Vernier Expands Capabilities of the ‘LabQuest’ with New Technology to Keep Science Instruction Hot


 

Daylene Long        
Vernier Software & Technology              
503-277-2299                                                  dlong@vernier.com    
Brooke MacDonald
KEH Communcations
410-975-9638                                    Brooke@kehcomm.com

 
Vernier Expands Capabilities of the ‘LabQuest®’ with New Technology to Keep Science Instruction Hot
 
The ‘Vernier Gas Chromatograph’ and the ‘Watts Up’ meter
give students new ways to explore scientific phenomena
 
Beaverton, OR – June 29, 2009 – In its ongoing effort to meet the needs of science instructors around the globe, Vernier Software & Technology has added two new sensors compatible with its award-winning LabQuest application and Logger Pro 3 software. The new Watts Up meter will help students collect and analyze data on energy use. In addition, the Vernier Gas Chromatograph uses cutting-edge technology to analyze chemical compounds for both advanced chemistry and organic chemistry students.
 
Vernier has also developed the the LabQuest Charging Station, which charges LabQuest handhelds while storing each one in a multi-slot unit. The Charging Station is designed to save valuable lab set-up time. Its compact size makes it the ideal solution for any laboratory.
 
“By encouraging science educators in more than 130 countries to integrate handheld, data-collection tools into the science curriculum, we are helping all students become scientific thinkers. We strive to constantly innovate and provide affordable, high-quality sensor technology for science education,” said David Vernier, co-founder of Vernier and a former physics teacher.
 
The Vernier Gas Chromatograph is specifically designed for advanced chemistry and organic chemistry coursework to analyze compounds, separate components of a mixture, and identify the components of an unknown compound.   
 
Never before has education seen this type of scientific sensor at such an affordable price. Using technology patented by Seacoast Science, Inc., Vernier’s Gas Chromatograph uses MEMS “Chemicapacitive” GC chip technology to utilize air as a carrier gas. In comparison to other gas chromatographs, the Vernier sensor is thousands of dollars less than a standard gas chromatograph and half the size of a shoebox.
 
The Watts Up meter lets students collect data on energy use, making it perfect for an environmental or “green” science curriculum. This meter lets students measure electrical energy consumption in schools and in the home.  The Watts Up meter connects to a computer or a LabQuest and measures current (amperes), potential (volts), power (watts), and energy (kilowatt hours). 
 
Teachers can use the Watts Up to compare cost and energy use of incandescent vs. compact fluorescent light bulbs, the savings when lights are dimmed, or how much energy is used when lights are left on vs. turning them off. The Watts Up can be used in conjunction with 70 other Vernier sensors, such as the temperature probe, to measure temperature and energy use of refrigerators or freezers overnight. Experiments can be taken a step further when students hypothesize and test simple cost calculations to analyze how much energy and money can be saved when going green in their homes or classrooms. 
 
Availability and Pricing
The LabQuest Charging Station holds four individual LabQuest handhelds and sells for $99. The Vernier Gas Chromatograph will be available in time for back to school 2009. At $1749, the Vernier Gas Chromotograph is the most affordable gas chromatograph for the education industry. For more information, visit www.vernier.com/gc-mini. The Watts Up meter will be available this Fall and sells for $145.
  
About Lab Quest
LabQuest is a handheld data collection device that contains six sensor ports, a built-in temperature probe, and a built-in microphone for recording voice annotations. Its features include a stopwatch, a periodic table, an on-screen keyboard and a scientific
calculator.
 
Users can operate the device either via its buttons or by pressing an
accompanying stylus to the touch screen and on-screen keyboard. LabQuest is splash proof, can withstand a temperature range of 0 – 70 degrees C, and includes rubber molding for shock absorption, making the device suitable for both the classroom and field studies. The handheld allows students to collect data from more than 65 sensors and view the information as a meter, data table or graph on the color graphic display.
 
About Vernier Software & Technology
Vernier Software & Technology has been an innovator of data-collection technology for 28 years and its products are used in more than 130 countries.  Creating easy-to-use and affordable science interfaces, software, and 75 sensors for data collection, and, their products can be found in education from elementary school to college. Vernier helps teachers enhance their science curriculum, increase learning, and build students’ critical thinking skills. For more information visit www.vernier.com.
 
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