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LabQuest 2.2 Update

We’re pleased to release the latest update for LabQuest 2. The version 2.2 update is free and recommended for all LabQuest 2 users.

New Features and Enhancements

• Pivot Data for Data Matrix mode
• Digital Filter equations added for use in calculated columns
• Range value (Δy) added to statistics calculations
• Optimized fuel gauge settings to improve battery performance
• Added detection of certain bad battery conditions
• Implemented Periodic Autosave to minimize loss of data due to power failure
• Added System Information – Battery tab to assist in troubleshooting battery/power issues
• Improved network stability via an updated Wi-Fi driver
• Updated application (UI) for connecting to networks, mobile devices, and LabQuest Viewer software
• Added user preference to block student access to network and connections settings
• Vernier Data Share Web App (v1.2)
• Enhanced LabQuest Update: improved stability, updated UI, and finer reset defaults control

Download LabQuest 2.2 Update »

Breaking Ground for New Building Addition

Ten months ago we started getting serious about adding more office space, classroom, and meeting space onto our current building. As with most projects, small things like designs, surveys, easements, and permits took a lot more time than ever imagined, but we finally got the plans and enough permits to begin construction on a 15,000 sq ft building addition to our headquarters.

To celebrate, we formalized the project with a ground breaking ceremony. Christine and David Vernier together turned the first sod with a golden shovel and drew unanimous applause from the employees who assembled on the lawn for last time before it became off-limits for construction. Completion is projected sometime in October 2013.

Logger Pro 3.8.6.1 Update

Logger Pro 3.8.6.1 is now available for download. Version 3.8.6.1 features:

• Support for Windows 8
• Google Maps Export now uses version 3 of the Google Maps API. Large data set export has better capacity and rendering performance support.
• Added experiment files for Goniometer, Vernier Projectile Launcher with support for Time of Flight Pad, and Instrumentation Amplifier
• Proactive validation of user input for more timely feedback for invalid inputs
• Digital Control Unit usage improvements
• Updated Data Share application
• Over 160 other issues resolved

Logger Pro 3.8.6.1 is a free update to all Logger Pro 3 users.

Download the update »

Using Logger Pro 3 with iPad^® and Mobile Devices

Logger Pro 3 is now part of the Connected Science System^®! That means that you can wirelessly share data from Logger Pro to iPad, Android tablets, most smartphones, and even other computers.

What’s the best part? Most schools won’t need to spend a dime to implement this feature. For schools using older Vernier technology with Wi-Fi enabled computers, you can now stream data from Logger Pro 3.8.6 to iPad and other mobile devices by enabling Data Sharing during the installation process. Because Logger Pro is the Data Sharing source, you can use a LabPro, original LabQuest, LabQuest Mini, or even a Go!Link to share data with an iPad or other tablet. Your existing computers, interfaces, and sensors can all work with the latest devices.

With Data Sharing enabled, Logger Pro 3 can share data using the Vernier Data Share web app, allowing students to use a compatible web browser, such as Safari or Chrome, to wirelessly collect, view, and analyze sensor data. Most Android tablets, smartphones, the iPod touch, and even other computers will work with Logger Pro. Point your browser to Logger Pro, and see your own graph of the current data. Rescale, perform curve fits, and do other analysis on your own without affecting the graphs or data on Logger Pro.

Interested in a native iPad app? Graphical Analysis for iPad, which sells for $4.99 in the Apple App Store, can receive data from Logger Pro on your iPad. Once on the iPad, the data can be analyzed and studied independently of what’s going on with the data on the computer. Graphical Analysis can store experiments for later analysis, so students can collect data from several sources and then work on analysis later.

Logger Pro 3 with Data Sharing enabled gives you new options for getting data in your students’ hands. But, there are other cool things you can do with the Vernier Data Sharing feature and Logger Pro:

• Share data from your demo with a whole classroom. Students can analyze data individually or in small groups, all on their own devices. This is perfect for interactive engagement or flipped classrooms.
• Share any lab group’s data with the whole class. Did group three do something awesome? Project it to the class by viewing the data in a browser on your instructor computer.
• Monitor a long experiment in the basement—no need to go check on it.

Of course, LabQuest 2 can also serve as a Data Sharing source and share data in the same way.

Data Sharing requires a Wi-Fi network that can be joined by both the computer or LabQuest 2 sharing data and the students’ devices. For more details on network requirements, see our user manuals.

Two Vernier iPad Apps Win BESSIE Award

Two of Vernier’s iPad apps have received BESSIE awards for best educational software.

• Video Physics: High School/Physics
• Graphical Analysis for iPad: Multi-Level/Data Analysis

The awards target innovative and content-rich programs (including apps for iPad and Android) and websites that provide parents and teachers with the technology to foster educational excellence. Winners are selected from titles submitted by publishers worldwide.

Source: ComputED Gazette

Graphical Analysis for iPad 1.4 Released

We are proud to announce the release of Graphical Analysis 1.4! The free update is available from the App Store.

The focus of this update is to make Graphical Analysis even easier to learn and to use.

• Quick Tips: Access tutorials on key features from the Settings view.
• Re-designed toolbar: Easier access to Data Sharing sources and status.
• Scan Source QR: Easily connect to LabQuest 2 source by scanning QR code.

