scholastic.com/scienceworld it’s a pokemon...

NOVEMBER 21, 2016VOL. 73 NO. 5

ISSN 1041-1410

SCHOLASTIC.COM/SCIENCEWORLD

TECHNOLOGY

How the technology behind Pokémon GO could revolutionize everything from

medicine to education

IT’S A POKEMON WORLD

BIOLOGYWhen Horses Make Faces

INSIDE

EARTH SCIENCE

Uncovering Jupiter’s Secrets

CHEMISTRYA New Shade

of Blue

POKÉMON GO:

Last summer, digital monsters began popping up all over cities, parks, and living rooms with the release of Pokémon GO.

The smartphone app lets people catch and battle Pokémon in the real world. The game is based on a technology called augmented reality (AR) that allows people to view digital information that is superimposed on their physical environment.

Pokémon GO quickly became one of the most popular apps of all time. Its successful use of AR could change the future of gaming by

getting players to interact with the real world. But beyond helping you “catch ’em all,” AR has the potential to revolutionize how we experience many other aspects of life—from medicine to education and beyond.

HISTORY OF POKÉ-MANIAPokémon might walk among us

now, but for more than 20 years the characters were trapped in a 2-D world. They first appeared in 1996 as part of a video game released by the company Nintendo for its portable Game Boy system. In the game, players could choose a human char-acter, called a Trainer, and head into an imaginary world to catch as many Pokémon as possible. Japanese video game designer Satoshi Tajiri

dreamed up the idea of Pokémon.“As a child, Mr. Tajiri loved

collecting insects,” says J.C. Smith, a director of Japan-based The Pokémon Company. “He came up with the idea to create a game about collecting and sharing creatures.”

The game’s success inspired dozens of spin-offs, including more video games, trading cards, toys, and TV shows. Now, with the help of the software development company Niantic, the dream of becoming a Pokémon Trainer is closer to reality.

TAPPING SMARTPHONE TECHAn app like Pokémon GO is

possible thanks to the technology already inside smartphones. The game’s AR works by overlaying PG

/BAU

ER-G

RIFF

IN/G

C IM

AGES

/GET

TY IM

AGES

(SAN

TA M

ON

ICA)

; AN

ADO

LU A

GEN

CY/

GET

TY IM

AGES

(TIM

ES S

QUA

RE)

20 NOVEMBER 21, 2016

ENGINEERING: Programming

ESSENTIAL QUESTION: What is augmented reality and how does it work?

Technology from a popular app has real-world applications

A NEW REALITYPOKÉ-FUN:

Magikarp at the Santa Monica Pier in Santa Monica,

California

an image of a Pokémon on top of the view from your smartphone’s camera. As a result, it looks as if the creature is right in front of you.

Once a Pokémon appears in the game, the app uses the compass inside your phone to determine which direction you’re pointing. The app also uses your phone’s acceler-ometer—which senses your phone’s movements—and its gyroscope—which tracks when you rotate your phone. The constant stream of data from these components helps keep the Pokémon in about the same place, even if you move your phone in different directions.

Another essential technology for Pokémon GO is its ability to access the global positioning system, or GPS, through your phone. GPS uses

POKÉMON GO:ED

WAR

D B

ERTH

ELO

T/G

ETTY

IMAG

ES (P

ARIS

); PE

TER

SUC

HES

KI (D

IAG

RAM

)

VISIT SCHOLASTIC.COM/SCIENCEWORLD TO: Watch a video Download skills sheets View leveled text

A NEW REALITY

1 Satellites send out radio signals containing infor-mation about the precise time and their location.

2 These signals travel through space at the speed of light, or about 299,792 km (186,282 mi) per second.

Continued on the next page

3 On Earth, your GPS device receives this information from at least four satellites and uses it to calculate its distance from each.

4 With those measurements, the GPS device can calculate your approximate location on Earth.

HOW GPS WORKSThe global positioning system (GPS) is a group of satellites flying more than

20,000 kilometers (12,400 miles) above Earth. Each satellite orbits Earth twice a day following a different path to provide constant, worldwide coverage. With the help of GPS, augmented reality apps can track your real-world location.

