Related papers: Difficult Problems Having Easy Solutions
Classes of kinetic differential equations are delineated which do have a quadratic first integral, and classes which can not have one. Example reactions corresponding to the obtained kinetic differential equations are shown, and a few…
University students taking introductory physics are generally successful executing mathematical procedures in context, but often struggle with the use of mathematical concepts for sense making. Physics instructors note that their students…
In view of the usefulness and importance of the kinetic equation in certain physical problems, the authors derive the explicit solution of a fractional kinetic equation of general character, that unifies and extends earlier results.…
Consider briefly the equations of fluid dynamics-they describe the enormous wealth of detail in all the interacting physical elements of a fluid flow-whereas in applications we want to deal with a description of just that which is…
Humans are highly adept at walking in environments with foot placement constraints, including stepping-stone scenarios where the footstep locations are fully constrained. Finding good solutions to stepping-stone locomotion is a longstanding…
We consider active learning under incentive compatibility constraints. The main application of our results is to economic experiments, in which a learner seeks to infer the parameters of a subject's preferences: for example their attitudes…
Drawing appropriate diagrams is a useful problem solving heuristic that can transform a problem into a representation that is easier to exploit for solving the problem. A major focus while helping introductory physics students learn problem…
The present work has been designed for students in secondary school and their teachers in mathematics. We will show how with the help of our knowledge of number systems we can solve problems from other fields of mathematics for example in…
Many studies have investigated students' epistemological framing when solving physics problems. Framing supports students' problem solving as they decide what knowledge to employ and the necessary steps to solve the problem. Students may…
It is well-known that introductory physics students often have alternative conceptions that are inconsistent with established physical principles and concepts. Invoking alternative conceptions in quantitative problem-solving process can…
This is a very basic introduction to some notions related to logic and complexity.
We discuss fun problems, vaguely related to notions and theorems of a course in differential geometry. This paper can be regarded as a weekend "treasure chest" supplementing the course weekday lecture notes. The problems and solutions are…
Helping students become proficient problem-solvers is one of the primary goals of physics courses. In part 1 of this article, we summarized the vast research on problem-solving relevant for physics instruction, and here we discuss a…
Students in introductory calculus-based physics not only have difficulty understanding the fundamental physical concepts, they often have difficulty relating those concepts to the mathematics they have learned in math courses. This produces…
Novel classes of dynamical systems are introduced, including many-body problems characterized by nonlinear equations of motion of Newtonian type ("acceleration equals forces") which determine the motion of points in the complex plane. These…
A primary goal of physics is to create mathematical models that allow both predictions and explanations of physical phenomena. We weave maths extensively into our physics instruction beginning in high school, and the level and complexity of…
In this paper, we introduce some analytical techniques to solve some classes of second order differential equations. Such classes of differential equations arise in describing some mathematical problems in Physics and Engineering.
The ability to categorize problems is a measure of expertise in a domain. In order to help students learn effectively, instructors and teaching assistants (TAs) should have pedagogical content knowledge. They must be aware of the prior…
This paper discusses an instructional strategy which explores eventual similarities and/or analogies between familiar problems and more sophisticated systems. In this context, the Atwood's machine problem is used to introduce students to…
While dry Coulombic friction is an elementary topic in any standard introductory course in mechanics, the critical distinction between the kinetic and static friction forces is something that is both hard to teach and to learn. In this…