Since physics is often a service course for college students, it is important to incorporate everyday examples in the curriculum that inspire students of diverse backgrounds and interests. In this regard, baseball has been a workhorse for the physics classroom for a long time, taking the form of demonstrations and example problems. In this…

As educators, we recognize the importance of strong student learning objectives. We also know that students benefit by being well informed of expectations. Existing literature offers little guidance in methods and teaching strategies to apply in exposing students to their learning objectives. In this article, we discuss the use of specific…

We designed a serious game, MolWorlds, to facilitate conceptual change about molecular emergence by using game mechanics (resource management, immersed 3rd person character, sequential level progression, and 3-star scoring system) to encourage cycles of productive negativity. We tested the value-added effect of game design by comparing and…

General chemistry courses are often the foundation for the study of other science disciplines and upper-level chemistry concepts. Students who take introductory chemistry courses are more often from health and science-related fields than chemistry. As such, the content taught and assessed in general chemistry courses is envisioned as building…

When carbonated beverages (which are supersaturated solutions of aqueous carbon dioxide) are confined within a narrow-necked container, events which rapidly release the gas from solution produce a fountain out of the beverage. One well-known variant of this experiment is the addition of Mentos candies to a bottle of Diet Coke. Previous reports…

The paper deals with innovative teaching methods at universities. The result of this effort is the interactive P&E method, whose main idea is the interactive work with students while solving problem tasks. The main aim of the given method is to change the students' position, by means of experiment analyses and qualitative tasks, from a passive…

This study describes a new module design for teaching research skills to analytical chemists based on the use of a student-led, in-class experiment involving coffee. The module was redesigned in response to feedback from students, and aims to give them the skills they need to be productive in future research projects both within the institution…

As an emerging technology, three-dimensional (3D) printing has gained much attention as a rapid prototyping and small-scale manufacturing technology around the world. In the changing scenario of library inclusion, Makerspaces are becoming a part of most public and academic libraries, and 3D printing is one of the technologies included in…

This study examined how a collaborative research environment in a structured research experience impacts undergraduate student outcomes. Students demonstrated significant gains in research skills and provided positive appraisals of their collaborative experiences. Emphasis on collaboration among students in an undergraduate research program…

In the field of "hydrogen energy", sodium borohydride (NaBH[subscript 4]) is a potential hydrogen carrier able to release H[subscript 2] by hydrolysis in the presence of a metal catalyst. Our laboratory experiment focuses on this. It is intended for thirdyear undergraduate students in order to have hands-on laboratory experience through…

An integrated and inquiry-based experiment on solid state chemistry is applied to an inorganic chemistry lab course to provide insight into the characteristics of the solid phase reaction. In this experiment, students have the opportunity to synthesize long-lasting phosphors with formula xSrO·yAl[subscript 2]O[subscript 3]:Eu[superscript 2+],…

This paper describes a method for determination of trihalomethanes (THMs) in drinking water via solid-phase microextraction (SPME) GC/MS as a means to develop and improve student understanding of the use of GC/MS for qualitative and quantitative analysis. In the classroom, students are introduced to SPME, GC/MS instrumentation, and the use of MS…

Small-"N" studies have been relatively uncommon in biology education research and are likely less familiar to instructors and administrators than large-"N" studies. Nevertheless, many scholars in the social sciences have argued for the value of small-"N" studies in informing research and practice (e.g., Flyvbjerg…

"Complexation TOPOS" is a free software package to generate 3-D topographic surfaces ("topos") for metal-ligand complexometric titrations in aqueous media. It constructs surfaces by plotting computed equilibrium parameters above a composition grid with "volume of ligand added" as the x-axis and overall system dilution…

Low acceptance of evolution among undergraduate students is common and is best predicted by religious beliefs. Decreasing students' perceived conflict between religion and evolution could increase their acceptance of evolution. However, college biology instructors may struggle with trying to decrease students' perceived conflict between religion…