Many additional improvements:

• Improved source connectivity
• Visual enhancements: Various refinements to look and feel of graph elements.
• Larger, more readable text
• High-resolution Camera Roll export
• Various refinements to the behavior of graph elements
• Various performance improvements

Learn more about Graphical Analysis for iPad »
Download Graphical Analysis for iPad from App Store »

Spring 2013 Caliper

In the latest edition of The Caliper, we’re showcasing new products and experiment ideas in time for spring.

• Using Logger Pro 3 with iPad and Mobile Technologies
• Vernier Radiation Monitor
• Control a Servo Motor with LabQuest
• Vernier Engineering Contest Winners
• Investigate Halogenated Alkanes with the Mini GC Plus
• Chlorophyll Fluorescence Using the BlueView Transilluminator
• Using the Goniometer to Measure the Height of Trees
• Analysis of Barefoot Running with the Goniometer
• Vernier/NSTA Technology Award Winners
• Investigating Environmental Science through Inquiry iBook
• Job Openings at Vernier

Read it online or join our mailing list to have The Caliper delivered to your school or email twice a year.

LabQuest 2 is a CODiE 2013 Finalist!

LabQuest 2 app was selected as a finalist in the Best Educational Use of a Mobile Device category for the 2013 CODiE Awards! The category recognizes the best curriculum or administrative application, designed for either PK-12 or postsecondary markets, that is delivered via mobile devices, including smartphones or tablets.

Source: SIIA CODiE Award Finalists »

Best Practice Techniques for the Mini GC and the Mini GC Plus

In order to prolong the life of your Mini GC (original or Plus), or to prevent having to send it in for repair, make sure you note the following best practices.

1. After receiving your Mini GC, it is best to begin with at least one experiment from the experiment book that accompanies the instrument. This will give you the best idea of compounds that come out cleanest, along with their temperature/pressure profiles.
2. The Hamilton syringe that is shipped with the device has a brown plastic bumper guard on the needle, also known as a needle stop. Do NOT remove this guard. Injections go straight into the column, and you can damage the instrument by forcing the syringe too far into the device.
3. Make sure you have referred to the list of acceptable compounds in the user guide before attempting to inject new compounds.
   • Information for Mini GC
   • Information for Mini GC Plus
4. If you inject samples that contain more than 5% water, you will shorten the life of the detector, or you may ruin it altogether. To get the longest life out of your Mini GC, only inject between 0.2 and 0.3 μL of a pure organic sample, or 0.4–0.6 μL of a mixture of organic compounds.

If you have a particular gas chromatography application in mind, but you are not quite sure if it is appropriate for the Mini GC or Mini GC Plus, please call Vernier Technical Support at 1-888-VERNIER and ask to speak with a chemist. You can also email us at support@vernier.com

Tips and Tricks for Success with Inquiry-Based Enzyme Activities

Understanding enzyme action is a fundamental concept in biology. The “Testing Catalase Activity” investigation in our Investigating Biology through Inquiry book is a very popular activity for investigating enzyme action. Our O₂ Gas Sensor and Gas Pressure Sensor can be used in this activity along with some very simple materials, such as yeast and hydrogen peroxide.

However, you can’t just mix hydrogen peroxide with a few drops of baker’s yeast and expect to get repeatable results every time. The amount of enzyme in a drop of yeast suspension depends on the number of yeast cells in each drop. This will depend on how long the yeast have grown and where the students pull each drop from the suspension. To get consistent results each time, the instructor must proof the yeast at least an hour in advance.

In addition, the suspension should be placed on a stir plate and students should pull samples from the middle of the suspension. Our resident biologists have revisited this experiment and found that purified catalase enzyme can be substituted for the yeast suspension in this exercise. This is an excellent option for investigating the effect of enzyme concentration. This is also a very cost-effective solution, as 1 g of catalase will provide enough enzyme for more than 4000 trials!

• Purified catalase enzyme can be purchased from Flinn Scientific, Ward’s Natural Science, or Sigma-Aldrich. The concentration of enzyme varies from 2000–5000 units/mg and depends on the bottle.
• You can mix up a stock solution of the enzyme in water. Make a stock solution of 1000 units/1 mL. For a step-by-step video on how to do this, visit Flinn’s web site.
• If you are using the O₂ Gas Sensor for this investigation, use 0.5 mL (5 drops) of 1000 units/1 mL catalase solution for the preliminary activity. Add the enzyme to a 250 mL Nalgene bottle first, then add 10 mL of 3% H₂O₂. Start data collection immediately.
• If you are using the G as Pressure S ensor for this investigation, use 1 drop of 200 units/mL catalase for the preliminary activity. Add the enzyme to a 20 mL test tube or 15 mL conical tube first, then add 6 mL of 3% H₂O₂. Start data collection immediately.
• If students are investigating enzyme concentration as an independent variable, make 100 units/mL, 1000 units/mL, and 2000 units/mL enzyme solutions.
• If students are investigating substrate concentration, start with 6% H₂O₂ instead of 3% H₂O₂. This can be ordered from Flinn Scientific, Ward’s Natural Science, or Sigma-Aldrich.
• Store the catalase powder as instructed. Enzyme activity may decrease from year to year, but will remain viable for up to three years.

By using these tips, you and your students will have greater success in your inquiry investigations on catalase.