Bulletin of the American Physical Society
APS March Meeting 2014
Volume 59, Number 1
Monday–Friday, March 3–7, 2014; Denver, Colorado
Session G3: Outreach and Diversity |
Hide Abstracts |
Sponsoring Units: FEd Chair: David Rench, Pennsylvania State University Room: 107 |
Tuesday, March 4, 2014 11:15AM - 11:27AM |
G3.00001: Physics, Dyslexia and Learning: A Collaboration for Disabled Students Barbara M. Moskal, Lyndsey Wright, P.C. Taylor Researchers have found that children with dyslexia reason differently with respect to language from those who do not have dyslexia. Dyslexic students' brains work differently than do students without dyslexia. Some researchers speculate that these differences provide dyslexic students with an advantage in science. The presentation will describe an outreach activity which developed and delivered instructional modules in physics to students in grades kindergarten through sixth. These modules were tested on thirty students who attended a summer camp designed for students who have been diagnosed with dyslexia. Eighty percent of students who have learning disabilities have dyslexia. Many of the students who attended this camp have experienced repeated failure in the traditional school system, which emphasizes literacy with little attention to science. A number of science and engineering professors collaborated with this camp to build instructional modules that were delivered one hour per day, during two weeks of this five week summer camp (ten hours of hands-on physics instruction). Both quantitative and qualitative data were collected with respect to the impact that this camp had on students' understanding and interests in science. The results of these efforts will be presented. [Preview Abstract] |
Tuesday, March 4, 2014 11:27AM - 11:39AM |
G3.00002: Adapting diagrams from physics textbooks: improving the autonomy of blind students Adriana Dickman, Alexandre Martins, Amauri Ferreira In this work we elaborate and test a glossary consisting of a set of objects and their symbols. The symbols are designed to represent objects frequently used in mechanics diagrams, such as vectors, ropes, pulleys, blocks and surfaces, and can be used to adapt drawings of physics situations in textbooks for blind high school students. The educational product was tested at a specialized school for the blind. The results indicate that adequate training can help blind students to become familiar with the symbols, and to identify them in a problem without the need of a description. This educational product can help blind students to achieve the same conditions of autonomy as sighted ones, when studying physics. [Preview Abstract] |
Tuesday, March 4, 2014 11:39AM - 11:51AM |
G3.00003: The Longitudinal STEM Identity Trajectories of Middle School Girls who Participated in a Single-Sex Informal STEM Education Program Roxanne Hughes This study examined the longitudinal effects of participation in an all-girls STEM summer camp on young women's interest in STEM fields and motivation to pursue these fields. The SciGirls camp has been in existence since 2006, with its goal of providing a safe space for young women to explore STEM careers and strengthen their interest in these careers. Over 166 middle school age girls have participated in the program since it began in 2006. Of those participants, 60 responded to at least one of the follow up surveys that are sent every three years -- 2009 and 2012. The surveys attempt to determine participants' level of interest in STEM. The survey was qualitative in nature and asked open ended questions. Results indicated that the camp had a positive effect on participants' perceptions of scientists and their work. This study adds to the literature that looks at the longitudinal impacts of informal STEM educational programs that expose young women to female scientist role models and mentors. This study supports the research that claims that exposing young women at an early age to science role models can positively alter their perception of science careers which can eventually increase the number of women who pursue these careers. This increase is important at a time when men still outnumber women in many science and engineering fields. [Preview Abstract] |
Tuesday, March 4, 2014 11:51AM - 12:03PM |
G3.00004: Phun Physics 4 Phemales: Physics Camp for High School Girls Chuhee Kwon, Jiyeong Gu, Laura Henriquez The department of Physics and Astronomy with the department of Science Education at California State University, Long Beach hosted summer program of ``Phun Physics 4 Phemales (PP4P)'' during summer 2012 and summer 2013 with the support from APS public outreach program. PP4P summer camp was hosted along with a two-week summer science camp, Young Scientists Camp, which has been institutionalized for the last 14 years since 1999. More than 2,500 3$^{rd}$-8$^{th}$ grade students and 250 teachers have participated in the program. PP4P program provided the tools and support that female high school students need to pursue careers in physics and/or science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) field. This girls-only camp created connections among the girls and built confidence. In addition PP4P program introduced students to key principles in physics by a hands-on lab environment and demonstrated the real-world social impact of physics. In summer 2012, high school girls worked on physics experimental project on electronics and in summer 2013 they worked on the mechanics. I would share our experience in this program and the impact on the female high school students. [Preview Abstract] |
