today, in TA theater
Question:
(after instructing them to read a particular article)
"To get a sense of the numbers involved, estimate, using the numbers in the paper, how thick a layer the bacteria would form if they were all packed together and spread uniformly over the Earth's surface."
one student's answer:
Ignores the article. Calculates the number of bacteria that fit on an 8.5x11" sheet of paper (in excruciating detail). Calculates how many sheets of paper it takes to coat the earth. Uses this as estimate.
The scary thing is... we don't think this was tongue-in-cheek...
(after instructing them to read a particular article)
"To get a sense of the numbers involved, estimate, using the numbers in the paper, how thick a layer the bacteria would form if they were all packed together and spread uniformly over the Earth's surface."
one student's answer:
Ignores the article. Calculates the number of bacteria that fit on an 8.5x11" sheet of paper (in excruciating detail). Calculates how many sheets of paper it takes to coat the earth. Uses this as estimate.
The scary thing is... we don't think this was tongue-in-cheek...