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Dec 2010

Volume 48, Issue 9, pp. 564-623

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Experimenting with magnification

Terrence P. Toepker

The Physics Teacher -- December 2010 -- Volume 48, Issue 9, pp. 564

Online Publication Date: Nov 2010

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Abstract Unavailable
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01.50.-i Educational aids
42.79.Bh Lenses, prisms and mirrors

Amontons' laws

Evan Jones

The Physics Teacher -- December 2010 -- Volume 48, Issue 9, pp. 564

Online Publication Date: Nov 2010

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Abstract Unavailable
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01.50.-i Educational aids
01.40.gb Teaching methods and strategies
46.55.+d Tribology and mechanical contacts

Author's response

Dave Van Domelen

The Physics Teacher -- December 2010 -- Volume 48, Issue 9, pp. 564

Online Publication Date: Nov 2010

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Abstract Unavailable
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01.50.-i Educational aids

Editor's note:

The Physics Teacher -- December 2010 -- Volume 48, Issue 9, pp. 565

Online Publication Date: Nov 2010

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01.50.-i Educational aids
99.10.Np Editorial note
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ROLLING SPOOL

Paul Hewitt

The Physics Teacher -- December 2010 -- Volume 48, Issue 9, pp. 566

Online Publication Date: Nov 2010

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Abstract Unavailable
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01.50.-i Educational aids
45.20.dc Rotational dynamics
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Innovative Interactive Lecture Demonstrations Using Wireless Force Sensors and Accelerometers for Introductory Physics Courses

G. Yoder and J. Cook

The Physics Teacher -- December 2010 -- Volume 48, Issue 9, pp. 567

Online Publication Date: Nov 2010

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Interactive lecture demonstrations1–6 (ILDs) are a powerful tool designed to help instructors bring state‐of‐the‐art teaching pedagogies into the college‐level introductory physics classroom. ILDs have been shown to improve students' conceptual understanding, and many examples have been created and published by Sokoloff and Thornton.6 We have used the new technology of Vernier's Wireless Dynamics Sensor System (WDSS)7 to develop three new ILDs for the first‐semester introductory physics (calculus‐based or algebra‐based) classroom. These three are the Force Board, to demonstrate the vector nature of forces, addition of vectors, and the first condition of equilibrium; the Torque Board, to demonstrate torque and the second condition for equilibrium; and the Circular Motion Board, to discover the nature of the acceleration an object exhibiting uniform circular motion. With the WDSS, all three of these ILDs are easy to set up and use in any classroom or laboratory situation, and allow more instructors to utilize the technique of interactive lecture demonstrations.
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01.50.My Demonstration experiments and apparatus
45.20.D- Newtonian mechanics
06.30.Gv Velocity, acceleration, and rotation
07.10.Pz Instruments for strain, force, and torque

Exploring the Solar System with a Human Orrery

Peter Newbury

The Physics Teacher -- December 2010 -- Volume 48, Issue 9, pp. 573

Online Publication Date: Nov 2010

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One of the fundamental learning goals of introductory astronomy is for the students to gain some perspective on the scale and structure of the solar system. Many astronomy teachers have laid out the planets along a long strip of paper1 or across a school grounds or campus.2 Other activities that investigate the motion of the planets are often computer based,34 hiding the awe‐inspiring distances between the planets. Our human orrery activity, adapted from the design at the Armagh Observatory in Ireland,567 combines the best of both approaches by creating a working model of the solar system that mimics both the scale and the motion of the planets.
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01.50.My Demonstration experiments and apparatus
96.30.-t Solar system objects
96.20.-n Moon
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Using Environmental Science as a Motivational Tool to Teach Physics to Non‐science Majors

Hauke C. Busch

The Physics Teacher -- December 2010 -- Volume 48, Issue 9, pp. 578

Online Publication Date: Nov 2010

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A traditional physical science course was transformed into an environmental physical science course to teach physics to non‐science majors. The objective of the new course was to improve the learning of basic physics principles by applying them to current issues of interest. A new curriculum was developed with new labs, homework assignments, worksheets, and interactive classroom learning techniques such as Peer Instruction (PI)1 and SCALE‐UP.2 It was found that the new course showed an increase in students' class participation, attendance, and overall interest, with most rating their science experience as very positive.
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01.50.-i Educational aids
01.40.G- Curricula and evaluation
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Experiments with Helium‐Filled Balloons

