Suggests experiments to help develop understanding of photoconductivity, photometry, and the inverse square law in optics. The design of a simple absorption colorimeter is also described. (DH)

Discusses an easy way of interfacing physics experiments to a microcomputer, providing information on the "analog input port" of a BBC microcomputer. Also describes a capacitor discharge experiment with suggestions for several student activities such as investigating decay curve shapes. Program listing is available from author. (DH)

Repetition of a historical experiment in a school project threw new light on the question of absolute rest. The student experiment investigated whether a particular direction in space could be singled out by a purely terrestrial procedure, while the original experiment investigated the drag coefficient of a solid medium. (JN)

Discusses issues related to examination questions which begin by asking students to "Describe an experiment to..." Indicates that this strategy is useful when focusing on important quantities/phenomena or "celebrated" experiments and that examining boards should not request students to describe experiments which verify or…

Reviews the techniques used by Rutherford in his experiments on thorium, and suggests ways for repeating and re-examining the experiments by capable sixth-form physics students. (LC)

Reports the procedures and results of a student investigation of the performance of a miniature diesel engine. The experiments include (1) torque measurement, (2) power measurement, and (3) variation of power output with applied load. Bibliography. (LC)

Discusses: how thought experiments (TES) are presented and used in physics textbooks; how and why teachers include TES in their explanations; and what understandings students draw from TES. Indicates that TES are only one of a broad class of "acts of imagination" which are essential in physics education. (JN)

Outlines a course based on a series of experiments in which students are introduced to the behavior of electrical components without any references to Ohm's law. Argues that this approach has advantages over the traditional presentation. (DDR)

Describes experiments in which a bipolar transistor is used to examine the behavior of a simple circuit. Also addresses problems in teaching the related concepts. (The experiments can be modified to incorporate devices other than bipolar transistors.) (JN)

Describes an experiment in which static/dynamic properties of a helical, steel spring are investigated. During the experiment students discover that the behavior of the springs is non-Hookean at small loads. Background information (including static deflection and period of oscillation) and typical results are provided. (JM)

Discusses the uses of thermistors in teaching electronics and semiconductors. Describes how to experimentally measure and graph the characteristics of a thermistor. Suggests one possible approach to understand the shapes of the characteristics. (CW)

A BASIC computer program was written for an experiment that measures the time of a fall of a ball-bearing dropped through a measured distance. However, the timing subroutine was written in machine language. The reason for using machine language, the machine language program, hardware used, and the experiment are discussed. (JN)

Describes a laboratory designed to give students practical experiences with experimental phenomena discussed in lectures, focusing on laboratory organization and typical experiment. In addition to a list of experiments, three exercises are discussed: fluorescence/laser, ferromagnetic domains, and thermal population (which uses PET computer…

Presents 23 experiments, activities, field projects and computer programs in the biological and physical sciences. Instructional procedures, experimental designs, materials, and background information are suggested. Topics include fluid mechanics, electricity, crystals, arthropods, limpets, acid neutralization, and software evaluation. (ML)