Related papers: Introductory physics: The new scholasticism
Throughout introductory physics, students create and interpret free body diagrams in which multiple forces act on an object, typically at a single location (the object's center of mass). The situation increases in difficulty when multiple…
Mathematics is a critical part of much scientific research. Physics in particular weaves math extensively into its instruction beginning in high school. Despite much research on the learning of both physics and math, the problem of how to…
Viscosity, the internal friction of fluids, is among the most consequential yet underappreciated properties in physics. This paper explores what would happen if viscosity vanished from all fluids while other material properties remained…
Rough surfaces submerged in a liquid can remain almost dry if the liquid does not fully wet the roughness and gases are sustained in roughness grooves. Such partially dry surfaces can help reduce drag or enhance boiling. Gases sustained in…
The concept of "force" is abstract and challenging for many physics students, and many studies have revealed misconceptions that hinder students' understanding and learning in classical physics. One reason for this may be that physics…
Wellness and mindfulness act as buzzwords these days, often seen as separate from physics. Yet we know they are important, and everything is related to physics! In this article, we will consider a few simple classroom activities that can…
In this paper we examine the detailed theory of the American football in flight, with spin and air resistance included. We find the theory has much in common with the theory of a gyroscope and also rocket trajectory with a misaligned…
The Physics First movement - teaching a true physics course to ninth grade students - is gaining popularity in high schools. There are several different rhetorical arguments for and against this movement, and it is quite controversial in…
A simple and effective approach to thermodynamics is suggested, which solves the major difficulties in the traditional presentation of the subject. The internal energy is introduced from the behavior of deformable bodies, whereas the…
This text is intended as an introduction to magnetohydrodynamics in astrophysics, emphasizing a fast path to the elements essential for physical understanding. It assumes experience with concepts from fluid mechanics: the fluid equation of…
General relativity poses serious problems for counterfactual propositions peculiar to it as a physical theory. Because these problems arise solely from the dynamical nature of spacetime geometry, they are shared by all schools of thought on…
Modern physics, via the standard model with Higgs mechanism and string theory for example, has supplied ether-like models and emergent general relativity scenarios that substantially weaken the usual defense of orthodox relativity and…
Einsteinian physics represents a distinct paradigm shift compared to Newtonian physics. There is worldwide interest in introducing Einsteinian physics concepts early in school curriculum and trials have demonstrated that this is feasible.…
The lack of diversity and the under-performance of underrepresented students in STEM courses have been the focus of researchers in the last decade. In particular, many hypotheses have been put forth for the reasons for the…
The Einstein-First project aims to change the paradigm of school science teaching through the introduction of modern Einsteinian concepts of space and time, gravity and quanta at an early age. These concepts are rarely taught to school…
Rest mass takes the place of inertial mass in modern physics textbooks. It seems to be wrong. But this phenomenon is hidden away by the facts that rest mass adherents busily call rest mass "mass", not rest mass, and the word "mass" is…
Einstein's general relativity is increasingly important in contemporary physics on the frontiers of both the very largest distance scales (astrophysics and cosmology) and the very smallest(elementary particle physics). This paper makes the…
A central aim of physics education research is to understand the processes of learning and use that understanding to inform instruction. To this end, researchers often conduct studies to measure the effect of classroom interventions on…
As we typically teach in an introductory mechanics course, choosing a "good" reference frame with convenient axes may present a major simplification to a problem. Additionally, knowing some conserved quantities provides an extremely…
Cosmology is a well established research area in physics while dynamical systems are well established in mathematics. It turns out that dynamical system techniques are very well suited to study many aspects of cosmology. The aim of this…