Anthony C. Zable

The Physics Teacher -- December 2010 -- Volume 48, Issue 9, pp. 582

Online Publication Date: Nov 2010

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The concepts of Newtonian mechanics, fluids, and ideal gas law physics are often treated as separate and isolated topics in the typical introductory college‐level physics course, especially in the laboratory setting. To bridge these subjects, a simple experiment was developed that utilizes computer‐based data acquisition sensors and a digital gram scale to estimate the molar mass of the gas in an inflated balloon. In this experiment, the comparable density of an inflated balloon to that of atmospheric air introduces a significant role for buoyancy that must be accounted for. The ideal gas law approximation is assumed for both the isolated gas mixture within the balloon and the surrounding air, which defines the relationship between the gas pressure, volume, temperature, and molar quantity. Analysis of the forces associated with the inflated balloon with the incorporation of Archimedes' principle and the ideal gas law into Newton's second law results in an experimental method for the measurement of the molar mass and mole fraction of a gas that is easy to implement yet academically challenging for students. The following narrative describes the basic setup of this experiment, along with a sample set of data as acquired and analyzed by a typical physics student from one of my classes.
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01.50.My Demonstration experiments and apparatus
51.10.+y Kinetic and transport theory of gases

Physical Review Letters in the Classroom

Paul J. Angiolillo and Jonathan Lynch

The Physics Teacher -- December 2010 -- Volume 48, Issue 9, pp. 587

Online Publication Date: Nov 2010

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Ask any physicist what the preeminent journal in the field is, and I think the almost unanimous answer will be Physical Review Letters (PRL). This weekly journal of the American Physical Society publishes high‐impact research from all the major subdisciplines of physics. This journal is not the one you would think is the first place a high school physics teacher or college professor teaching introductory physics would look to find material for his or her class. But to the contrary, what better way to excite young minds to the wonders of physics than to introduce them to the primary source material? Often times, the articles in PRL address what to the casual observer would be considered rather simple phenomena. However, as we in the discipline know, it is these simple phenomena that are difficult to understand and explain. In this paper, we have surveyed a five‐year period of PRL and have chosen two papers from which to conduct further experimentation, experimentation that is designed to be simple, make use of common materials and inexpensive apparatuses, and consequently be accessible to most high school settings or adopted for individual student projects.
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01.50.My Demonstration experiments and apparatus

Measuring Model Rocket Engine Thrust Curves

Kim Penn and William V. Slaton

The Physics Teacher -- December 2010 -- Volume 48, Issue 9, pp. 591

Online Publication Date: Nov 2010

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This paper describes a method and setup to quickly and easily measure a model rocket engine's thrust curve using a computer data logger and force probe. Horst1 describes using Vernier's LabPro2 and force probe to measure the rocket engine's thrust curve; however, the method of attaching the rocket to the force probe is not discussed. We show how a simple engine holder can be constructed and used with Vernier's LabPro and force probe to record data that students can use to compare to sample data from the rocket manufacturer or the National Association of Rocketry's3 engine certification sheets, calculate total impulse, and make predictions for model rocket launches. PASCO markets a rocket engine test bracket4 that mounts to its PASPORT force sensor for similar measurements. The engine holder described here is very economical, and all the parts can be obtained from a local hardware store or home center.
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01.50.My Demonstration experiments and apparatus
07.10.-h Mechanical instruments and equipment

An Inexpensive Cosmic Ray Detector for the Classroom

Jeffrey D. Goldader and Seulah Choi

The Physics Teacher -- December 2010 -- Volume 48, Issue 9, pp. 594

Online Publication Date: Nov 2010

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Finding ways to demonstrate—in a high school classroom—that subatomic particles from space produce other particles capable of reaching the Earth's surface is not a trivial task. In this paper, we describe a Geiger‐Muller tube‐based cosmic ray coincidence detector we produced at a total cost of less than $200, using two tubes purchased used online; if the tubes were purchased new, the total cost would be about $325. Our detector is able to produce unambiguous CR detections in just 1000 total seconds of data collection. Furthermore, it is small and easily manipulated, allowing us to easily demonstrate the relationship between cosmic ray flux and the zenith angle.
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01.50.My Demonstration experiments and apparatus
01.50.Pa Laboratory experiments and apparatus
01.40.ek Secondary school
29.40.-n Radiation detectors

