NMR spectroscopy has great potential as an instrumental method for environmental chemistry research and monitoring but may be underused in teaching laboratories because of its complexity and the level of expertise required in operating the instrument and interpreting data. This laboratory experiment introduces environmental NMR spectroscopy to…

The determination of kinetic data is central to reaction mechanism; science courses usually include experiments on chemical kinetics. Thanks to PC-controlled data acquisition and availability of software, the students calculate rate constants, whether the experiment has been done properly or not. This contrasts with their experience in, e.g.,…

We describe here a collective and experimental research project-based learning (ERPBL) for master's students that can be used to illustrate some basic concepts on glucose/lipid homeostasis and renal function around a topical issue. The primary objective of this ERPBL was to strengthen students' knowledge and understanding of physiology and…

Technology is changing the way students interact with knowledge, and open-ended activities are one of the main types of tasks that students engage with in technology-rich environments. However, the amount of guidance needed to promote learning in these environments remains unknown. We explore this issue by focusing on the effects of step-by-step…

The "droso4schools" project aims to introduce the fruit fly "Drosophila" as a powerful modern teaching tool to convey curriculum-relevant specifications in biology lessons. Flies are easy and cheap to breed and have been at the forefront of biology research for a century, providing unique conceptual understanding of biology and…

This article presents a tangible model used to help students tackle some misconceptions about enzyme actions, particularly the induced-fit model, enzyme-substrate complementarity, and enzyme inhibition. The model can simulate how substrates induce a change in the shape of the active site and the role of attraction force during enzyme-substrate…

For physical measurements, the compositions of solutions, especially electrolyte solutions, are expressed in terms of molality rather than mole fractions. The development of the necessary thermodynamic equations directly in terms of molality is not common in textbooks, and the treatment in the literature is not very systematic. We develop a…

The Electrochemical Pen (EChemPen) was developed as an attractive tool for learning electrochemistry. The fabrication, principle, and operation of the EChemPen are simple and can be easily performed by students in practical classes. It is based on a regular fountain pen principle, where the electrolytic solution is dispensed at a tip to locally…

Wildfires lead to the loss of life and property in many parts of the world. Understanding their dangers and, more particularly, the underlying dynamics which lead to fires of catastrophic scale contributes to better awareness as well as prevention and firefighting capabilities within the affected areas. In order to enable a basic understanding of…

Elementary, middle-level, and high school science teachers commonly find their students have misconceptions about heat and temperature. Unfortunately, student misconceptions are difficult to modify or change and can prevent students from learning the accurate scientific explanation. In order to improve our students' understanding of heat and…

We have developed a simple and direct method to fabricate paper-based microfluidic devices that can be used for a wide range of colorimetric assay applications. With these devices, assays can be performed within minutes to allow for quantitative colorimetric analysis by use of a widely accessible iPhone camera and an RGB color reader application…

Current atom concept teachings haven't reached required levels from the points of both teaching methods and learning attainments. With this purpose in this research atom concept is conveyed to the classroom milieu through observations and experiments related to the atom concept during historical development process starting with the masterpiece…

Teaching children about circuits and the way electricity works is a "tricky business" because it is invisible. Just imagine all eyes are on the teacher as he or she produces for the class what looks like a ping-pong ball and then, with a wave of their hand, the incredible happens! This wonderful white sphere begins to glow red and a…

Helping students develop an understanding of how to interpret experimental data trends is an important part of the introductory physics laboratory. Unfortunately, many of my colleagues have lamented that too many of their students do this poorly. This is a common refrain, and past research has already revealed student difficulties with…

Doing science as explorers, students observe, wonder and question the unknown, stretching their experience. To engage students as explorers depends on their safety in expressing uncertainty and taking risks. I create these conditions in my university seminar by employing critical exploration in the classroom, a pedagogy developed by Eleanor…