Mario Belloni

Improving students’ understanding of quantum mechanics

To address the misconceptions that students typically hold concerning quantum mechanics, instructors should couple computer-based visualizations with research-based pedagogical strategies.

Teaching thermodynamics with Physlets® in introductory physics

This paper describes the use of interactive, Physlet®-based curricular material designed to help students learn concepts of thermodynamics with a particular focus on the use of kinetic theory models. These exercises help students visualize ideal gas particle dynamics and engine cycles, make concrete connections between mechanics and thermodynamics, and develop a conceptual framework for problem solving. Examples of curricular material from thermodynamics will be presented as well as the Web address for its download.

Physlets for quantum mechanics

Educators have often pinned their hopes of better instruction on emerging technologies such as television, computers, and the World Wide Web, yet teaching with technology-without a sound pedagogy-yields no significant educational gain. In addition, students often approach typical end-of-chapter textbook problems by finding a formula that contains the variables given in the problem statement, rather than first determining a problems conceptual foundation. We use the technology of Physlets combined with pedagogical techniques such as just-in-time teaching to create alternative problems that we believe help students better develop their problem-solving ability and deepen their conceptual understanding. Physlets-physics applets-are small, flexible Java applets usable in a wide variety of Web applications. They have attributes that make them especially valuable for science education.

Teaching with Physlets®: Examples From Optics

Physlets are scriptable Java applets that can be used for physics instruction. In this article we discuss the pedagogical foundations of Physlet use and provide a sample of Physlet-based exercises that could be used to teach optics.

An Open-Source XML Framework for Authoring Curricular Material

The Open Source Physics (OSP) project is a synergy of curriculum development, computational physics, computer science, and physics education for scientists and students wishing to author interactive computer-based curricular material. This article illustrates how the OSP project combines physical data and XML tags (data and metadata, respectively) with the Launcher authoring tool to give users an easy-to-use and consistent paradigm for creating, modifying, and distributing Java-based curricular material

Open Source Physics Curricular Material for Quantum Mechanics

Much of the difficulty in learning advanced concepts in quantum mechanics comes from trying to visualize abstract problems. This article addresses the situation with interactive curricular material created as part of the open source physics project. In particular, the authors focus on the measurement and time evolution of two-state superpositions in the context of bound states and spin.

A Simple Demonstration for the Static Ladder Problem

In the teaching of statics, the ladder problem is a standard two-dimensional exercise. If students can understand how to set up this problem, they can solve almost any other two-dimensional problem. Solving this or any other statics problem requires identifying the forces (such that ΣF = 0) and where they act, and determining the length of the moment arm and the angle between the moment arm and the force (such that Στ = 0). In teaching the ladder problem we begin with a simple diagram of the leaning ladder and ask the students to identify the forces on the ladder and where they act. Students will readily identify three forces: the ladders weight (mg), the normal force of the ground on the ladder, N, and the force of the wall on the ladder, Fwall, as shown in Fig. 1.

Physlets: Java Tools for a Web-Based Physics Curriculum

An approach to developing curricular material that couples a software design philosophy with physics education research (PER) is described. It is based on open Internet standards such as Java, JavaScript, and HTML as well as research into the effectiveness of computer-based physics instruction.

Teaching Physics (and Some Computation) Using Intentionally Incorrect Simulations

Computer simulations are widely used in physics instruction because they can aid student visualization of abstract concepts, they can provide multiple representations of concepts (graphical, trajectories, charts), they can approximate real-world examples, and they can engage students interactively, all of which can enhance student understanding of physics concepts. For these reasons, we create and use simulations to teach physics,1,2 but we also want students to recognize that the simulations are only as good as the physics behind them, so we have developed a series of simulations that are intentionally incorrect, where the task is for students to find and correct the errors.3

The Physlet Approach to Simulation Design

Over the past two years, the AAPT/ComPADRE staff and the Open Source Physics group have published the second edition of Physlet Physics and Physlet Quantum Physics , delivered as interactive web pages on AAPT/ComPADRE and as free eBooks available through iTunes and Google Play. These two websites, and their associated books, add over 1000 interactive exercises for the teaching of introductory physics, introductory and intermediate modern physics, and quantum mechanics to AAPT/ComPADRE.