A Light Polarization Experiment was done in 5 Active Physics classes for level 1 English Learners. The purposes were to encourage experimentation, scientific thought, and public speaking, and it was the first “experiment” of the year. Of the approximate 75 total students, ~95% were intrigued and puzzled by how light passed through 2 and 3 polarization filters. About 50% continued...
Quantum is a weird and wonderful way to get students interested in STEM. In addition, as new quantum technologies are realized it will be important for students to understand some of the basic concepts on which this technology is built and how it might be used in a variety of fields. We have been working with teachers to create new QIS materials for students from elementary school through...
As quantum technology improves, quantum information science is becoming a topic of increasing interest. High schools are starting to think about how to incorporate these ideas into existing and new courses. We are a team of college and high school educators with backgrounds in physics, education, chemistry, and computer science who have come together to design a middle-high school QIS course....
I will present a model that illustrates the behavior of photons for K-12 students. The model of the photon I used combines both the 'wave' and 'particle' nature of light. We will incorporate a hands-on activity using pipe cleaners to represent the wave properties, while play dough will symbolize energy. We will share our experiences teaching this model and highlight some observations we made...
In a spins-first quantum mechanics class, or in treatments of quantum mechanics suitable for high school, one often discusses simple quantum experiments, such as the Stern-Gerlach experiment, the two-slit experiment, a Mach-Zehnder interferometer, and so forth. Usually, these experiments are discussed, but not demonstrated, because the experiments are either too difficult as single quantum...
Quantum entanglement is a key resource for the use of multi-qubit quantum states in quantum computing and quantum information science. However, the traditional ways of teaching about entanglement deploy challenging concepts such as tensor product Hilbert spaces and tensor product operators. In this talk I will describe a much simpler method to introduce quantum entanglement at a level...
In physics education, experiments play a crucial role in testing and validating theoretical concepts, providing empirical evidence to support or refute existing theories, and allowing students to apply theoretical knowledge to real-world scenarios by observing and measuring physical phenomena. Quantum mechanics has unique limitations in experimentation due to the lack of easily conductible...
For centuries, physics and mathematics have been deeply intertwined in describing the natural world. From Newton to Einstein, new mathematical concepts have been essential in explaining fundamental principles, theories, and laws. However, the recent decline in mathematics scores, as highlighted in the Nation’s Report Card, raises concerns about students’ preparedness for STEM fields. This...
Common techniques to show how diffraction gratings work include passing out gratings to students and having them look at a light source or placing a grating in front of a video camera and projecting what the camera sees. However, an alternate & creative way to display many interference patterns makes use of a vintage overhead projector or modern video projector as the light source itself for...
Everyone knows that everything rolls downhill when released from rest, or does it? In this demo, we show how to construct objects that roll uphill, defying gravity.
