Determination of enzymatic activity is a relevant experiment in teaching chemistry and biochemistry to high school and college students. A method for measuring the kinetic parameters of lactose cleavage by the enzyme lactase is described. This enzyme catalyzes the hydrolysis of lactose to galactose and glucose. The kinetic parameters can be…

This article highlights the multianalytical study of exuded liquid from an ancient Egyptian sealed alabaster vase by Master's students in an applied chemistry for cultural heritage course. Master students are introduced to the field of Archaeometry that see the collaboration of experts in different areas of research such as conservators, curators…

Several studies have showed the subsistence, even in students enrolled in scientific degree courses, of spontaneous ideas regarding the motion of bodies that conflict with Newton's laws. One of the causes is related to the intuitive preconceptions that students have about the role of friction as a force. In fact, in real world novices do not…

This work documents the collaboration between the Physics department of the University of Calabria and some schools of the region in a project devoted to recovering disused instrumentation in school laboratories. The project has been conceived as a workplace experience for the students, i.e. a learning experience in a real work place. In Italy,…

There is a growing interest in engaging students and the general public about the meaning and objectives of doing science. When it is possible students can learn by actively engaging in the practices of science, conducting investigations, sharing ideas with their peers, teachers and scientists, learning to work with measuring apparatuses, to…

In this experiment, students are given a fanciful application of the standard addition method to evaluate the approximate quantity of the shell component in a sample of sand collected on the Lido di Venezia seashore. Several diffuse reflectance infrared Fourier transform (DRIFT) spectra are recorded from a sand sample before and after addition of…