In introductory physics laboratory instruction, students often expect to confirm or demonstrate textbook physics concepts. This expectation is largely undesirable: labs that emphasize confirmation of textbook physics concepts are generally unsuccessful at teaching those concepts and even in contexts that do not emphasize confirmation, such…

Human anatomy is a key subject area within undergraduate kinesiology programs. However, literature detailing the course structures, available resources, and teaching approaches used to deliver anatomy education in kinesiology programs is lacking. The present study sought to address this deficit by surveying instructors in Canadian university and…

It has been shown that active learning strategies are effective in teaching complex STEM concepts. In this study, we developed and implemented a laboratory experiment for teaching the concepts of Boolean logic gates, molecular beacon probes, molecular computing, DNA logic gates, microRNA, and molecular diagnosis of hepatocellular carcinoma, which…

The scope of this preliminary study revolves around investigating the effectiveness of experiential learning in upper-year science laboratory courses in a post-pandemic era. In this study we have explored two key questions: 1. Can experiential learning facilitate independent inquiry in an upper-year undergraduate laboratory in a post-pandemic era?…

Undergraduates use a spike sorting routine developed in Octave to analyze the spiking activity generated from mechanical stimulation of spines of cockroach legs with the inexpensive SpikerBox amplifier and the free software Audacity. Students learn the procedures involved in handling the cockroaches and recording extracellular action potentials…

In engineering design, engineers must be able to think creatively, effectively toggling between divergent thinking (developing multiple novel ideas) and convergent thinking (pursuing an appropriate idea using engineering analyses). However, creative thinking is not emphasized in many undergraduate engineering programs. In this empirical study, we…

A research-style laboratory experiment composed of the synthesis of MOF-74 materials, related structural characterization, and the cutting-edge application of electrocatalytic oxygen evolution reaction (OER) has been designed toward advanced undergraduates at East China University of Technology (ECUT). The desired monometallic MOF-74 (Ni-MOF-74…

The use of radioactive isotopes in radioactive decay studies can be a problem due to the manipulation of radioisotopes, expensive equipment, and the difficulty of finding samples with a reasonable half-life (between 1 and 10 min). In this paper, we present a mock-up of a Geiger-Mu¨ller counter plus three fictitious radioisotopes. They form an…

Distance learning in physics is still facing challenges, mainly due to the difficult access to a laboratory for practical work. Practical work is an essential part of the physics classroom because it allows students to interact with authentic physics phenomena and develop their scientific abilities. In this paper, we propose alternative…

Drought is a major environmental stress factor that affects the growth and development of plants. All plants have to maintain the reactive oxygen species within certain levels for normal cellular homeostasis by means of their antioxidant systems, which can be classified as enzymatic and non-enzymatic. Plants under drought stress generate an excess…

Lab-on-a-chip devices are a critical and emerging chemical technology. New pedagogical tactics that effectively capture both analytical chemistry concepts along with the design elements unique to these devices are necessary for effective integration in the undergraduate chemistry curriculum. This article develops a design-based learning laboratory…

Fractional distillation is part of the essential experimental techniques taught to first-year chemistry students, especially during practical organic chemistry work. The characterization of the distillate generally involves measuring the boiling temperature, the refractive index, or the infrared spectrum. In this paper, an unknown mixture composed…

This work describes a complete laboratory experiment that involves the synthesis of a ruthenium complex [Ru(p-cym)(NHC)Cl[subscript 2]] (NHC = N-heterocyclic carbene) and its use as a catalyst for the coupling of hydrosilanes and alcohols. The hydrogen gas produced in the reaction is measured using an inverted buret to trap the gas which allows…

Multicomponent solution calculations can be complicated for students and practiced chemists alike. This article describes how to simplify the calculations by representing a solution's composition as a point in a "concentration space," whose axes are the concentrations of each solute. The graphical representation of mixing processes in a…

A simple measurement of the refractive index of a liquid has been performed using a spherical lens. This lens is a spherical shape flask containing the liquid under study. Parallel pointer laser beams are directed to the lens to obtain the back focal length of the lens. The focal point is determined visually or using the Tracker software to…