Physics Education
Quantum mechanics is difficult to learn because it is counterintuitive, hard to visualize, mathematically challenging, and abstract. The Physics Education Technology (PhET) Project, known for its interactive computer simulations for…
There is a growing consensus that physics majors need to learn computational skills, but many departments are still devoid of computation in their physics curriculum. Some departments may lack the resources or commitment to create a…
Even though there has been a tremendous amount of research done in how to help students learn physics, students are still coming away missing a crucial piece of the puzzle: why bother with physics? Students learn fundamental laws and how to…
Some education researchers have claimed that we should not teach the Bohr model of the atom because it inhibits students' ability to learn the true quantum nature of electrons in atoms. Although the evidence for this claim is weak, many…
The reaction time of a group of students majoring in Physics is reported here. Strong co-relation between fatigue, reaction time and performance have been seen and may be useful for academicians and administrators responsible of working out…
A small tabletop experiment for a direct measurement of the speed of light to an accuracy of few percent is described. The experiment is accessible to a wide spectrum of undergraduate students, in particular to students not majoring in…
A computational model study for complete frequency redistribution linear incoherent two-level atomic radiation trapping in optically dense media using the multiple scattering representation is presented. This model study discuss at length…
It has long been known that once you cross the event horizon of a black hole, your destiny lies at the central singularity, irrespective of what you do. Furthermore, your demise will occur in a finite amount of proper time. In this paper,…
This paper introduces a theory about the role of language in learning physics. The theory is developed in the context of physics students' and physicists' talking and writing about the subject of quantum mechanics. We found that physicists'…
We investigate a simple variation of the series RLC circuit in which anti-parallel diodes replace the resistor. This results in a damped harmonic oscillator with a nonlinear damping term that is maximal at zero current and decreases with an…
In this paper, we use the approximation of shallow water waves (Margaritondo G 2005 Eur. J. Phys. 26 401) to understand the behaviour of a tsunami in a variable depth. We deduce the shallow water wave equation and the continuity equation…
This paper presents n-coding, a theoretical model of multiple internal mental representations. The n-coding construct is developed from a review of cognitive and imaging studies suggesting the independence of information processing along…
We introduce resource graphs, a representation of linked ideas used when reasoning about specific contexts in physics. Our model is consistent with previous descriptions of resources and coordination classes. It can represent mesoscopic…
We report on the development of students' ideas of probability and probability density in a University of Maine laboratory-based general education physics course called Intuitive Quantum Physics. Students in the course are generally math…
We propose a revisitation of the original experiment performed by H. Hertz in 1888. With a simple setup it is possible to produce electromagnetic waves with a frequency in the range of 3 MHz. By performing Fourier analysis of the signal…
The confusion and ambiguity encountered by students, in understanding virtual displacement and virtual work, is discussed in this article. A definition of virtual displacement is presented that allows one to express them explicitly for…
This article reviews the current status of gravitational wave astronomy and explains why astronomers are excited about the new generation of gravitational wave detectors. As part of the review we compare and contrast gravitational radiation…
Hidden symmetry in Coulomb interaction is one of the mysterious problems of modern physics. Additional conserved quantities associated with extra symmetry govern wide variety of physics problems, from planetary motion till fine and…
Classroom response systems (CRSs) can be potent tools for teaching physics. Their efficacy, however, depends strongly on the quality of the questions used. Creating effective questions is difficult, and differs from creating exam and…
A didactic description of the thermodynamic properties of classical spin systems is given in terms of their quantum counterpart in the Hamiltonian limit. Emphasis is on the construction of the relevant Hamiltonian, and the calculation of…