Tuesday, March 4, 2014 12:03PM - 12:15PM |
G3.00005: The Art of Science Ashwin Vaidya, Mika Munakata The Art of Science project at Montclair State University strives to communicate the creativity inherent in the sciences to students and the general public alike. The project uses connections between the arts and sciences to show the underlying unity and interdependence of the two. The project is planned as one big `performance' bringing together the two disciplines around the theme of sustainability. In the first phase, physics students learned about and built human-powered generators including hand cranks and bicycle units. In the second phase, using the generators to power video cameras, art students worked with a visiting artist to make short films on the subject of sustainability, science, and art. The generators and films were showcased at an annual university Physics and Art exhibition which was open to the university and local community. In the final phase, to be conducted, K12 teachers will learn about the project through a professional development workshop and will be encouraged to adapt the experiment for their own classrooms. The last phase will also combine the university and K12 projects for an exhibition to be displayed on Earth Day, 2014. [Preview Abstract] |
Tuesday, March 4, 2014 12:15PM - 12:27PM |
G3.00006: Teaching minority middle-school students to solder James Reardon, Billy J. Gates, Jr. We aspired to teach minority middle school students to solder. We found that important variables affecting our ability to do so included: student-to-teacher ratio, venue of instruction, relationships with community partners, and understanding of the structure of the student's worldview. Once the effects of these variables had been understood, we found the students readily learned to solder. We now want to see whether the acquisition of the skill of soldering leads the students to be more interested in technical careers and in going to college. [Preview Abstract] |
Tuesday, March 4, 2014 12:27PM - 12:39PM |
G3.00007: Zoom In! A Nanoscience Claymation Video Project Designed for Students K-3 Nancy Sandler, Sergio Ulloa, Kate Raney Nanoscience concepts are somewhat new and strange to the general public, and although simple to explain, have not permeated through the various information channels available for public education. This is particularly true for children. Because young people in levels K-3 are exposed to digital media on a daily basis, we recognized the importance of reaching them using a familiar format. Hence, we developed a claymation Zoom In! movie that follows the ``adventures'' of Gwen Pym, a girl ``nanoscientist,'' in her quest for a dress that cannot be stained. The pilot video presented in this talk provides a novel and imaginative way to capture young children's attention while focusing on basic nanoscience concepts. By reducing Gwen to a sub-milimeter scale, concepts of scale, surface tension, hydrophobicity induced by roughness, are all exemplified in simple terms accessible to this age range. The movie is accompanied by supporting material aimed at schoolteachers, covering the physics concepts involved in the various aspects of the adventure, and including suggested on-class activities that expand on these points. The final product is contained in a DVD that was distributed to the local elementary schools in the South East Ohio area. [Preview Abstract] |
Tuesday, March 4, 2014 12:39PM - 12:51PM |
G3.00008: ``A Penny Plain and Twopence Coloured,''-- How the Penny Theater format was used to animate and present Mary Chapin Carpenter's book, ``Halley Came to Jackson'' to preschoolers and their families as a STEM outreach program Elizabeth Jan Jablonski, Daniel Jablonski, Matthew Jablonski, Peter Jablonski, Maureen Green, Charles Green, Megan Wyble, Margaret Ardillo The goal of this project is to develop a program for young children (3 to 8 years old) that provides basic information about concepts related to space, comets, time, and timelessness in a stimulating, memorable manner. The vehicle for achieving this goal is an adaptation of the children's picture book \textit{Halley Came to Jackson} to a modern update of the historical Penny Theater format. The resulting ``show'' is rich in the concepts listed above, and has been presented in a variety of venues and with a variety of supplementary activities to several hundred preschoolers and their families. Based on a combination of prior research on how young children learn and careful observation and follow-up to performances of ``Halley,'' numerous findings have been developed. The Penny Theater concept and the findings of this project are discussed herein. [Preview Abstract] |
