This "Science Note" explores the new adaptation of Newton's Second Law of Motion, "F = ma." In older physics and applied mathematics textbooks this expression appears as "P = mf." The author examines why "f" is now favored over "a" and why practitioners write "P = mf" rather than…

This paper extends the interesting work of a previous contributor concerning the analogies between physical phenomena such as mechanical collisions and the transfer of power in an electric circuit. Emphasis is placed on a mathematical function linking these different areas of physics. This unifying principle is seen as an exciting opportunity to…

The recent discovery of the Higgs boson at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) has contributed to a surge of interest in particle physics and science education in general. Given the conceptual difficulty of the phenomenon in question, it is inevitable that teachers and science communicators rely on analogies to explain the Higgs physics and its…

An experiment with a mechanical black box containing unknown masses is presented. The experiment involves the determination of these masses and their locations by performing some nondestructive tests. The set-ups are inexpensive and easy to fabricate. They are very useful to gain an understanding of some well-known principles of mechanics.

We have frequently enhanced our department's laboratory experiment involving standing transverse waves in a taut horizontal cord. In addition to the standard experiment, students in these labs investigate the surprising concept that the acceleration of a pulse in a chain hanging vertically is a constant and is equal to half the acceleration…

I investigated two late 19th-century methods for capturing magnetic field images from iron filings for historical insight into the pedagogy of hands-on physics education methods, and to flesh out teaching and learning practicalities tacit in the historical record. Both methods offer opportunities for close sensory engagement in data-collection…

Using the simplest possible quantum system--the qubit--the fundamental concepts of quantum physics can be introduced. This highlights the common features of many different physical systems, and provides a unifying framework when teaching quantum physics at the high school or introductory level. In a previous "TPT" article and in a…

This is the second in a series of two articles on using antique devices to teach introductory physics. As mentioned in the first article, students can more clearly see the physics required for the operation of antique devices than for modern-day technological devices. This article further discusses antiques used to teach vibrations and waves,…

Image modelling is a recent technique in physics education that includes digital tools for image treatment and analysis, such as digital stroboscopic photography (DSP) and video analysis software. It is commonly used to analyse the motion of objects. In this work we show how to determine the position of the centre of mass (CM) of objects with…

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.

Students often find astronomy and astrophysics to be most interesting and exciting, but the Universe is difficult to access using only one's eyes or simple equipment available at different educational settings. To open up the Universe and enhance learning astronomy and astrophysics different planetarium software can be used. In this article we…

In the school year 2012-2013 about 50 students (Fig. 1), managed by mentors (teachers from the middle school Gimnazija Vic in Ljubljana, Slovenia) created an atmospheric probe and launched it into an altitude of more than 30 km above Earth's surface. The aim of this "space expedition" was to take pictures of Earth and to measure how air…

"MythBusters," the long-running though recently discontinued Discovery Channel science entertainment television program, has proven itself to be far more than just a highly rated show. While its focus is on entertainment, the show employs an array of pedagogical techniques to communicate scientific concepts to its audience. These…

Without question, one of the most useful tools an astronomer or physicist can employ to study the universe is spectroscopy. However, for students in introductory physics or astronomy classes, spectroscopy is a relatively abstract concept that combines new physics topics such as thermal radiation, atomic physics, and the wave and particle nature of…

The second law of thermodynamics has various formulations. There is the "Clausius formulation," which can be stated in a very intuitive way: "No process is possible whose sole result is the transfer of heat from a cooler to a hotter body." There is also the "Kelvin-Plank principle," which states that "no cyclic…