POKÉ-TRAFFIC: Staryu stuck in Times Square

traffic in New York City

POKÉ-TOURISM Tentacool visiting the Eiffel Tower

in Paris

POWERFUL POTENTIAL Mark Skwarek, a professor at

New York University and the head of the NYU Mobile Augmented Reality Lab, believes the best of AR is yet to come—and that the technology’s reach will extend well beyond gaming.

“The whole world will be overlaid with knowledge,” says Skwarek. “You’ll be able to know so much more about your surroundings than you could unaided. It’ll be like having superhuman powers.”

Skwarek predicts that soon we’ll experience AR through wearable

devices. Imagine glasses or contact lenses that display information about paintings, restaurants, or monu-ments as you pass by them. Map programs could show you the way home. Information would no longer be “at your fingertips,” it would be “at a glance.”

THE FUTURE IS NOW To see this future in action, just

look around. There’s already an app that instantaneously overlays an English translation of foreign text—for example, the words on a street sign—on your phone’s screen. Another app can help you learn the name of nearly every constellation simply by pointing your phone at a

starry sky.Doctors who

live in remote locations are using AR and a related technology, virtual reality (VR), to learn new surgical techniques. While AR adds imaginary elements to the real world, VR completely replaces the real world with a simulated one. By wearing a special VR headset over their eyes, people can physically move

around and interact with a 3-D computer-generated environment.

The possibilities these technolo-gies provide are almost limitless. “The future of AR will be up to people with great imaginations—and people with the right skills,” Skwarek says. 9 — Jacob Batchelor

satellites orbiting high above Earth to pinpoint your phone’s approxi-mate location anywhere on the planet (see How GPS Works, p. 21). Pokémon GO uses this data to plot where you are on the game’s map. In doing so, the app tracks your real-time location, a feature that has some privacy experts worried (see Protecting Your Privacy, below).

Pokémon GO developers used data from another Niantic game, Ingress, to help place the game’s digital characters, objects, and places in the real world. In Ingress, users uploaded photographs of historical landmarks and cultural attractions and tagged them with geographical information. This data makes it possible to turn real-life locations into digital Pokéstops (places to collect virtual items to power up Pokémon) and Pokémon gyms (where players can battle Pokémon).

CORE QUESTIONCite two examples from the text of ways people now use augmented reality and two future possibilities.

PROTECTING YOUR PRIVACYLike many apps, Pokémon GO collects information based on user location and

web usage. Initially, the app requested full access to a player’s Google account. This gave the game’s developers access to people’s emails and documents. If criminals had hacked Pokémon GO, they would have had that information too.

The app no longer requires so much private information. But some privacy experts worry that the game still doesn’t do enough to protect personal data. When you download a new app, carefully read the privacy policies to know what information you’re giving away.

CODE CAMP: Students program virtual reality games during a summer camp at the University of Maryland.

22 NOVEMBER 21, 2016

CO

URTE

SY O

F JO

HN

T. C

ON

SOLI

/UN

IVER

SITY

OF

MAR

YLAN

D (V

IRTU

AL R

EALI

TY);

SCIE

NC

E W

ORL

D/S

CH

OLA

STIC

INC

. (PO

KÉM

ON

AT

SCH

OLA

STIC

)

WORK AND PLAY: Pikachu

hangs out while Science World

editors are hard at work.

SATELLITE SIGNALS

Permission granted by Science World to reproduce for classroom use only. ©2016 by Scholastic Inc. NOVEMBER 21, 2016

In “Pokémon GO: A New Reality” (p. 20), you learned how the popular app uses the global positioning system (GPS) to track a user’s location. The article included a diagram showing how GPS works. Use the diagram to answer the questions that follow.

HOW GPS WORKSThe global positioning system (GPS) is a group of satellites flying more than 20,000 kilometers (12,400 miles) above Earth. Each satellite orbits Earth twice a day following a different path to provide constant, worldwide coverage. With the help of GPS, augmented reality apps can track your real-world location.

