Marble tracks are a very popular toy and big ones can be found in science centres in many countries. If children want to make a marble track themselves it is quite a job. It takes a long time, they can take up a lot of space and most structures are quite fragile, as the materials used can very quickly prove unfit for the task and do not last very…

The current study aims to determine science student teachers' cognitive structure on the concept of food chain. Qualitative research method was applied in this study. Fallacies detected in the pre-service teachers' conceptual structures are believed to result in students' developing misconceptions in their future classes and will adversely affect…

An experiment based on the sublimation of a solid was introduced in the undergraduate Transport Phenomena course. The experiment required the students to devise their own apparatus and measurement techniques. The theoretical basis, assignment of the experiment, experimental results, and student/instructor observations are described in this paper.…

Topics on the molecular basis underlying cancer are quite popular among students. Also, excellent textbooks abound that provide interesting materials for discussion during lectures and tutorials about major events leading to cancer formation and progression. However, much less is available for students to conduct experiments for the analysis of…

For second year medical students, we redesigned an original laboratory experiment and developed a combined research-teaching clinical biochemistry experiment. Using an established diabetic rat model to detect blood glucose and triglycerides, the students participate in the entire experimental process, which is not normally experienced during a…

This paper discusses a set of easy, hands-on experiments that inquire into and differentiate among tattoo inks of varying quality. A classroom scenario is described for integrating these experiments into secondary school chemistry classes. Initial experiences from the classroom are also presented.

A guided inquiry laboratory experiment for teaching liquid/liquid extractions to first semester undergraduate organic chemistry students is described. This laboratory is particularly useful for introductory students as the analytes that are separated are highly colored dye molecules. This allows students to track into which phase each analyte…

In this study, an adsorption experiment is proposed using commercial activated carbon as adsorbent and a textile azo dye, Mordant Blue-9, as adsorbate. The surface chemistry of the activated carbon is changed through a simple oxidation treatment and the ionic strength of the dye solution is also modified, simulating distinct conditions of water…

Artistic creation has always reflected the spirit of the moment, and opera has not been an exception. There are several examples of operas that appeared at key moments of the development of science, portraying them. Additionally, there are also operas that emerged after scientific events or the lifetime of the scientists by whom they were…

In a large-scale longitudinal study, 11-year-old schoolchildren were given a control-of-variables task, and their scores in this were related to their progress in learning about science at school over the next 3 years. The aim of the control-of-variables task was to measure children's understanding that in a properly controlled scientific…

This research documents the aims and the impact of a teaching experiment on how the absorption of light depends on the thickness of the absorbing medium. This teaching experiment is more specifically characterized as bringing to bear a "concept-driven interactive pathway". It is designed to make students analyse the absorption of light…

We have developed an eye-catching demonstration that showcases a variety of physics topics from total internal reflection to electrostatics to non-Newtonian fluid dynamics, including the Kaye effect. The essential components of the demonstration include a vertical stream of liquid soap in which a laser pointer is internally reflected, and which…

A laboratory experiment was designed for upper-level students in a Chemical Analysis course to illustrate the theoretical and practical applications of 0.8% agarose gel electrophoresis and to reinforce an understanding of weak acids/bases using easy-to-visualize pH indicators. The careful choice of indicators included acid and base types with…

The synthesis of nanomicelles in the aqueous phase on the basis of nonhazardous detergents is described where azulene and a naphthalene tetracarboximide are used in this experiment to teach the relation between structural and optical properties of organic compounds and point out possible applications. The experiment covers many aspects of…

Students' understanding about analogy was investigated after a CORE learning cycle general chemistry experiment. CORE (Chemical Observations, Representations, Experimentation) is a new three-phase learning cycle that involves (phase 1) guiding students through chemical observations while they consider a series of open-ended questions, (phase 2)…