Teaching statistical physics by thinking about models and algorithms
Physics Education
2009-11-13 v1
Abstract
We discuss several ways of illustrating fundamental concepts in statistical and thermal physics by considering various models and algorithms. We emphasize the importance of replacing students' incomplete mental images by models that are physically accurate. In some cases it is sufficient to discuss the results of an algorithm or the behavior of a model rather than having students write a program.
Cite
@article{arxiv.0712.3488,
title = {Teaching statistical physics by thinking about models and algorithms},
author = {Jan Tobochnik and Harvey Gould},
journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:0712.3488},
year = {2009}
}
Comments
21 pages, 4 figures, submitted to the American Journal of Physics