Basketball Skills Run in the Family

Basketball players are more likely to be related to elite athletes than baseball, football players

New York Knicks' Robin Lopez is defended by his brother, Brooklyn Nets' Brook Lopez, during an NBA game in April.   (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II)

http://www.newser.com/story/225714/basketball-more-than-any-other-major-sport-is-a-family-affair.html

1)  What numbers are the most significant in the article for convincing soeone that basketball is unique in this instance?  What role do statistics play in sports?   What words help you identify the main idea of this article?  

2)  Why might a sibling of a professional athlete feel differently than a parent after hearing this?  To what degree would a world-class musician identify with the results of this study?  Why might this be a good article to read in a class of academically gifted students?  Whose view is not represented in this article?

3)  In what ways is this story connected to math?  Politics?  Harry Potter?

4)  How might this story be different if the basketball rim was raised by two feet to twelve feet?  In what ways would this be different if it was about actors and actresses?

5)  What are basic assumptions about talent in athletics?  About hard work vs. natural ability?  About competition?  To whom does this study matter?

Extension Activities:

1)  Students can try to create a sport or change the rules to an existing sport that minimizes the effects of inherited physical ability.

2)  Students can fictionalize their own life story by writing about a real or imaginary sibling who always overshadows them or who is always in their shadow.

AoK:  Human Sciences

WoK:  Sense Perception

Study Confirms the Harmful Effects of Spanking

Science Shows How Physical Punishment May Change Personality

http://mic.com/articles/141851/here-s-what-getting-spanked-as-a-kid-did-to-your-personality-according-to-science#.PaWX9lpLU

1) What evidence is used to support the claims? What quotes are most useful? Which numbers are most significant to refuting this study?

2) Why might a teacher have a different perspective than a student on this topic? Why might your great-great grandfather think differently than your future grandchildren? Whose perspective is missing in this article?

3) In what ways is this connected to school? To what degree is this connected to athletics?

4) In what ways would this news be different if it happened 5 years ago? Why might this change if the definition of spanking was extended? Restricted?

5) What is the purpose of the study? What are the possible implications of this article? What are some basic assumptions about punishment in this article? What are some basic assumptions about parenting? In what way is this story significant to you?

Extension Activities:

1) Students can create a mock article that substitutes the subject of "Spanking" for another issue for comedic effect/satire.

2) Students can conduct a survey of "unpopular opinions" and present their findings.

AoK: Human Sciences

Wok: Reason, Perception

Man Sets Record for Binge Watching

Watches 94 Hours of TV in One Sitting

http://www.vulture.com/2016/04/brooklyn-man-sets-tv-binge-watching-world-record.html

1) What evidence is used to prove records? How might the the Guinness Book of Records have become the authority on world records? Would yo have chosen these rules to enforce? Anything you would add or clarify?

2) Why might an executive at Netflix be interested in this story? Why might the record holder's mother have a different opinion on this record than his girlfriend's mother?

3) In what ways is this connected to psychology? Biology? In what ways is this story connected to other famous world records?

4) To what degree would this story be different if the content the group watched had been decided by popular vote? How would the story be different if the participants were from another demographic category?

5) What are some basic assumptions about binge-watching? About "screen-time"? In what ways does this story affect you?

Extension Activities:

1) Students can research world records and make a plan to break a record of their choice?

2) Student can research the current APA guidelines for children and "screen-time" and create a plan for children of different generations.

AoK: Human Sciences

Wok: Imagination

Coke Wins Lawsuit over Pomegranate Juice Content

Jury Says .3% is Enough

Minute Maid stopped making its Pomegranate Blueberry juice in 2014.   (AP)

http://www.newser.com/story/222453/jury-cokes-3-pomegranate-juice-was-a-ok.html

1)  In what ways does this affect POM?  How does a jury know what is true in a case like this?      

2)  In what ways might a father feel differently about this than an executive at Coca Cola?  Why might an Indian feel differently about this than an American?

3)  To what degree could this be thought of as a math problem?  Health?

4)  How might this have been different if it was advertised as apple-pomegranate juice?  In what ways would this article have been different if it was about pears?

5)  What are the basic assumptions about health in this article?  To what degree does this affect you?  Your community?

Extension Activities:

1)  Students can research the marketing behind "super foods" over the past decade and use the same tactics to promote a new food of their choice to be in included in the list.

2)  Students can write a law for rules and ethics in advertising associated with the amount of the marketed or primary ingredient.

AoK:  Math, Human Science
WoK:  Reason, Language

Waitress Not Tipped for Unique Hairstyle

Customer Left Note that said "Tips are For Normal Looking People" 

(Shutterstock)


http://www.newser.com/story/222251/waitress-stiffed-for-not-looking-normal.html

1)  How do we know what is true in this article?  What evidence is useful in determining the "unspoken rules" for tipping?

2)  Whose perspective is being represented in this article?  Whose perspective is not represented in this article?  Why might a teenager feel differently about this than a senior citizen?

3)  In what ways is this connected to math?  Technology?  Traveling?

4)  How might have this situation been different if the employee was a man?  If it happened in a Red Lobster?  

5)  To whom is this significant?  What are the basic assumptions about tipping in your culture?  Customer service?  

Extension Activities:

1)  Students can research the history of tipping in America and provide a list of situations that require tipping and calculate percentages for "excellent customer service".

2)  Students can research tipping culture in other countries and write a guide to tipping for a country of their choice.

AoK:  Ethics
WoK:  Language, Perception

The Making of a 104K-Square-Foot 'Giga-Mansion'

This May Be the Priciest Home Ever

(Skyline Development)

http://www.ocregister.com/articles/mcclean-704015-homes-laguna.html

1) Which numbers in this article are most important for your understanding? How can we trust that this is being reported fairly?

2) Whose perspective is the represented in this article? Whose is left out? In what ways would the architect's goals differ from the neighbors'?

3) In what way is this connected to science? In what ways is this connected to the development "The Earth" in Dubai?

4) To what degree would this story be different if it was in Missouri? In Costa Rica? Yellowstone National Park?

5) What are the long-term effects of this story? To what degree does this story affect you? What are the basic assumptions about homes represented in this article?

Extension Activities:

1) Students can research the most expensive structures in the world and visually represent them in proportion on an infographic.

2) Students can research the wealthiest individuals of all time and rank the various impacts of their money in different realms (charity, education, politics, business, etc.)

AoK: Human Sciences

Wok: Ethihcs

That Moment When You Think You Won Powerball

NJ Workers Celebrate After Thinking They Won the Lottery


 (AP Photo/Alan Diaz)


http://abc7ny.com/news/video-nj-workers-ecstatic-after-thinking-they-won-the-powerball-(hint-they-didnt)/1156511/

1)  What evidence did the employees use to confirm their numbers?  In what ways might this experience strengthen their decision-making abilities for the future?  Weaken?

2)  Why might the manager's reaction be different than that of the dishwasher's or valet's?

3)  In what ways is this connected to the concept of celebrity?  To what degree is this connected to religion?

4)  How might this story be different if it was school employees?  Google employees?  In China?

5)  What are the underlying assumptions about money and work expressed in this article?  How important is money to you?  In what ways might a large lottery jackpot improve your life?  In what ways might it be a detriment?

Extension Activities:

1)  Student's can write a series of apology texts form the perspective of a person mentioned (or not) in the article (i.e. the sender of the wrong numbers, the valet)

2)  Students can calculate the odds of winning the Powerball Jackpot and compare it to other unlikely scenarios (i.e. Shark Attack, Vending machine serious injury, hole-in-one in golf)

AoK:  Math

WoK:  Reason