This paper examines physics and mathematics textbooks published in France at the end of the 1950s and at the beginning of the 1960s for children aged 11-15 years old. It argues that at this "middle school" level, textbooks contributed to shape cultural representations of both disciplines and their mutual boundaries through their contents…

In order to show how formal analogies between different physical systems play an important conceptual work in physics, this paper analyzes the evolution of Einstein's thoughts on the structure of radiation from the point of view of the formal analogies he used as "lenses" to "see" through the "black box" of Planck's…

The transport of molecules across biological membranes are critical for most cellular processes. Membrane permeability is also a key determinant for drug absorption, distribution, and elimination. Diffusion, that is, the migration of matter down a concentration gradient, is a simple mechanism by which both endogenous and drug molecules can enter…

Narrative in science learning has become an important field of inquiry. Most applications of narrative are extrinsic to science--such as when they are used for creating affect and context. Where they are intrinsic, they are often limited to special cases and uses. To extend the reach of narrative in science, a hypothesis of narrative framing of…

Calculating the effective resistance of an electrical network is a common problem in introductory physics courses. Such calculations are typically restricted to two-dimensional networks, though even such networks can become increasingly complex, leading to several studies on their properties. Furthermore, several authors have used advanced…

This article describes an alternative method to determine the refractive index of transparent liquids. The method only requires a laser pointer, a ruler and a modified fish tank.

We use apparatus based on two Geiger-Müller tubes, a simple electronic circuit and a Raspberry Pi computer to illustrate relativistic time dilation affecting cosmic-ray muons travelling through the atmosphere to the Earth's surface. The experiment we describe lends itself to both classroom demonstration to accompany the topic of special relativity…

Physics education through physics toys is quite a popular method in foreign countries yet it is still not applied in our country. The aim of this study is to investigation of physics toys' effectiveness of students' physics principles explanation and their attitude towards physics toys. Selected physics toys include subjects of mechanic,…

In science education, conventional problem practice hardly helps students reach "conceptual understanding" with which they can solve various problems by making appropriate models of target systems. Students often superficially read the solution of a problem and apply it wrongly to others without understanding the model. It is difficult…

This study aimed at finding out how young children express their thinking about some of the themes in the early-grades school science curriculum. Foundation-phase children at a primary school in Soweto, Johannesburg, were interviewed after they had watched classroom demonstrations of the production of carbon dioxide gas, absorption of water and…

This work presents a new approach to the discovery, identification and connection of ontological elements within the domain of characterization in learning organizations. In particular, the study can be applied to contexts where organizations require planning, logic, balance, and cognition in knowledge creation scenarios, which is the case for the…

In this note we synthesize and extend expressions for the magnetic field at the center of very short and very long current-carrying coils. Elementary physics textbooks present the following equation for the magnetic field inside a very long current-carrying coil (solenoid): B[subscript sol] = µ[subscript 0] (N/L) I, (1) where I is the current, N…

In this time of concern over climate change due to the atmospheric greenhouse effect, teachers often choose to extend relevant classroom work by the use of physical models to test statements. Here we describe an activity in which inexpensive backyard models made from cardboard boxes covered with various household transparent materials allow…

This paper aims to clarify the misconception about the violation of the principle of floatation. Improper understanding of the definition of "displaced fluid" by a floating body leads to the misconception. With the help of simple experiments, this article shows that there is no violation of the principle of floatation.

The solvent influence on the absorption spectra and the kinetics of the back reaction of the 1',3'-dihydro-1',3',3'-trimethyl-6-nitrospiro(2H-1-benzopyran-2,2'-2H-indole) (6-NO2-BIPS) has been investigated by means of temperature-controlled, UV-visible spectroscopic measurements. The back reaction process was proved to follow first-order kinetics…