As a large publisher, Wiley has many titles that support Physics. The main focus that will be presented today are around the three key Wiley titles that have WileyPLUS, digital learning courseware, or ALTA, mastery-based adaptive courseware, associated. These titles include:
Fundamentals of Physics 12e by Halliday (calculus based)
Physics 12e by Cutnell (Algebra based)
ALTA Physics...
Inspired by the Underrepresentation Curriculum’s February 2021 Unconference, a nationwide group of about 10 physics teachers created an offshoot initiative to “decolonize” high school physics curricula. The idea was this: responsive teaching strategies and conversations about underrepresentation are imperative but still take place within the structures of traditional classrooms. We call...
The seminar aims to explore the interdisciplinary connections between the concepts of scaling and dimensions in physics, growth and form in biological systems, and the principles of evolutionary biology. It seeks to provide educators with innovative teaching methods and frameworks of concept cartoon clicker questions that can be integrated into undergraduate physics courses.
Title: Teaching Quantum Computing: An approach accessible to high school and beginning college students
Quantum Computing can appear obscure to students at the high school and college level due to its abstract nature and unfamiliar formalism. In this talk we describe an approach which makes the field accessible to students with typical high school physics and mathematics backgrounds while...
Historically quantum education has been focused within physics at the upper-level undergraduate and graduate level. As we move into the second quantum revolution and look to expand understanding of quantum and prepare today’s students for the broad range of jobs in the field, we will need to educate students earlier and with a variety of STEM backgrounds. We have surveyed and interviewed...
Driven damped oscillators appear in introductory physics textbooks both for first-semester mechanics and for second-semester electromagnetism. Either case would be more accessible (to illustrate such important concepts as underdamping and resonance) if students were exposed to the basic theory and made lab measurements. Unfortunately both the theory and apparatus are usually considered too...
Vector addition/subtraction seems simple, but High School physics students seem to struggle. Three somewhat time intensive activities will be presented for High School students: 1) colored masking tape, 2) pre-made lengths of line (Pythagorean Triples several meters long), and 3) Pirate Treasure Maps. The Pirate Treasure Map activity is extended to review the cartesian co-ordinate system,...
In Spring 2023, I gave my University Physics class a short computer project to teach students about orbital motion. The project required students to solve the equation of motion numerically and to compare the numerical solution to the theoretical orbits. Depending on the initial position and velocity of an object, students were able to see different types of orbits. In this presentation, I...
Tossing a fair coin $N$ times, a gambler wins/loses $10\%$ of his/her holdings against the house if each toss is head/tail ($H$/$T$). Measuring his/her fortunes by $R$ (ratio of final to initial wealth), then we may ask for $\left\langle R\right\rangle $ (the average over all possible $2^{N}$ histories). Since the game sounds like it's even, we may guess $\left\langle R \right\rangle =1$. When...
The Next Generation Science Standards puts "computational thinking" alongside mathematics as key practices for investigating science. What does this mean for a physics classroom? How can computational thinking be included without adding weeks to a typical course? I will present activities from the STEMcoding Project (http://youtube.com/STEMcoding) that address these questions. The STEMcoding...
In this talk, I will discuss two programming platforms - glowscript and NetLogo - and how they can be used as strategies to support Physics teaching and enhance student understanding.
This session will focus on the value of using open educational resources (OER) in Physics. Open educational resources are freely available, fully accessible instructional materials that either reside in the public domain or have been released under an intellectual property license that permits the use, revision, improvement, and redistribution by others. The presenter will discuss the benefits...
In my presentation, I will discuss strategies employed in my classroom to facilitate student engagement and foster student motivation by creating an active environment that promotes passionate learning in a supportive atmosphere through diverse activities.
As we approach the 100th anniversary of Heisenberg's discovery of matrix mechanics, it is good to look back at what he actually did to launch the era of the "new" quantum theory. Currently, most physicists have no clear idea how the original matrix mechanics works, its relationship to Bohr-Sommerfeld quantization, and why it had such an impact. In this talk, I will go through the history and...
Advances in computers and digital signal processing have enabled routine observations of galactic radio signals in a classroom setting. The participants of the Digital Signal Processing in Radio Astronomy (DSPIRA) RET program at West Virginia University have developed extensive lessons for teachers and hobbyists on building, operating, and using radio horn telescopes at an affordable level....
Graduate Teaching Assistants (GTAs) are the STEM teachers of today and the faculty of tomorrow. We have been working with GTAs in Math, Physics, and Computer Science at George Mason University to prepare them for their teaching efforts in classrooms and labs. Our professional development efforts begin with a two-day workshop that includes a discussion of practical teaching skills with an...
This presentation will show that the velocity triangle, subject of several presentations in this venue, is observable in the spatial plane of a third reference frame in relative motion normal to the the velocity triangle. This implies that the velocity triangle is not only a useful mathematical construct, but is in fact the physical reality underlying the Special Theory of Relativity.
The NSF Quantum Leap Challenge Institute for Robust Quantum Simulation has undertaken an intensive impact assessment process to evaluate the efficacy of its K-12 and undergraduate education programs. We will present our major findings from these efforts and provide some recommendations for teachers interesting in bringing quantum science and technology content into their classrooms.
The rapid technological advances and the availability of public scientific data have broken the rigid boundaries of labs. Why bring your students to the physics lab room to teach them how to use this or that potentially outdated instrument? What should we teach our students in the physics lab? Why not send them out to explore independently and bring them back to the classroom for pre-lab...
