Discussed are significant female contributors to scientific discovery. Fields of inquiry include astronomy, geology, meteorology, physics, chemistry, public health and home economics. The importance of appropriate role models for female students in science as teachers and scientists is stressed. (CS)

Describes the invention and use of a sulfuric acid chamber by Charles Henry Winston during the Civil War. This invention helped supply munitions for the South. Winston, who was President of the Richmond Female Institute in Virginia, constructed the chamber at his farm and was granted a patent by the Confederate Patent Office in 1863. (PVD)

Describes an approach to physics education based on the actual practice of physics research. Uses case studies from history, philosophy, and sociology of science and analysis of original papers, scientific debates, and institutional settings to offer a view of physics closer to the actual scientists' activities and in tune with contemporary…

Summarizes the conceptual development of the notion of force historically and suggests appropriate analogies, limiting case analyses, thought experiments, and imagistic representations that can be used in high school physics classrooms. (DDR)

Explains the benefits of multicultural education and presents some practical suggestions for incorporating the diverse history of science into the classroom. Lists scientists from groups traditionally underrepresented in science. (JRH)

States that science courses present modern derived knowledge to be learned and applied to exercises. Proposes looking at the process of problem solving as an exercise in the scientific method against a historical background in social context with information about personalities involved. Uses an example moving from vague concept of element to a…

Addresses Lawson's (2002) interpretations of Galileo's discovery of the moons of Jupiter and other cases that exhibit historical errors. Suggests that such cases can distort history and lessons about the nature of science. (SOE)

Presents an historical timeline and related activities that illustrate the importance of the electromagnetic spectrum in providing clues about the evolution of the universe. (Author/SOE)

Investigates students' (N=736) conceptions of inertia and compares these conceptions with historical changes in the concept. Findings indicate considerable similarities as well as dissimilarities between students' conceptions and the views of past scientists. Contains 31 references. (Author/JRH)

Uses metaphorical analysis to determine whether or not Max Planck invented the quantum postulate. Demonstrates how metaphorical analysis can be used to analyze the rhetoric of revolutionary texts in science. Concludes that, in his original 1900 quantum paper, Planck considered the quantum postulate to be important, but not revolutionary. (PA)

Uses analogies with everyday objects and materials as a teaching method. Explains geologic time using a roll of toilet paper that has been previously marked with Earth's history. (YDS)

Examines the evidence proffered by Arrhenius, van't Hoff, and Ostwald in favor of the theory of electrolytic dissociation and outlines objections raised by Armstrong, Fitzgerald, and Pickering. Discusses the implication of the controversy revolving around the nature of chemistry in relation to the teaching and learning of chemistry. (KHR)

Explores the confluence of cultural and technological changes that led to the transformation of soap into a ubiquitous and well-used object. Picks up the timeline for the development of soap in the early American republic when soapmaking was a householder's task. Traces the rise of the American cleanliness movement and correlates the rise to…

Explores how Carnot's and Monge's mathematical endeavors responded to social, political, and technological developments in French society; how these concerns were reflected in the education reforms that they carried through; and how absolutely essential the new educational arrangements were for the reception and transmission of the conceptual…

Investigates the efficacy of promoting 8th grade students' problem-solving ability through history of science teaching. After one year of teaching, with the statistical procedure of the analysis of covariance, finds that the experimental group students outperformed their counterparts in the chemistry conceptual problem-solving ability. Initial…