Lincoln's Gettysburg Address ("Four score and seven years ago...") is famous from his time as President of the United States. In a less well-known campaign speech, Lincoln talked about the power of scientific discoveries and inventions, including the challenge of harnessing forces of nature, like the wind.
"As yet, the wind is an untamed, and unharnessed force; and quite possibly one of the greatest discoveries hereafter to be made, will be the taming, and harnessing of it," Lincoln predicted.
Lincoln was right. Today, scientists and engineers around the world use the latest technology and scientific understanding to capture wind energy. Many SMILE wind activities like As the Rotor Turns and Make Your Own Wind Turbine give learners the chance to design, engineer, and test their own wind power equipment.
More than 150 years since Lincoln's speech, wind science experts still face the challenge of making wind power widely accessible for human use. In Community Wind Project, learners research wind-related issues such as cost, noise, environmental impact, and local electric power needs, and incorporate their findings into a hypothetical wind turbine project. Learners also role play a town hall meeting about the project, deciding which community members to portray, such as an environmental activist, a state legislator, an engineer, a real estate developer...and even the President of the United States.