In recent years, with the more powerful functions of smartphones, the use of sensors integrated by mobile phones as an auxiliary tool for physical experiment teaching has become more popular. Combined with the related mobile phone apps, people easily can develop and expand the physical experiment contents of mechanics, optics, acoustic phenomena,…

At the end of the 18th-century, Charles Coulomb developed an apparatus to study the force between two electrified beads which allowed him to obtain his famous Coulomb's law. Today, as one of the most fundamental outcomes in classical electromagnetism, his result is revisited in most high school physics courses, where students are asked to…

This paper shows how a freely downloadable and powerful software package, "SMath Studio," can be used to model physical systems in physics teaching. The software can form the basis of lecture demonstrations by teachers or can be used individually by students working in an educational environment or on their own home computers.

This paper examines the Torricelli law for the flow of liquid from a small drain hole in a container. It shows how the system can be modelled using either a traditional calculus-based approach or a non-calculus step-wise computer method appropriate to the background of the student group. An experiment to measure the head of out-flowing liquid as a…

In this paper it is demonstrated how the free, and easily downloadable, software package called SMath Studio can be used to set up a model of alpha-particle scattering. The basic physics of the motion of an alpha-particle in the nuclear coulomb field is used to produce a simple stepwise computer algorithm which, in conjunction with a novel set of…

As soon as children can see, they observe that objects fall freely. From a young age, we spontaneously construct interpretative models to understand this everyday phenomenon. Over the last three decades, numerous experiments have been developed to help students understand physics concepts regarding free fall. Although there are many…

This article describes an experiment that can be done in the classroom in a simple way, with the support of a "homemade" device or as a laboratory practice with the support of PASCO equipment. Through a theory-practice sequence, kinematic and dynamic equations were checked with qualitative and quantitative analysis, emphasizing the…

The introduction of electric circuit simulation software for undergraduate students in a general physics course is proposed in order to contribute to the constructive learning of electric circuit theory. This work focuses on the lab exercises based on dc, transient and ac analysis in electric circuits found in introductory physics courses, and…

Teaching about wave structure and function is a critical element of any physical science curriculum and supported by "Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS)" PS4: Waves and Their Applications in Technologies for Information Transfer. To support students' learning of these ideas, teachers often rely on developing graphic models of a…

There is a relatively simple way of using radioactive material in classroom experiments: uranium glass, which provides teachers with a suitable substance. By using the right computer software and a radiation sensor, it can be demonstrated that uranium glass emits radiation at a greater rate than the background radiation and with the aid of UV…

This book has been prepared to introduce common technological tools that can be used in science education in the distance education process. Although most of the applications introduced in the book are used in face-to-face education, this book focuses on their use in the distance science education process. In the Introduction part of the book, the…

This paper shows how it is possible to construct a very simple device for the measurement of magnetic flux densities in an educational context. It is also shown how such a device can be interfaced to a microcontroller with plotting-software to facilitate the study of magnetic fields produced by a current-carrying coil.

Learning and understanding physics requires more than studying physics texts. It requires doing physics. Doing research is a key opportunity for students to connect physical principles with their everyday experience. A powerful way to introduce students to research and technique is through subjects in which they might find interest. Presented is…

Experiments with an electric motor provide good opportunity to demonstrate some basic laws of electricity and magnetism. The aim of the experiments with a low-power dc motor is to show how the motor approaches its steady rotation and how its torque, mechanical power and efficiency depend on the rotation velocity. The tight relationship between the…

In recent years there has been a rapid expansion in the use of animated drawings for teaching physics. The benefits to the students are obvious. Rather than looking at still pictures in a textbook, they can observe a physical event and see how it plays out over time.