【The origin of Nagita, I actually haven't told it yet】How to create "peace" by thinking about morning calm and evening calm
The name "Nagita" is actually something I've been using since I was in high school.
I am sometimes asked about its origin, but...
I'll talk about that later.
Today, I would like to talk about a certain scientific term that is somewhat related to my public name.
"Nagi"
When written in kanji, it is written as "凪" (calm), which means the wind stops.
(If you like ONE PIECE, it's the Calm of the Calm Belt.)
It refers to that moment at sea when the wind stops completely and the water surface becomes as still as a mirror.
Hello, I'm Nagita!
I usually teach science at a junior high school, and I share information about classroom DX and the use of generative AI.
Water Breathing, Eleventh Form: "Dead Calm".
And I always think,
"It's Water Breathing, but he uses 'Dead Calm' (Nagi), not Wind?"
But,
people around me always retort, "Nagita is the only one who cares about that." (;´･ω･)
🌊 Why does the wind stop in the morning and evening?
Actually, "Nagi" includes morning calm (asanagi) and evening calm (yūnagi).
If you have ever lived by the sea, you might know this from experience.
There is a mysterious time in the morning and evening when the wind always stops suddenly.
This mechanism,
is actually perfectly connected to the "Weather" unit in junior high school science.
The reason the wind blows lies in the "temperature difference."
昼間：陸の方が海より早く温まる ➔ 陸上の空気が上昇 ➔ 海から陸へ風が吹く（海風）
夜間：陸の方が海より早く冷える ➔ 今度は陸から海へ風が吹く（陸風）
Simply put, the sea is "insensitive" and the land is "sensitive."
For example, during the day when the sun is out,
Land: "It's hot!!!" it shouts.
Sea: "Really? It's still cold~" it says, completely relaxed.
If it's hot, I'll send you some wind, says the sea. "Wind blows from the sea to the land."
🌏 When you scale it up, it becomes a "monsoon"
This mechanism where "wind is created by the difference in how the sea and land warm up" is actually happening on a much larger scale.
夏：ユーラシア大陸が太平洋より温まりやすく、海から大陸へ向かって季節風が吹く
冬：逆に大陸の方が冷えやすく、大陸から海へ向かって季節風が吹く
春・秋：大陸と海の温度差が小さくなり、季節風が切り替わる「凪」の時期
Continent: "It's cold!!!! I can't take it, I want to go to the warm sea!!"
Ocean: "It was summer until just a while ago, so the sea is warm~. Well, come on over."
The continent wants to move as if to escape the cold, but that's impossible (lol), so
only the air moves from the continent to the ocean.
That is the winter monsoon, and "wind blows from the continent to the ocean."
It's not just about being insensitive or sensitive; it's actually hot and cold, right.
The land (poolside) is hard to walk on without flip-flops, right?
In the same way, even though the sun is hitting it, the pool feels pleasant, right?
Small 'sea breezes and land breezes' that occur on a daily basis
Grand 'seasonal winds' that occur on a yearly basis
They are actually the exact same principle.
From small daily phenomena, you can see large-scale movements on a global level.
Being able to touch upon moments like this is why I think science is truly interesting.
📝 'Calm Quiz' that you can use as-is in class or for small talk
If you want to talk about this to students or fellow teachers, introducing it in a quiz format like this is a great way to get them hooked.
Q. In a town by the sea, what time of day is the wind most likely to stop?
A. The hottest time of the day
B. Morning and evening
C. Middle of the night
The correct answer is 'B'. This is because it is the time when the temperatures of the sea and the land are exactly the same.
Why do the temperatures become exactly the same in the morning and evening?
It's great if you think about that and go, 'Ah! I see!'
Please try using this as a hook for your class or as a bit of
small talk in the staff room.
That's why there are times twice a day when the temperatures are the same.
🤖 How to create science trivia and quizzes in 3 minutes using AI
I don't actually think of trivia like this 'Calm Quiz' from scratch every time.
By just sending an instruction like this to Gemini, you can complete one piece of trivia in less than 3 minutes.
The prompt I use
あなたは中学校理科の授業づくりが得意な、ベテラン理科教師です。
以下の条件で、生徒の興味を引く「理科の雑談ネタ」を1つ作成してください。
【テーマ】
[ここに好きなテーマを入れる。例：凪、虹、雷、化石 など]
【条件】
・中学生が「へえ!」と思う、身近な現象と理科の仕組みを結びつける
・3択クイズ形式にする(選択肢A/B/C、正解と簡単な解説つき)
・授業の導入や、ちょっとした雑談で1〜2分以内に話せる長さにする
・専門用語を使う場合は、必ず中学生向けにかみ砕いて説明するBy simply replacing the **[Theme] part** of this prompt with various words like 'rainbow,' 'lightning,' 'earthquake,' or 'aurora,' you can generate different trivia every time.
Points
By assigning the role of a 'veteran science teacher', it becomes an explanation from a 'teaching' perspective rather than just trivia
By specifying a '3-choice quiz format', it becomes a format that can be used immediately in class or for small talk
Since you caninfinitely increase your triviajust by changing the theme, you don't have to worry about running out of material
Today's 'morning breeze/evening breeze' quiz is actually based on a short story I created by putting 'calm' as the [theme] in this prompt.
☕ Creating a time of 'calm' for myself
Up to this point, I have introduced 'calm' as a science topic. From here on, I will relate it to my own life.
Isn't 'calm' something that is also necessary in our daily lives as teachers?
The morning staff room, dealing with things during breaks, after-school meetings, club activities... Honestly, a teacher's day feels like the 'wind is blowing' the whole time. Sea breezes blow, then without a moment's rest they turn into land breezes, and then back to sea breezes again...
But even in the natural world, there are proper moments of 'calm'.
A moment when the wind doesn't blow, and everything becomes quiet for an instant.
If that's the case, I thought, why shouldn't we intentionally create that time for ourselves as well?
First, let's brew a cup of coffee.
That is my [style] that I have been continuing for over five years.
🛠️ Leaving it to AI to create 'calm' in your heart
The automation using Gems, Spark, and GAS that I have introduced on this note so far... I introduced those as mere time-saving techniques, but the purpose is actually much simpler.
To have AI stop the wind.
Gathering information, creating drafts for tests, administrative work. Having AI take on a portion of this 'wind that is constantly blowing.' The few minutes or tens of minutes of gaps created by that.
That is, for me,a 'time of calm'.
What to do during that time of calm?
You could drink coffee while zoning out, or you could use that time to slowly think about your students' faces.
The very fact that you gain the freedom to choose to 'do nothing' might be the greatest value of using AI.
💬 The word 'calm' reached someone
Come to think of it, I once received a wonderful comment from someone regarding this word 'calm'.
I cannot write the details, but it was an event that made me realize once again that 'the words I speak might have more power to move people than I think'.
Words are mysterious.
Just as sea breezes and land breezes blow, there are moments when someone's words suddenly move someone else's heart.
I have been thinking about that a lot lately.
🍃 And now, the origin of my name
Finally, I will talk about the topic I teased at the beginning.
I have actually been using the name "Nagita" since I was in high school.
I am sometimes asked about the origin, but...
Having read this far, you might have thought, "Is it derived from the scientific term for calm?" but...
I took "Nagi" from there and have been using it ever since🥰🥰
Well then, I hope a small moment of "calm" visits you somewhere today as well.
💡 Recommended articles to read together
💬 I am also waiting for your comments, likes, and follows!
"When is your 'moment of calm'?" Please let me know in the comments!