Hooke's law for springs, stating that the force needed to extend or compress a spring by some distance is proportional to that distance, is a topic covered by almost all introductory physics courses at both school and university levels. In this article we present a much more efficient and intuitive approach, compared to the traditional method, for…

This November marks another anniversary of the collapse of the Tacoma Narrows Bridge, an example appropriate to introductory science or physical sciences courses from grade school to university. The purpose of this brief submission is to add an element to this story, which, despite having been mentioned before, has not received the prominence it…

I begin this manuscript by taking the assumption that addressing issues of diversity in physics higher education (PHE) in the United States is a priority for institutional, departmental, and individual policy and practice. These issues encompass a symptom--the inequitable distributions of diverse student populations in physics in comparison with…

Smartphones are increasingly used in higher education and at university in mechanics, acoustics, and even thermodynamics as they offer a unique way to do simple science experiments. In this article, we show how smartphones can be used in fluid mechanics to measure surface tension of various liquids, which could help students understand the concept…

"How does an aircraft fly?" is one of the most frequently asked science questions by young pupils. The lift on airplane wings also makes a great example of the application of the Bernoulli principle while teaching fluid mechanics in introductory physics and engineering courses. The topic is of great interest and is therefore covered in…

In this article, we introduce the Intersectionally Conscious Collaboration (ICC) protocol to physics educators who seek to disrupt the long-standing inequities in their field. Recent studies raise awareness of diversity and inclusivity concerns and propose best practices for reducing bias toward women, LGBTQ+ students, and racially/ethnically…

This article describes the 25-year history of development of the activity-based Workshop Physics (WP) at Dickinson College, its adaptation for use at Gettysburg Area High School, and its synergistic influence on curricular materials developed at the University of Oregon and Tufts University and vice versa. WP and these related curricula: 1) are…

People find it easier to learn about topics that interest them. Recent neuroscience research has demonstrated that memory is improved when learning material about which we are curious. Therefore teaching in the context of what students are interested in should result in improved learning. How do we figure out what our students are curious about?…

In introductory physics courses, within the context of studying Newton's laws, it is common to consider the problem of a body's "weight" when it is in free fall. The solution shows that the "weight" is zero and this leads to a discussion of the concept of weight. There are permanent free-fall situations such as astronauts in a spacecraft orbiting…

Demonstrating probabilistic outcomes using real-time data is especially well-suited to larger lecture classes where one can generate large data sets easily. The difficulty comes in quickly collecting, analyzing, and displaying the information. With the advent of wireless polling technology (clickers), this difficulty is removed. In this paper we…

When I was an undergraduate physics major, I would often stay up late with my physics major roommate as we would digest the physics content we were learning in our courses and explore our respective imaginations armed with our new knowledge. Such activity during my undergraduate years was confined to informal settings, and the first formal…

Socratic dialogue-inducing (SDI) labs are based on Arnold Arons' half-century of ethnographic research, listening carefully to students' responses to probing Socratic questions on physics, science, and ways of thinking, and culminating in his landmark "Teaching Introductory Physics." They utilize "interactive engagement" methods and are designed,…

The speed of sound is a physical property that can be measured easily in the lab. However, finding an inexpensive and intuitive way for students to determine this speed has been more involved. The introduction of affordable consumer-grade high-speed cameras (such as the Exilim EX-FC100) makes conceptually simple experiments feasible. Since the…

Discusses the difficulties with the standard model for introduction of attractive forces into the van der Waals equation. Presents an analysis in terms of force and time delays and an alternative analysis for more advanced students in terms of energy. (JRH)

Uses Newton's laws of motion to describe the theory behind the observation that when bread falls off a table it always lands butter-side down. (JRH)