1 Satellites send out radio signals containing information about the precise time and their location.

2 These signals travel through space at the speed of light, or about 299,792 km (186,282 mi) per second.

3 On Earth, your GPS device receives this information from at least four satellites anduses it to calculate its distance from each.

4 With those measurements, the GPS device can calculate your approximate location on Earth.

QUESTIONS1. Where is the information in the diagram explained in the article? Note the page and paragraph where the information is found.

2. How do satellites communicate with a cell phone?

3. What information is contained in the signals sent out by the satellites?

4. How fast does a satellite signal travel? Why is it important that a satellite signal travel quickly?

5. Why do you think it is necessary that the GPS in your phone collects information from more than one satellite to accurately determine your location?

1

23

4

Name:

PHYSICS/COMMON CORE: INTEGRATING VISUAL INFORMATION


BIOLOGY: PAIRED TEXTS

AUGMENTED MEDICINEIn “Pokémon GO: A New Reality” (p. 20), you learned that some surgeons are using augmented reality to learn new surgical techniques. In this passage, you’ll learn more about how augmented reality could improve certain types of surgeries. Read the passage and then answer the questions that follow.

HIGH-TECH SURGERYVideo game technology is giving surgeons a better view inside their patients’ bodies.

Today many surgeries are done using a laparoscope, a flexible cable that uses a camera and light to see inside the body. Surgeons make one or more small cuts, or incisions, in the skin and insert the laparoscope or other instruments. They maneuver

their instruments while watching video from the laparoscope to see what they are doing. These keyhole surgeries are a good alternative to traditional surgeries in which the patient’s body must be cut open. The procedures tend to result in less pain and faster recoveries.

One disadvantage though is that surgeons have to watch different video screens while they work. In addition to the laparoscope video, they often refer to X-rays or other medical images that show where damaged tissues are located. It can

be challenging for the surgeon to visualize how the different digital images match up with the body of the patient on the operating table.

Now scientists are developing augmented-reality programs that allow surgeons to view digital images directly on top of the patient’s body. One day soon, surgeons could watch their instruments moving inside a digital 3-D image of a patient’s body. This technique could give surgeons as good a view of a body’s interior as traditional surgeries provide.

QUESTIONS1. What is a laparoscope?A an instrument used to make incisions during keyhole

surgeriesB a light used to see during surgeriesC a small tool used to take X-rays inside a patient’s bodyD a tool used to look inside a patient’s body during surgery

2. According to the passage, which is an advantage of keyhole surgeries?A Surgeons don’t have to make incisions. B Patients often recover faster.C They don’t require technology. D They give surgeons clearer views of the patient’s body.

3. According to the passage, what challenges do keyhole surgeries pose for surgeons? A Surgeons have to be able to visually match video of the

interior of the body to their view of their patient. B They have to work faster than in traditional surgeries. C They have to be able to safely cut longer incisions. D They have to be able to maneuver instruments without

being able to see what they are doing.

4. How does augmented reality help improve keyhole surgeries?A The surgeons don’t have to insert a camera into the body.B The surgeons have more video screens to help them

during surgery.C The patients don’t have to have get X-rays or other

medical images taken before surgery.D The surgeons can see images of the inside of the body

while looking directly at the patient’s actual body.

5. Use evidence from the passage and “Pokémon GO: A New Reality” to describe two ways you think doctors will work differently in the future thanks to augmented- or virtual-reality technology.

Name:


chemistry: INTEGRATING VISUAL INFORMATION

SMARTPHONE CHEMISTRYIn “Pokémon GO: A New Reality” (p. 20), you learned how an app uses different parts of your smartphone. At least 40 different elements mined from rocks on Earth are needed to make a cell phone work. The chart below explains how certain elements are used in mobile phones. Use the information to answer the questions that follow.

QUESTIONS1. Name three elements that are found in more than one part of a cell phone.

