Describes a typical relaxation kinetic experiment using a sudden increase in the temperature of the system. Time involved is described as minimal and the approach as quicker, more accurate, sensitive, and producing simultaneous determination of several thermodynamic parameters. (Author/SA)

Explains the origins of quasi-history in physics, and its aims of providing a framework for relevant scientific facts. Presents a large number of examples and discusses their effects on attitudes of students and others toward physics and science in general. (GA)

Checks on the logarithmic property of the eye in receiving light, by using estimation methods of how much brighter a light bulb looks than does its image in a window glass. (GA)

Artists use red, yellow, and blue as primary colors, whereas physicists use red, green, and blue. Explains the reason using the spectra of mixtures of red, green, blue, and yellow tempera obtained with a Carey spectrophotometer. (GA)

Presents a method of studying RLC circuits with the help of the oscilloscope in the XYZ mode, complemented by an electronic device which generates a marker-trace on the screen and which is used to measure frequencies without the need of a reference point on the screen. (Author/GA)

A multiple-choice test, involving college students, showed that an ability to recognize biological terms was to some extent independent of the ability to understand the ideas to which they referred. Thus, there could be an appreciation of biological concepts and principles in the absence of the accepted vocabulary. (BB)

Describes a college geology course that incorporates a coastal segment. Field studies are done on Plum Island and include examining beaches, dune fields, and an adjacent marsh and spit. Topics include sedimentation, coastal geomorphology, botanical effects, and coastal studies methodology. (MA)

Describes an exercise developed by the author to help college students to become familiar with the technique of photoelectric photometry of variable stars and permits each student to work with data he or she has personally obtained. (HM)

This study utilized the instructional methods of discovery teaching and expository presentation to investigate the concept development of students in a remedial college chemistry class. Results indicate that the two sets of instructional materials did not lead to the same understanding of the concept. (BT)

Explains use of the Citation Index in writing term papers by assigning an older publication as a starting point in a literature search. By reading the original research report and following its subsequent use by other researchers, the student discovers the impact of the original research. (CS)

Details undergraduate physiology laboratory experiments that demonstrate mechanical properties of cardiac muscle, using strips from the ventricle of a rat heart. Includes procedures for obtaining length-tension curves, demonstrating the role of calcium in excitation-contraction coupling, and showing effects of several cardiovascular drugs…

Provides background relating cardiorespiratory disease to physical activity. Three laboratory activities are described: pulse response to posture change and quiet activity, pulse response to exercise (mild increasing to strenuous), and ability to extract oxygen. The last includes information on construction of an ergometer. (CS)

Describes procedures used to evaluate instructional objectives for medical physiology as to their centrality and clarity, hoping to improve the relation of course content in physiology to the problem-solving needs of the physician. (CS)

Describes a flexibly designed set of activities used to teach physical science to education students. The activities in these units place the students in situations in which they must make sense out of their experiences and provides the instructor with opportunities for individualized instruction. (MLH)

Describes a game that illustrates the principles of population genetics and helps explain the occurrence of evolution through changes in gene frequencies. Demonstrates the importance of genetic variability in evolution: winning is achieved by a player's species becoming "completely heterozygous" for six characteristics. Players move directed by…