This article explores how to analyze and conceptualize the dynamics through which conversations in Change Laboratory research interventions lead to envisioning and implementing material changes in activities. Leont'ev's concept of personal sense is used as a theoretical lens for tracing these dynamics and to provide a means to relate local…

Not so long ago a new observation about rolling motion was described: for a rolling wheel, there is a set of points with instantaneous velocities directed at or away from the centre of the wheel; these points form a circle whose diameter connects the centre of the wheel to the wheel's point of contact with the ground (Sharma 1996 "Eur. J. Phys."…

This experiment presents a guided-inquiry approach to the demonstration of diastereoselectivity in an undergraduate organic chemistry laboratory. Chiral hindered ketones such as estrone, undergo facile reduction with sodium borohydride in a highly diastereoselective manner. The diastereomeric estradiols produced in the reaction can be analyzed and…

Designed to accompany the student text on respiration, this manual presents instructions on the use of laboratory equipment and presents various experiments dealing with the concepts presented in the text. Thirty-nine laboratory activities are described. Laboratory activities are divided into several parts, each part covering a specific experiment…

Described is an experiment designed to provide an experimental basis for a unifying point of view (utilizing theoretical framework and chemistry laboratory experiments) for physical chemistry students. Three experiments are described: phase equilibrium, chemical equilibrium, and a test of the third law of thermodynamics. (Author/DS)

To avoid a tedious task for recording temperature, a computer was used for calculating the heat of crystallization for the compound sodium thiosulfate. Described are the computer-interfacing procedures. Provides pictures of laboratory equipment and typical graphs from experiments. (YP)

Discusses the hazards of nitric acid and other nitrates, especially ammonium nitrate in the high school laboratory. Provides many historical accounts on the dangers of nitrates. (MVL)

Describes the current use of automation in the laboratory. Discusses the need, flexibility, and benefits of automation. Presents a generic system description. Lists commercially available laboratory robots. (MVL)

Discusses the advent of microscale experiments within undergraduate organic chemistry laboratories mainly resulting from environmental safety concerns involving waste disposal. Considers the cost savings in purchasing less reagents and chemicals, the typical glassware and apparatus, the reduced hazards from elimination of open flames, and other…

We describe two bioinformatics exercises intended for use in a computer laboratory setting in an upper-level undergraduate biochemistry course. To introduce students to bioinformatics, the exercises incorporate several commonly used bioinformatics tools, including BLAST, that are freely available online. The exercises build upon the students'…

We describe experiments on Benard-Marangoni convection which permit a useful understanding of the main concepts involved in this phenomenon such as, for example, Benard cells, aspect ratio, Rayleigh and Marangoni numbers, Crispation number and critical conditions. In spite of the complexity of convection theory, we carry out a simple and…

Can you imagine a class where students cover the content with each other rather than simply listening to the professor's lecture? Can you envision students developing their own laboratory investigations and quizzing each other weekly to check for understanding? Well, that's pretty much how the major science organizations across the nation are…

Perceived stress activates the hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal axis, resulting in the release of glucocorticoids into the systemic circulation. Glucocorticoids cause the elevation of blood glucose, providing the necessary energy for the organism to cope with stress. Here, we outline a laboratory exercise that uses a competitive ELISA kit to…

Information technology (IT) artifacts such as animations are increasingly used in educational institutions. Researchers caution that, if we are to derive benefits from animations and other such IT artifacts, we must understand how to use it optimally. In this study, we look at the effects of animations in supporting learning processes. IT-enabled…

The measurement of solar UV under water is not a simple process. In the underwater environment the difficulty of obtaining useable data is greatly amplified due to the optically complicated and at times unpredictable nature of water itself. The following practical exercise designed for use in the Year 11 and Year 12 Physics classroom aims to…