Lesson plan
Auxanometer
An auxanometer (Gr. = "to grow" + metron= "measure") is an apparatus for measuring increase of growth in plants. In case of an arc-auxanometer (see picture), there is a thin cord fixed to the plant apex on one end and a dead-weight on the other with a pointer indicating against an arc scale. In some forms it passes over a pulley which has a pointer attached to it. When the plant's height increases, the pulley rotates and the pointer moves on a circular scale to directly give the magnitude of growth. The "rate of growth" is a derived measurement obtained by dividing the length of growth measured by the auxanometer, by the time said measurement took. It is also called an arc-indicator. These simple types of auxanometer have been replaced by rotation sensors at the fulcrum point linked to dataloggers with a balancing beam attached to the growing tip/plant apex. Sensitive auxanometers allow measurement of growth as small as a micrometer, which allows measurement of growth in response to short-term changes in atmospheric composition. Auxanometers are used in laboratory, the field, and the classroom.
Article summary
An auxanometer (Gr. = "to grow" + metron= "measure") is an apparatus for measuring increase of growth in plants. In case of an arc-auxanometer (see picture), there is a thin cord fixed to the plant apex on one end and a dead-weight on the other with a pointer indicating against an arc scale. In some forms it passes over a pulley which has a pointer attached to it. When the plant's height increases, the pulley rotates and the pointer moves on a circular scale to directly give the magnitude of growth. The "rate of growth" is a derived measurement obtained by dividing the length of growth measured by the auxanometer, by the time said measurement took. It is also called an arc-indicator. These simple types of auxanometer have been replaced by rotation sensors at the fulcrum point linked to dataloggers with a balancing beam attached to the growing tip/plant apex. Sensitive auxanometers allow measurement of growth as small as a micrometer, which allows measurement of growth in response to short-term changes in atmospheric composition. Auxanometers are used in laboratory, the field, and the classroom.
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Discussion questions
- Summarise the article in your own words. Which single claim would you verify first, and why?
- Which claim in this article is most likely to be revised as the sources update? How would you check its current status?
- If two sources disagreed about one of these facts, what would you need in order to trust one over the other?
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