A simple low-cost experiment for undergraduate students to determine the characteristics of a negative temperature coefficient of resistance thermistor is presented. The experiment measures the resistance-temperature and voltage-temperature characteristics of the thermistor. Results of the resistance-temperature experiment are used to determine…

The Millikan oil-drop experiment, to determine the elementary electrical charge e and the quantization of charge Q = n [middle dot] e, is an essential experiment in physics teaching but it is hardly performed in class for several reasons. Therefore, we offer this experiment as a remotely controlled laboratory (RCL). We describe the interactivity…

We propose a procedure for the assay of fermentation in yeast in microcentrifuge tubes that is simple and rapid, permitting assay replicates, descriptive statistics, and the preparation of line graphs that indicate reproducibility. Using regression and simple derivatives to determine initial velocities, we suggest methods to compare the effects of…

In this study, novel and old scientific innovations (NSI and OSI) were selected as materials to explore the electrophysiological correlates of scientific innovation induced by heuristic information. Using event-related brain potentials (ERPs) to do so, college students solved NSI problems (for which they did not know the answers) and OSI problems…

A hierarchical progression in infants' ability to use surface features, such as color, as a basis for object individuation in the first year has been well established (Tremoulet, Leslie, & Hall, 2000; Wilcox, 1999). There is evidence, however, that infants' sensitivity to surface features can be increased through multisensory (i.e.,…

Watch any crowded intersection, and you will see how adept people are at reading the subtle movements of one another. While adults can readily discriminate small differences in the direction of a moving person, it is unclear if this sensitivity is in place early in development. Here, we present evidence that 4-year-old children are sensitive to…

In high school, velocity is usually calculated by measuring distance and the corresponding time to cover that distance. But sound travels rapidly, covering about one meter in three milliseconds. This challenge can be met by using only a computer and an external microphone. A fixed frequency (1000 Hz) is fed into the computer's speaker and the…

These laboratory experiments are designed to familiarize students with concepts of spectroscopy by using sound waves. Topics covered in these experiments include the structure of nitinol alloys and polymer chain stiffness as a function of structure and temperature. Generally, substances that are stiffer or have higher symmetry at the molecular…

Metallacrowns are a versatile class of inorganic compounds with uses in several areas of chemistry. Students engage in a multiweek, upper-division inorganic laboratory that explores four different metallacrown compounds: Fe[superscript III](O[subscript 2]CCH[subscript 3])[subscript 3][9-MC[subscript Fe][superscript III][subscript…

The "Next Generation Science Standards" provide opportunities for students to experience the link between science and engineering. In the December 2011 issue of "Science and Children," Rodger Bybee explains: "The relationship between science and engineering practices is one of complementarity. Given the inclusion of…

In this paper, we acquire and analyse high-speed videos of a spring-mass system oscillating in glycerin at different temperatures. Three cases of damped harmonic oscillation are investigated and analysed by using high-speed video at a rate of 120 frames s[superscript -1] and Tracker Video Analysis (Tracker) software. We present empirical data for…

This paper reports the results of a study aimed at exploring the advantages of dynamic visualization for the development of better understanding of molecular processes. We designed a technology-enhanced curriculum module in which high school chemistry students conduct virtual experiments with dynamic molecular visualizations of solid, liquid, and…

The "Saggi di naturali esperienze" was published in 1667 by one of the earliest scientific societies, the Accademia del Cimento. The book was a triumph for the ruling Medici family of Florence, and the commitment of the Accademia to experimentation helped the "Saggi" become the "laboratory manual" of the 18th century.…

The representation of numbers is commonly viewed as an ordered continuum of magnitudes, referred to as the "mental number line." Previous work has repeatedly shown that number representations evoked by a given task can be easily altered, yielding an ongoing discussion about the basic properties of the mental number line and how malleable…

Researchers have proposed that an explicit reasoning system is responsible for learning rule-based category structures and that a separate implicit, procedural-learning system is responsible for learning information-integration category structures. As evidence for this multiple-system hypothesis, researchers report a dissociation based on…