This article describes a general education course offering, Physics and the Arts. During the development of this course, physics and arts faculty collaborated closely. We cover the usual physics phenomena for such a course--light, color, and sound--in addition to gravity, equilibrium, and spacetime. Goals of the course are to increase students'…

Quantitative reasoning is a key intellectual skill, applicable across disciplines and best taught in the context of authentic, relevant problems. Here, I describe and assess a laboratory exercise that has students calculate their "carbon footprint" and evaluate the impacts of various behavior choices on that footprint. Students gather…

We describe a third-year undergraduate course that focuses on multiscale modeling and protein folding and has as its primary goal the encouragement of students to integrate thinking across and beyond disciplinary boundaries. The ability to perform innovative and successful research work in STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics)…

Hypotheses of population genetics are derived and tested by students in the introductory genetics laboratory classroom as they explore the effects of biotic variables (physical traits of fruit flies) and abiotic variables (island size and distance) on fruit fly populations. In addition to this hypothesis-driven experiment, the development of…

Presents an activity on liquid chromatography that demonstrates the influence of mobile phase polarity on the separation of dyes with different solubilities. (YDS)

Following the brewing process from grain to glass, this course uses the biological and chemical principles of brewing to teach science to the nonscience major. Discussion of the scientific aspects of malting, mashing, fermentation, and the making of different beer styles is complemented by laboratory exercises that use scientific methods to…

Describes a molecular biology laboratory in which students study the role of the enzyme polygalacturonase in the softening of tomatoes during ripening by developing their own hypotheses and designing their own experiments. (MM)

Describes a semistructured approach to the laboratory situation in organic chemistry. (Author/PEB)

Describes an introductory course in geology for nonscience majors that involves students in laboratory exercises related to rock classification. (GS)

Describes an experiment designed to provide the opportunity for studying some of the parameters affecting the stability of Vitamin C in various environments, and to acquaint the student with an experimental procedure for studying simple reaction kinetics and the calculations of specific rate constants. (Author/JR)

Presents sample laboratory activities designed for use in astronomy teaching, including naked eye observations, instrument construction, student projects, and cloudy weather activities. Appended are bibliographies of journal articles and reference books and lists of films, laboratory manuals, and distributors of apparatus and teaching aids. (CC)

Describes a laboratory experiment that begins with a discussion of the fermentation process, the steps of winemaking, the types of wines that can be produced, and the differences between wines. Outlines the procedure for making red wine in the laboratory and describes other types of wine that can be produced. (GS)

Describes an attempt to incorporate research into laboratory work in an introductory ecology class and a senior seminar. The investigation involves the examination of rhythms of food consumption and circadian activities in humans. (GS)