The Twin Twin Paradox: Exploring Student Approaches to Understanding Relativistic Concepts

Sébastien Cormier and Richard Steinberg

The Physics Teacher -- December 2010 -- Volume 48, Issue 9, pp. 598

Online Publication Date: Nov 2010

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A great deal has long been known about student difficulties connecting real‐world experiences with what they are learning in their physics classes, making learning basic ideas of classical physics challenging.1 Understanding these difficulties has led to the development of many instructional approaches that have been shown to help students make connections to the real world, think constructively, and learn the material successfully.2 However, what happens when making connections to the real world is more complicated. It is one thing to try to figure out how pushing a block with a constant force leads to constant speed, but it is very different to try to build toward an understanding of time dilation. Do the same instructional approaches work here? Also, is it possible that improved instructional approaches lead to improved student approaches when trying to make sense of difficult and very unfamiliar material? In this paper we describe a unique opportunity to perform a controlled experiment by interviewing identical twin brothers working together to resolve the twin paradox. These were intelligent and articulate science students with similar backgrounds but with diverging undergraduate experiences. One happened to take traditional physics classes and the other happened to take classes designed through Physics Education Research.
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01.50.My Demonstration experiments and apparatus
01.50.Kw Techniques of testing
01.40.Ha Learning theory and science teaching
04.20.Cv Fundamental problems and general formalism

Determining the Thickness and Refractive Index of a Mirror

Ahmet Uysal

The Physics Teacher -- December 2010 -- Volume 48, Issue 9, pp. 602

Online Publication Date: Nov 2010

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When a laser beam reflects from a back surface glass mirror and falls on a screen, a pattern of discrete bright spots is created by partial reflection and refraction of the light at the air‐glass interface and reflection at the mirror surface (Fig. 1). This paper explains how this phenomenon can be used to determine the refractive index and the thickness of the glass with a simple measurement. It is possible to utilize this experiment for geometrical optics labs and moreover it would be a nice practice for Physics Olympians.
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01.50.My Demonstration experiments and apparatus
42.15.-i Geometrical optics
06.30.Bp Spatial dimensions (e.g., position, lengths, volume, angles, and displacements)
42.79.Bh Lenses, prisms and mirrors
07.60.Hv Refractometers and reflectometers

Apparatus Named After Our Academic Ancestors — I

Thomas B. Greenslade, Jr.

The Physics Teacher -- December 2010 -- Volume 48, Issue 9, pp. 604

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Let us now praise famous physicists, and the apparatus named after them, with apologies to the writer of Ecclesiastes. I once compiled a list of about 300 pieces of apparatus known to us as X's Apparatus. Some of the values of X are familiar, like Wheatstone and Kelvin and Faraday, but have you heard of Pickering or Rhumkorff or Barlow? In an earlier article about Packard's apparatus,1 I paid homage to an early‐20th‐century high school teacher, and other articles have mentioned apparatus by a number of other physicists and physics teachers.2 In many cases the apparatus came directly out of research being done by the physicist, or from the need to show the phenomena of physics in the classroom and lecture hall. Here are more stories about apparatus and their makers, starting with three pieces of apparatus that are related to the development of electron physics in the latter half of the 19th century.
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01.50.Pa Laboratory experiments and apparatus
07.10.-h Mechanical instruments and equipment
07.60.Fs Polarimeters and ellipsometers
06.60.-c Laboratory procedures

Cylindrometer

Sameen Ahmed Khan

The Physics Teacher -- December 2010 -- Volume 48, Issue 9, pp. 607

Online Publication Date: Nov 2010

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Spherometers are instruments designed to measure the radius of curvature of spherical surfaces.1,2 They are particularly useful in situations where only a portion of the spherical surface is available, for example, for measuring the radii of curvature of spherical lenses.3 A spherometer can be easily modified so that it can also be used to measure the radius of curvature of a right circular cylinder. The resulting device is called a cylindrometer (also known as the cylindrospherometer). The idea is quite old4 but is seldom mentioned in introductory laboratory courses. This paper describes the device and its operation.
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01.50.Pa Laboratory experiments and apparatus
06.60.-c Laboratory procedures