Rising global temperatures related to increased greenhouse gas emissions since the start of the Industrial Revolution are contributing to changes in the Earth system with cascading effects across environments and ecosystems. While observational limitations and feedbacks between integrated system components complicate our ability to model future changes, the field of physics, as applied to the...
Smartphones and other mobile devices can be used to enhance laboratory experiences because of their many internal sensors (accelerometer, gyroscope, light meter, sound meter etc.). During this workshop, use your own device (or borrow one from the presenters!) to cycle through two sets of team-based, data-verified challenges using everyday materials. In the first set of challenges, participants...
The American Institute of Physics (AIP) collects data on the representation of women and members of other underrepresented groups in physics and astronomy at all levels, from high school students to faculty members. Although indicative of some trends, these data do not tell the whole story. For physicists and astronomers who persist despite being underrepresented, data show that there are...
Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) is an important tool in the modern STEM workforce, and provides the foundation for more in-depth explorations in a variety of scientific disciplines - ranging from pharmacology to quantum computing. The recent development of inexpensive benchtop NMR spectrometers and freely available online simulations offer great opportunities for institutions to provide their...
In this presentation, I will describe The Organization for Physics at Two-Year Colleges (OPTYCs), showcase accomplishments from our first year, and share up-coming opportunities for the physics education community. While aimed at two-year colleges, we encourage participation from all instructors. Our events are generally free and virtual. OPTYCs is supported by AAPT, and is funded by the...
Impostor phenomenon (IP) is when high-achieving individuals falsely attribute their success to luck or having deceived those around them, and it is prevalent in academic populations. The UMD Physics Mental Health Task Force administered a survey studying IP to the UMD physics graduate population. Nearly 70% of our respondents reported “frequent” or “intense” feelings of impostorism, with...
NASA Office of STEM Engagement created the Space Grant program wants to connect educational institutions to NASA Centers, to prepare the future aerospace workforce, and to engage the public in NASA's missions. There is a Space Grant in all 50 states, DC and Puerto Rico, so one of them is right place for you! I'll introduce you to some opportunities for you and your students and make sure you...
Abstract
Science instruction is often criticized for focusing on the memorization of discrete concepts, facts and laws. The focus students perceive science as a set of final form ideas suggesting little change over time (Duschl, 1990). There is often a focus on one “right answer” rather than an exploration of ideas that includes incorrect or partially correct explanations (NRC, 2015)....
Quantum Information Science (QIS) is in its second technological revolution. STEM teachers can learn about quantum effects and effective curricular connections appropriate for high school students. Exposing K-12 teachers to quantum concepts that surround them, such as credit card security, phones, computers, and basic technology, can help develop a "quantum smart" population. Quantum for All...
Students of color (SOC) experience higher levels of attrition in the science, technology, engineering, mathematics (STEM) fields than students who do not identify as people of color. Undergraduate research programs may offer partial solutions as this co-curricular experience has been linked to better academic performance, persistence, and matriculation to graduate and professional programs....
Virginia Space Grant Consortium (VSGC) provides FREE Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) opportunities for Virginia students in grades 10th, 11th, and 12th. The programs have an interactive online STEM learning experience and are highlighted by a seven-day residential summer academy at a NASA Center. At the academy students learn firsthand about the latest, innovative technologies...
Superconductor properties such as the Meissner effect and flux tube pinning will be demonstrated with an intriguing "levitating train" magnetic track apparatus.
Students: determine the end correction using a set of nine cylindrical Helmholtz resonators. Resonators differ only by the diameter of a single hole at the top. Diameters $D$ were 4/8 to 13/8 inch in 1/8 inch increments. A homemade (analog) sweep spectrum analyzer (0-1000Hz) is essential. The essence of the frequency analyzer is a watch crystal oscillator ($f_o$=32.768kHz), a 4-element ladder...
I will present six center of mass demonstrations using inexpensive equipment:
a. Bet your fingers will meet in the middle of a meterstick.
b. Balancing a quarter on a dollar bill.
c. Bet you can't get out of a chair.
d. Removing one support leg from a Jenga block structure.
e. Cookie tin rolling uphill.
f. Balancing a soda can on its edge.
I will also provide a link to a Google...
Mixing colors with Christmas lights, a magnifying glass, a manual drill, and paper plates.
Distance, Velocity, and Time for Falling Putty Knife in Video and Spreadsheet
The presentation will show simple ways to demonstrate momentum and show how it is transferred using common physics apparatus such as Newton’s cradle and “Happy and Sad” balls. We will proceed to demonstrate the use of a dynamics track and two dynamics carts to illustrate the principles of conservation linear momentum, in a dynamic and interactive manner.
This presentation illustrates standing waves and nodes through the use of an acoustic levitator demo. The demo focuses sound waves to create multiple stationary nodes where small objects and liquids be levitated. The acoustic levitator provides an interesting way to explore the concept of standing waves and some of their fun applications.
I will demonstrate a Buoyant Force Lab:
1) Students are given: a Helium balloon on a light string attached to a 50g mass, an empty balloon, a balance, paper clips, and paper.
2) When the "pits" are opened the students have 15min to modify their balloon with paper and paper clips so that when released from the floor the balloon is the LAST balloon to hit the ceiling. This is a slow...
