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.

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

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.

The Digital Control Unit is an accessory popular with those doing engineering and STEM activities. It offers digital output lines that can be used to control motors, lights, and other parts of a project. Logger Pro now offers more detailed control of the lines, allowing for more sophisticated projects to be constructed. For example, one can now enable independent digital lines to sensor data based on multiple logical comparisons, such as IF and AND, time, and fixed values.

For chemistry, biology, and water quality, some sensors that benefit from performing a custom calibration include

• pH Sensor
• Conductivity Probe
• Salinity Sensor
• O₂ Gas Sensor (Only Oxygen Gas Sensors made in the last five years can have the calibration stored on the sensor.)
• Dissolved Oxygen Probe

For physics, you may want to calibrate

• Force Sensors
• Accelerometers
• Magnetic Field Sensor

To perform a custom calibration, you will need some kind of external references, such as known, good pH buffer solutions. For more information, follow the instructions at www.vernier.com/til/2341/

To store the custom calibration on your sensor so it will be used every time, follow the instructions at www.vernier.com/til/2342/

As demonstrated in the images below, this digital microscope works very well with Logger Pro’s Video Capture and Photo Analysis features, which allow the user to take still images, videos, and even time lapse video sequences. Just connect the USB cable from the digital microscope to any computer that has Logger Pro installed, and your students can view, capture, and analyze images from any live or prepared microscope slide.

Using Logger Pro with a Ken-A-Vision microscope, a ProScope HR, or another digital microscope provides one more opportunity for student learning in today’s modern biology classroom.

Gel electrophoresis is a method of separating macromolecules by fragment length (e.g., DNA and RNA), by charge, or by size (e.g., proteins) using an electric field and a gel matrix. Specific dyes and/or stains are used to mark the molecules of interest. As shown in the data below, Logger Pro provides students with a fast, easy way to document and analyze gel electrophoresis images. After inserting a photo taken with a ProScope HR, a digital camera, or an existing photo from a file, Logger Pro can be used to create a standard curve and calculate the molecular weight or number of base pairs for each experimental band in just a few minutes.

The Gel Analysis feature is used in the “Introduction to Molecular Evolution” investigation found in our new Investigating Biology through Inquiry lab book. In this inquiry investigation, students extract proteins from muscle tissue, conduct electrophoresis of the resulting protein extracts, analyze the results using Logger Pro, and then use the results to construct a cladogram. This is an excellent inquiry activity that teaches core concepts in evolution. This activity is also correlated to AP* and IB** standards.

The “Forensic DNA Fingerprinting” experiment in our Advanced Biology with Vernier lab book also uses the Gel Analysis feature in Logger Pro. In this experiment, students use a forensic technique to analyze DNA samples from five “suspects.” The DNA is digested with a fixed set of restriction enzymes, separated by gel electrophoresis, and then analyzed for patterns of similarity with the crime scene sample. From these results, students then identify the perpetrator. Gel analysis is also used in the “Analysis of Precut Lambda DNA” experiment found in this book.

You can purchase everything you need to perform these experiments from Vernier and our partner, Bio-Rad Laboratories, Inc. In fact, through the end of 2012, Bio-Rad is offering a 10% discount off of all of their kits that are aligned with either Investigating Biology through Inquiry or Advanced Biology with Vernier. Learn more about Bio-Rad kits and this discount »

For information on gel analysis, consider attending one of our free webinars.

* AP and Advanced Placement Program are registered trademarks of the College Entrance Examination Board, which was not involved in the production of and does not endorse this product.

** The IB Diploma Program is an official program of the International Baccalaureate Organization (IBO) which authorizes schools to offer it. The material available here has been developed independently of the IBO and is not endorsed by it.