Using the Scroll Wheel on a Wireless Mouse as a Motion Sensor

Richard S. Taylor and William R. Wilson

The Physics Teacher -- December 2010 -- Volume 48, Issue 9, pp. 608

Online Publication Date: Nov 2010

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Since its inception in the mid‐80s, the computer mouse has undergone several design changes. As the mouse has evolved, physicists have found new ways to utilize it as a motion sensor. For example, the rollers in a mechanical mouse have been used as pulleys to study the motion of a magnet moving through a copper tube as a quantitative demonstration of Lenz's law and to study mechanical oscillators (e.g., mass‐spring system and compound pendulum).1–3 Additionally, the optical system in an optical mouse has been used to study a mechanical oscillator (e.g., mass‐spring system).4 The argument for using a mouse as a motion sensor has been and continues to be availability and cost. This paper continues this tradition by detailing the use of the scroll wheel on a wireless mouse as a motion sensor.
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01.50.Pa Laboratory experiments and apparatus
06.60.-c Laboratory procedures
06.30.Bp Spatial dimensions (e.g., position, lengths, volume, angles, and displacements)
07.07.Df Sensors (chemical, optical, electrical, movement, gas, etc.); remote sensing

Characterization of a Piezoelectric Buzzer Using a Michelson Interferometer

S. Lloyd and M. Paetkau

The Physics Teacher -- December 2010 -- Volume 48, Issue 9, pp. 610

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A piezoelectric material generates an electric potential across its surface when subjected to mechanical stress;1 conversely, the inverse piezoelectric effect describes the expansion or contraction of the material when subjected to some applied voltage. Piezoelectric materials are used in devices such as doorbell buzzers, barbeque igniters, and also as the scanning and approach mechanisms in scanning probing microscopy. The assembly of a scanning tunnelling microscope (STM)2 at Thompson Rivers University has motivated a characterization of the sensitivity and hysteresis3 of piezoelectric discs using a Michelson interferometer. The investigation uses an interferometer4 and a simple photodiode circuit to track the fringes. As a possible undergraduate lab, the measurement provides an introduction to piezoelectric materials (including hysteresis), the Michelson interferometer, and data acquisition techniques.
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01.50.My Demonstration experiments and apparatus
07.60.Ly Interferometers
01.50.Pa Laboratory experiments and apparatus

Graphical Method for Determining Projectile Trajectory

J. C. Moore, J. C. Baker, L. Franzel, D. McMahon, and D. Songer

The Physics Teacher -- December 2010 -- Volume 48, Issue 9, pp. 612 | Cited 1 time

Online Publication Date: Nov 2010

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We present a nontrigonometric graphical method for predicting the trajectory of a projectile when the angle and initial velocity are known. Students enrolled in a general education conceptual physics course typically have weak backgrounds in trigonometry, making inaccessible the standard analytical calculation of projectile range. Furthermore, research shows that standard instructional techniques fail to confront student misconceptions about motion in a gravitational field.1–4 We have designed a guided inquiry‐based lesson that specifically addresses these misconceptions with minimal mathematics.
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01.50.Kw Techniques of testing
45.40.Gj Ballistics (projectiles; rockets)
45.05.+x General theory of classical mechanics of discrete systems
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The $10 photogate

Michael Horton

The Physics Teacher -- December 2010 -- Volume 48, Issue 9, pp. 615

Online Publication Date: Nov 2010

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Abstract Unavailable
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01.50.My Demonstration experiments and apparatus
01.50.Pa Laboratory experiments and apparatus
85.60.Dw Photodiodes; phototransistors; photoresistors
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Waves and Destruction

