PHYS 661 -- Laboratories and Demonstrations in Physics

Meetings:

• Prof. Andy Layden, 419-372-8653, laydena(at)bgsu(dot)edu
• Meet in 104 Overman Hall (we may move during the class) from 6-9pm.

Class Schedule & Topics:

• Sep 2: Measuring angles and computing physical sizes.
• Sep 23: Night sky, star & constellation spotting, daily and yearly sky motions (and planetarium).
• Oct 14: Various astronomy demos that support physics concepts.
• Nov 18: Trombone #1.
• Dec 9: Trombone #2.
• Dec 16: Students present their own favorite physics labs & demos. Note: despite forecasts for foul weather, we will meet from 6-9pm in 106 Overman... see you there! (Andy, 3:45pm on Dec 16).

Student Lab/Demo Presentations:

• Take a lab or demo (L/D) that you are currently using (or one that you would like to use) and share it with the class.
• Presentations should take ~20 minutes, expect up to 10 min of questions/comments/suggestions from the class afterwards.
• The presentation should include:
  • An introduction to the L/D including what class you would use it in, at what point it would come in the semester, what concepts you are hoping to clarify or highlight,
  • A demonstration of how you would present the L/D in your own classroom (model it for us),
  • A discussion of the pedagogy involved -- why do you think this is a good way of explaining the subject matter,
  • A copy of the activity for each student in the class to take home with them; this should include blank copies of all handouts/worksheets, a parts list, and assembly instructions if appropriate (i.e., everything a teacher would need to recreate the L/D in his/her own classroom).
• If you don't have a L/D in mind, search the following sites for ideas; be sure to acknowledge any material you "lift."
• Keep in mind the goal of the course: to combine our experience and talents and generate a body of L/Ds (be they original, "new to you", or old-but-improved) that we can all take into our classrooms. That is, use the time wisely to expand our teaching resources.

Some Lab/Demo Resources for Physics & Astronomy (suggest others to add!):

• NASA for Educators -- lots of material, prepare to dig around!
• Nebraska Astronomy Applet Project simulations -- excellent Java applets with supporting documentation.
• Astro 101 Clearinghouse (Univ of Washington) -- labs, activities, movies, etc.
• "Cool Cosmos" Infrared Light Activities, Lessons and Images (IPAC/Caltech).
• Conceptual Astronomy & Physics Education Research (Univ. of Arizona) -- list of projects and resources.
• Case Studies in Teaching Science (Univ. of Buffalo) -- "Astronomy" or "Physics/Engineering"
• 2009: The International Year of Astronomy

Link to model rocket videos for use in physics kinematics capstone projects (and fun).