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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
APRIL 24, 2007
Contacts
MEDIA: DONNA KRUPA
(301) 634-7209
dkrupa@the-aps.org
CONTENT: MEL LIMSON
(301) 634-7231
mlimson@the-aps.org
The “Elvis Experiments”:
Pancake Syrup And A Musical Icon Bring Science
Concepts To DC-Area High Schoolers
Monday,
April 30, 2007 @ 1:30 PM - Renaissance Hotel, Congressional Hall A
WHAT: More than 100 Washington-area high school
students and teachers are participating in “The Elvis Experiments.” The
experiments, named in honor of “the King,” were designed by educators at the
American Physiological Society (APS;
www.The-APS.org) to help students participate in hands-on demonstrations
aimed at showing the different factors that influence blood flow and blood
pressure.
On Monday, April 30, some 75 students and 23 teachers
will use tubing, beakers and liquids of varying thickness to simulate the
flow of blood in vessels to mimic some of the ways in which human blood
travels 60,000 miles per day on its journey through the arteries, arterioles
and capillaries and back through the venules and veins.
Students will have the following information to work
from:
-
Just before Elvis went into hiding, his blood pressure was
sky high. His arteries were full of cholesterol from too many peanut
butter and banana sandwiches. Also, his heart muscle was thin and weak
from lack of exercise and the extra salt caused his body to retain
water, increasing his total blood volume. The doctors told him these
factors would lead to a dangerous increase in blood pressure and heart
failure.
-
Elvis, worried that he would die if things did not change,
secretly hired a group of teenage physiology students to perform
experiments on those factors that influence blood pressure. To honor
him, the students agreed to undertake a series of experiments using the
information about his diet and vital statistics that he left behind.
-
The students will explore some of the factors that affect
blood flow and blood pressure. They will learn how the radius and length
of a tube as well as the thickness of the blood flowing through a tube
affects flow rate of fluid, gain skills in designing an experiment, and
use pancake syrup (full strength) to mimic the flow of blood.
-
The students will be working with APS member/scientists to
help uncover the secrets of Elvis’ blood flow.
-
The students will prepare a presentation for Elvis, in the
event he is able to come out of hiding and join them at the Convention
Center.
WHY: The “Elvis Experiments” are part of a
nationwide outreach effort by the APS to help students and teachers better
understand the branch of science known as physiology.
Physiology is the study of how molecules, cells,
tissues and organs function to create health or disease.
WHO: The APS is a
nonprofit scientific organization devoted to fostering education, scientific
research, and dissemination of information in the physiological sciences.
From its beginnings in 1887 the Society has grown to more than 10,500
members today. The Society publishes 13 widely acclaimed scholarly journals
and recently posted over 650,000 pages of historical scientific studies
online, some dating back to 1898.
WHEN/WHERE: The Elvis Experiments begin
at 1:30 PM Monday, April 30, Renaissance Hotel, Congressional
Hall A. To view the complete one-day schedule, please log on to:
http://www.the-aps.org/education/EB/2007/EBworkshop07.html.
***
Physiology
is the study of how molecules, cells, tissues and organs function to create
health or disease. The American Physiological Society (APS) has been an
integral part of this scientific discovery process since it was established
in 1887.
Media Contact: Donna Krupa, American Physiological
Society, 301.634.7209 or
DKrupa@the-APS.org
Program Contact: Mel Limson, Ph.D., American
Physiological Society, 301.634.7231 or
MLimson@The-APS.org
###
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