Diane Riendeau, Column Editor

The Physics Teacher -- December 2010 -- Volume 48, Issue 9, pp. 616

Online Publication Date: Nov 2010

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Thanks to Chris Chiaverina (retired) and Frank Noschese (John Jay HS; Cross River, NY) for their contributions to this month's column.
If you have a video that you use in your classroom, please send the link and a brief description to Diane, driendeau@dist113.org.
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01.50.F- Audio and visual aids
89.20.Hh World Wide Web, Internet
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Fermi Questions

Larry Weinstein, Column Editor

The Physics Teacher -- December 2010 -- Volume 48, Issue 9, pp. 617

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Abstract Unavailable
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01.40.ek Secondary school
01.50.-i Educational aids
01.40.Di Course design and evaluation
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Engaging students' astronomical thinking with metacognitive visual literacy tasks

Timothy F. Slater

The Physics Teacher -- December 2010 -- Volume 48, Issue 9, pp. 618

Online Publication Date: Nov 2010

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Abstract Unavailable
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01.50.-i Educational aids
95.90.+v Historical astronomy and archaeoastronomy; and other topics in fundamental astronomy and astrophysics; instrumentation, techniques, and astronomical observations
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Talking to the wall

Boris Korsunsky, Column Editor

The Physics Teacher -- December 2010 -- Volume 48, Issue 9, pp. 620

Online Publication Date: Nov 2010

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Abstract Unavailable
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01.50.Kw Techniques of testing
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Tin foil capacitor

Frank Noschese

The Physics Teacher -- December 2010 -- Volume 48, Issue 9, pp. 621

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Abstract Unavailable
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01.50.My Demonstration experiments and apparatus
01.50.Pa Laboratory experiments and apparatus
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The Humanized Physics Project (HPP) website

Robert Fuller

The Physics Teacher -- December 2010 -- Volume 48, Issue 9, pp. 622

Online Publication Date: Nov 2010

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Abstract Unavailable
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01.50.hv Computer software and software reviews

Vernier Video Physics for iOS (Mac iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch) released for download

Brad Gearhart

The Physics Teacher -- December 2010 -- Volume 48, Issue 9, pp. 622

Online Publication Date: Nov 2010

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Abstract Unavailable
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01.50.ht Instructional computer use
01.50.hv Computer software and software reviews
01.40.gb Teaching methods and strategies

Closing the talent gap: Attracting and retaining top third graduates to a career in teaching: An international and market‐based perspective, by the McKinsey group

Jari Lavonen

The Physics Teacher -- December 2010 -- Volume 48, Issue 9, pp. 622

Online Publication Date: Nov 2010

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Abstract Unavailable
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01.40.J- Teacher training
01.50.-i Educational aids
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A Different Sort of Time: The Life of Jerrold R. Zacharias — Scientist, Engineer, Educator,: Jack S. Goldstein

John L. Hubisz, Column Editor

The Physics Teacher -- December 2010 -- Volume 48, Issue 9, pp. 623

Online Publication Date: Nov 2010

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Abstract Unavailable
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01.40.G- Curricula and evaluation
01.40.Fk Research in physics education
01.50.-i Educational aids
01.60.+q Biographies, tributes, personal notes, and obituaries

MicroReviews by the Book Review Editor: The Grand Design: Stephen Hawking and Leonard Mlodinow

John L. Hubisz, Column Editor

The Physics Teacher -- December 2010 -- Volume 48, Issue 9, pp. 623

Online Publication Date: Nov 2010

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Abstract Unavailable
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01.30.Vv Book reviews
01.50.-i Educational aids

MicroReviews by the Book Review Editor: A Zeptospace Odyssey: A Journey into the Physics of the LHC: Gian Francesco Giudice

John L. Hubisz, Column Editor

The Physics Teacher -- December 2010 -- Volume 48, Issue 9, pp. 623

Online Publication Date: Nov 2010

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Abstract Unavailable
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01.50.Pa Laboratory experiments and apparatus
29.20.db Storage rings and colliders

MicroReviews by the Book Review Editor: Classical Mechanics with Applications: Porter Wear Johnson

John L. Hubisz, Column Editor

The Physics Teacher -- December 2010 -- Volume 48, Issue 9, pp. 623

Online Publication Date: Nov 2010

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Abstract Unavailable
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01.30.Vv Book reviews
45.05.+x General theory of classical mechanics of discrete systems
01.50.-i Educational aids
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