Presents one of the themes of a French chemistry college laboratory course, which concerns the field of solid state chemistry and is focused on the study of the cation distribution in the case of certain spinel ferrites. (HM)

Discusses some principles of biological taxonomy. The evolutionary principle in taxonomy and its limitations, and the difference in evolutionary patterns between plants and animals, are also discussed. (HM)

Describes an environmental science course which has been offered for graduate and undergraduate students at the University of Massachusetts in Amherst. The results of the course evaluation are also included. (HM)

Describes how the department of physics of the Western Australian Institute of Technology (WAIT) has been involved in the Peel Inlet-Harvey Estuary study. An appendix which presents the departmental approach to curriculum matters is also included. (HM)

Discussed are the advantages and disadvantages of two different philosophical approaches, academic or traditional versus experimental, to the laboratory instruction of undergraduate physics students. The defects, failures, and limitations of each approach are detailed. (BT)

Presented is a derivation for the matrix representation of an arbitrary boost, a Lorentz transformation without rotation, suitable for undergraduate students with modest backgrounds in mathematics and relativity. The derivation uses standard vector and matrix techniques along with the well-known form for a special Lorentz transformation. (BT)

Using covarient harmonic oscillator formalism as an illustrative example, a method is proposed for illustrating the difference between the Poincare (inhomogeneous Lorentz) and homogeneous Lorentz groups. (BT)

Various phenomena in chemistry and biology can be understood through Gibbs energy utilization. Some common phenomena in chemistry are explained including neutralization, hydrolysis, oxidation and reaction, simultaneous dissociation equilibrium of two weak acids, and common ion effect on solubility. (Author/SA)

An explanation of strong base effect demonstrates that deprotonation of a reactant shifts an equilibrium toward reactants in the same way that a deprotonation of a product shifts it towards products. (Author/SA)

Describes some experiments of parametric effects intended to be disigned by the students themselves and shows how to introduce parametric interactions and nonlinearities to the students in a simple manner. (GA)

A qualitative demonstration of wave motion along a linear spring is being used, quantitavely, to present three methods of measuring the phase velocity of the waves. (GA)

Outlines and describes the content of an applied physics course offered for the four year honors and the three year pass degrees. The course stresses three components: principal subjects, industrial projects, and subsidiary subjects. (GA)

Describes recent improvements and changes in the sequence and substance of offerings in a natural philosophy and physics degree course. (GA)

Describes an apparatus which allows one to study the speed distribution, the gravitational distribution, and the mean free path of steel balls agitated into two-dimensional motion through collisions with the moving walls of their enclosure. (Author/GA)

Analyzes projectile motion using symmetry and simple geometry. Deduces the direction of velocity at any point, range, time of flight, maximum height, safety parabola, and maximum range for a projectile launched upon a plane inclined at any angle with respect to the horizontal. (Author/GA)