This week has been a big week in the world of Google and Android, and while some of the bigger announcements have been around Android and of course the Play Store coming to Chrome OS, smaller news has been important as well. New messaging apps are launching from Google later this summer in the form of Allo and Duo, but Google have also launched another fun educational tool on the sly. The Science Journal app is just what you think it is, but it’s also a window into all of the sensors a smartphone has to offer, and it’s designed for the next generation of makers – as well as those looking for something to do.
For younger users, a smartphone can be a great tool when used in science projects, and is perfect for looking up theories and such, but this new app allows people to use the smartphone as a tool for both recording as well as organizing their projects. Science Journal gives users full access to all of the data recorded from a phone’s set of sensors and allows them to record results and then organize them into projects. These sensors include the ambient light sensor, the accelerometer – split into x, y and z axes – and the microphone. All of the measurements and such are neatly displayed here and users can create trials that record this data from one or more of these sensors and then record the data. Renaming and organizing these trials is what makes Science Journal so interesting, as it allows kids to explore what different light bulbs do, how fast you can move your arm, how loud a certain car or bike is and so on.
These are simple examples of course, but being able to get access to all of this data and such in a polished and easily-understood app is pretty powerful. There are more apps out there like this than ever before, and it’s really refreshing to see Google offer up one of their own. For those wondering, this is a completely free app, and while it does ask for your date of birth, it doesn’t appear to lean on any other services from Google, making it safe and private. Just click the button below and you can try it out for yourself.
