Su Ellen Silverman
Edward R.Murrow High School
1600 Avenue L
Brooklyn, NY 11230
AgBeing@aol.com

Welcome to my web page.

Introduction: I am a teacher of Biology and Environmental Science at Edward R. Murrow High School. I have tasught there for the last 13 years, during which time, I have written and implemented our Environmental Science course and initiated indoor and out door composting programs.

If you would like a copy of my our course outline, e-mail me at AgBeing@aol.com I will gladly send it to you.  Composting is not difficult, and provides you with a self-renweing supply of soil (not to mention sending less trash to the landfill).  For more information about composting, contact Brooklyn Botanic Gardens

Below is a journal, written in of my summer experiences;

   Greetings from Princeton.  Right now, we are in the computer lab, learning the basics of web pages.  We have been introduced to many environmental web pages, which I hope I can apply  to my classes.

     We have done some nice biodiversity labs, which are applicable to some of our classes.  The best ones are on the table below;

To find out more about what I will be doing, go to Woodrow Wilson Foundation web site.

   Well, it's July 6th.  Today, we went to Mercer State Park to do some field sampling.  We examined pond water, which is ordinary enough, but the equipment was the interesting part.  We used field microscopes and collected samples with flat capillary tubes.  They can be placed directly on a microscope stage, which can be a huge time saver.  It was a very hot day, but we enjoyed it, all the same.

    It's now July 9th and our research into oil degrading bacteria is getting interesting.  We have learned that their activity is accelerated by the presence of nitrogen and phosphorus.  That is probably why our garden soil sample is working the best.  Below is a picture of my research team, from left to right; myself, Peggy Deichstetter, Sue Draper and Elizabeth Burck.

    I've made it to July 12th, after a couple of good trips.  We have gone to the American Museum of Natural History, the Bronx Zoo and the New York Botanic Garden.  Highlights for me were the Biodiversity exhibit at the Museum and the tour of the Bronx Zoo.  It was interesting to learn that breeding animals are exchanged between zoos, to maintain genetic diversity in zoo populations.

    Our month is drawing to a close, so I would like to leave you, by connecting you to the results of our work.  You can link to the Abstract  of the Petroleum Degradation Lab we have developed.  If you like it, read the  Teacher Guide and Student Pages.

Group Project: Oil Be Seeing You