2. What are two properties of gold that make it useful in smartphones?

3. Explain how placing a finger on a touch screen communicates a command.

4. What is a rare earth element?

5. Why is it important to reuse or recycle cell phones? Support your answer with evidence from the chart.

Phone partsElements the parts contain

Role of elements

Battery Lithium (Li), Aluminum (Al)When you turn on your phone, positively charged lithium ions move through a lithium-salt solution that conducts electricity. The battery’s casing is made of aluminum.

Circuitry Copper (Cu), Silver (Ag),

Tin (Sn), Gold (Au)

The circuit board has gold, copper, and silver, which are electrical conductors. Gold is used in pins connecting circuit boards because it is highly resistant to corrosion. Solder—an alloy, or mixture of metals, often of tin, silver, and copper—binds parts of the circuit board.

Computer chipSilicon (Si), Phosphorus

(P), Gallium (Ga), Arsenic (As), Antimony (Sb)

A phone’s transistors act as paths and switches that tell the phone to follow or stop following commands. They are made of antimony, phosphorus, and gallium arsenide (GaAs). Chips are embedded with silicon, which has low conductivity, to channel electricity only through the conductive transistors.

Touch screenOxygen (O), Indium (In),

Tin A thin layer of indium tin oxide conducts electricity. Touching the screen changes the electrical field and communicates your finger’s location to the phone’s chip.

GlassOxygen, Aluminum,

Silicon, Potassium (K)

Smartphone screens contain aluminosilicate glass. If you’ve ever dropped your phone and its screen stayed intact, you can thank potassium ions (atoms that have gained or lost electrons). They help strengthen the glass.

Display

Yttrium (Y), Lanthanum (La), Europium (Eu),

Gadolinium (Gd), Terbium (Tb), Dysprosium (Dy)

A cell phone’s display contains several rare earth elements. These elements are spread out widely in Earth’s crust, making them hard to mine. Small quantities of yttrium, europium, and dysprosium help produce the colors on the phone’s liquid crystal display (LCD) screen. The other elements give the screen its glow.

ELEMENTS IN CELL PHONES

Name:


EARTH SCIENCE: PAIRED TEXTS

A BETTER WAY TO BUILDIn “Pokémon GO: A New Reality” (p. 20), you learned about some of the practical uses of the augmented reality technology used in Pokémon GO. In this passage, you’ll learn more about how NASA is using similar technology to help build the next Mars rover. Read the passage and then use complete sentences to answer the questions that follow.

QUESTIONS1. What is a rover?

2. According to the passage, why is it helpful to make a computer model of a rover before building it?

3. Explain how ProtoSpace has changed how NASA engineers are developing a new rover design.

4. Do you think the author believes ProtoSpace will help engineers build a better rover? What evidence does the author include to support this point of view?

5. In “Pokémon GO: A New Reality,” you learned about both augmented reality and virtual reality technologies. NASA engineers call the prototype program “mixed reality” because it shares characteristics with both technologies. Use evidence from the article and the passage above to explain why that term is used.

AUGMENTING DESIGNDesigning a vehicle that can explore the surface of

another planet is a difficult task. Building and launching the next Mars rover, a robotic vehicle designed to explore the surface of a planet or moon, is expected to cost more than $2 billion. The rover is scheduled to blast off in 2020. Because of the cost and complex design, engineers create computer models before any pieces of the rover are put together. Now, augmented and virtual reality technologies are making it easier than ever for engineers to analyze and optimize their digital designs.

Engineers at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory are using a computer application called ProtoSpace to analyze the new rover design. When the scientists slip a

special headset over their eyes, they can see a full-size image of the rover design. The scientists still see their physical surroundings through the glasses, so it appears as if the rover is right in front of them. The program tracks the engineers’ movements so they can walk around or bend down to inspect the vehicle’s design. The technology also allows them to see through the rover’s outer layer to get a close-up view of its interior parts.

The scientists say that they can better visualize potential problems with the design when they interact with the mixed reality version of the rover instead of just looking at an image on a computer screen.

Name:

scholastic.com/scienceworld it’s a pokemon...

Documents