigabyte

terabyte

petabyte

exabyte

zettabyte

yottabyte.

How big are they?

Give me an example of what can be stored with each capacity, i.e. Blue ray holds 500 GB of data. How  many movies is that?

Mr. DeMarco

Thursday, September 8, 2022

090822 Warm Up

Today's GrokIt:

What's the capital of the United States? How about France? And Italy?

Bet you don't know which countries have these capitals: Riyadh, Ankara, Islamabad, Jakarta, Pyongyang, Warsaw, Brussels, Canberra, Wellington?

Look them up and leave a comment!

Mr. DeMarco

Wednesday, September 7, 2022

090722 WarmUp

 Today's GrokIt:

The title of this blog is GrokIt! You have been accessing the site since the beginning of school. But what does it mean?

Look up the definition. 

What's a Grok? When was it first used? By whom? And where?

How is it pronounced? https://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=grok+meaning&docid=607994862210398826&mid=566D5F5A1ED3937D37EA566D5F5A1ED3937D37EA&view=detail&FORM=VIRE

Which other famous (sort of) person has used the term?

What is Grokking Science?

Leave a comment in Slack!

Mr. DeMarco

Thursday, September 1, 2022

Wednesday, August 31, 2022

083122WorkPlan

 Today's GrokIt:

Welcome to another year of GrokIt!

GrokIt originally appeared 14 years ago. While teaching at RHS, I conceived it as the digital equivalent of the Do Now or activator you may be used to other teachers giving to you to start the class.

Interestingly enough, I believe the blog has taken up a much more important role in my classes.

I envision using GrokIt as a hi-tech portal to get you and your energies focused on the class topics of the day by hyperlinking around the net to:

•discover state-of the-art technologies

•bump into some engaging topic

•just enjoy a fun and interesting website.

My hope is to try to kindle a spark of interest in computers and technology.

After all, the World Wide Web and everything in it was created by software developers, computer programmers, web designers, all kinds of techie people of which you are the next generation.

I also want to create a class community, a public forum from which you could express your opinions and see the opinions of others about these topics.

So here's today's GrokIt.

One of my favorite sites is Wired. Check it out @

http://www.wired.com/

Pick one article, read it and leave a comment.

Mr. DeMarco