One of the central tenets of Universal Design for Learning (UDL) is the presentation of concepts using multiple modalities. As new technologies develop, the variety of available representations increases as well. In this paper, we explore how 3D-printed models can provide another avenue of approach to physics concepts. Students with low vision may…

In many introductory physics classes, diffraction of light is introduced first, then more advanced diffraction topics such as x-ray diffraction, Bragg's law, and crystallography are covered. Since using x-rays raises safety concerns and atomic spacing in a crystal is not easy to change, microwaves with macroscopic crystals have been used to study…

This Focus On uses data from the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) and the Law School Admission Council (LSAC) to showcase that, as a group, recipients of physics bachelor's degrees tend to do well on two prominent standardized tests for medical school and law school admission. Although only a small percent of the physics bachelor's…

Five types of affective supports were designed to induce an appropriate emotional regulation strategy in players of an educational video game. These supports were based on the emotional regulation strategies of situation selection, situation modification, attentional deployment, cognitive change, and response modulation. A series of qualitative…

Five types of affective supports were designed to induce an appropriate emotional regulation strategy in players of an educational video game. These supports were based on the emotional regulation strategies of situation selection,situation modification, attentional deployment, cognitive change, and response modulation. A series of qualitative…

Introductory physics courses can be a challenge for some college students, especially those that have not taken Advanced Placement (AP) physics courses in high school. Even some classical mechanics concepts, such as energy, power, or the laws of Newton, can be non-intuitive and hard to grasp. When it comes to evaluating the learning outcome of our…

Electric charges and magnetic poles are often confused in the minds of students. It is convenient to remind them that they only interact when they are in relative motion. The force F on a charged particle q moving with velocity V in a magnetic field B is given by F = qVxB. By Newton's Third Law, the force on magnet producing the field B is equal…

The ammeter-voltmeter method is a general method for measuring electrical resistances that is widely used in the introductory physics laboratory, mostly for pedagogical reasons. Simultaneous readings of current (I) and voltage (V) allow the calculation of electrical resistance (R) using Ohm's law: R = V/I. It is implicitly assumed that electrical…

The objective of this second part of the work is to present heuristic derivations of the three classical tests of general relativity. These derivations are based on the Einstein equivalence principle and use Newtonian physics as a theoretical framework. The results obtained are close to Einstein's original predictions. Historical and anecdotal…

Representing conceptual change is challenging. Claims that conceptual change has occurred are sometimes based on data from a small number of probes given over a relatively long interval. Data collected in this way do not allow short-lived variability to be distinguished from more stable conceptual change and can lead to mistaken conclusions about…

A well known physics problem is to calculate the friction forces required to support a ladder against a wall. A more tractable problem is to calculate the friction forces needed to support an inclined beam on a ball or a cylinder. In the latter case there are three rather than two points of sliding support. Measurements and calculations are…

The impact force and duration when one billiard ball collides head-on with another is estimated by assuming that the balls are connected by a spring. The results are compared with a measurement when a billiard ball collides with a heavy, rigid surface.

The ballistic pendulum apparatus is a fairly ubiquitous element of the introductory physics laboratory, as the pendulum and launcher gun can be used together or independently to demonstrate a variety of concepts from conservation laws to projectile motion to the motion of a physical pendulum. In this work, we control the launch speed of the gun to…

Within physics education research (PER), inductive teaching strategies (e.g., inquiry-based teaching) have long been a goal. Yet others do not seem to be convinced that consensus exists with respect to the goals of physics education and identify three possible goals as: (1) to teach practical, factual knowledge, (2) to develop deep understandings…

The article describes research work that can help students observe and experimentally research the effects caused by the emission component of the filament current in fluorescent lamps' cathodes. When analysing the work of electronic devices--multi-purpose lamps that use thermionic emission--research usually focuses on the current caused by the…