Tuesday, March 4, 2014 12:51PM - 1:03PM |
G3.00009: The Global Sensor Web: A Platform for Citizen Science Ariel Simons The Global Sensor Web (GSW) is an effort to provide an infrastructure for the collection, sharing and visualizing sensor data from around the world. Over the past three years the GSW has been developed and tested as a standardized platform for citizen science. The most developed of the citizen science projects built onto the GSW has been Distributed Electronic Cosmic-ray Observatory (DECO), which is an Android application designed to harness a global network of mobile devices, to detect the origin and behavior of the cosmic radiation. Other projects which can be readily built on top of GSW as a platform are also discussed. http://www.globalsensorweb.org/wiki/index.php/Home [Preview Abstract] |
Tuesday, March 4, 2014 1:03PM - 1:15PM |
G3.00010: On the Sea, From the Sea, Of the Sea: The Physics of maritime Governance Royce James, Eric Page The United States Coast Guard Academy Physics Section is proud to present our initial conceptions of ``\textit{On the Sea, From the Sea, Of the Sea: The Physics of Maritime Governance,}'' a program funded by an APS Outreach Grant in 2013. In our classes, the Physics Section has focused on active student engagement for the past ten years. Recently, we have refined our program to make heavy use of Interactive Lecture Demonstrations (ILDs) and our own highly interactive adaptation which we call Interactive Lecture Labs (ILLs). ``On the Sea'' is a unique opportunity to investigate their use in a different learning modality from our standard college level military academic use. Multigenerational science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) projects are a prolific source of academic discourse, while learning through play has been touted as an effective learning tool. We plan to investigate group and individual participation, intragroup communication, demographics, and prior skill (or education) in comparison to outcomes in learning objectives through projects designed to educate the Coast Guard Academy and surrounding community on the physics of the Coast Guard's missions. Progress on the lab and demonstration designs, community participation, and our emerging ILL and ILD pedagogical methods, will be reported. [Preview Abstract] |
Tuesday, March 4, 2014 1:15PM - 1:27PM |
G3.00011: Intergalactic Travel Bureau Olivia Koski, Mark Rosin The Intergalactic Travel Bureau is an interactive theater outreach experience that engages the public in the incredible possibilities of space tourism. The Bureau is staffed by professional actors, who play the role of space travel agents, and professional astrophysicists, who play the role of resident scientists. Members of the public of all ages were invited to visit with bureau staff to plan the vacation of their dreams--to space. We describe the project's successful nine day run in New York in August 2013. [Preview Abstract] |
Tuesday, March 4, 2014 1:27PM - 1:39PM |
G3.00012: DEEP: Discover, Explore, and Enjoy Physics \& Engineering via High Impact Educational Experiences at Texas A\&M and Beyond Tatiana Erukhimova, Edward Fry We will present the first results of an innovative program at Texas A\&M University that aims to enhance the learning and research experiences of undergraduate and graduate students through their participation in high-profile outreach activities: principally the Texas A\&M Physics and Engineering Festival and the Physics Shows. The goals are to enhance students' knowledge of fundamental physics concepts through collaborative hands-on research and educational activities, to teach them effective communication skills and responsibility, and to enhance their opportunities for interactions with their peers and professors outside the classroom. The program activities include (i) students working side-by-side with their peers and professors on research, concept, design, and fabrication of physics demonstration experiments, (ii) presentation of these exhibits during the Festival and Shows in teams of several students and faculty members, (iii) assessment of students teamwork, and (iv) incorporation of new demonstrations in core curriculum classes. Texas A\&M Physics and Engineering Festival is a major annual outreach event at TAMU attracting over 4000 visitors and featuring over 100 interactive exhibits, public lectures by prominent scientists, and various hands-on activities. [Preview Abstract] |
Tuesday, March 4, 2014 1:39PM - 1:51PM |
G3.00013: Physics Outreach Grant Experiences Heide Doss Descriptions of two different Physics Outreach grant projects will be presented. I will discuss my experiences trying to engage and teach the public in my locality some physics through birthday parties for the laser in 2010. I will also discuss my experiences trying to reach the general public through greeting cards and bookmarks with physics on the back in 2012-2013. These efforts spilled over to a larger audience, which led to a larger impact. I will describe what worked, what didn't, and the value of these efforts. [Preview Abstract] |
Tuesday, March 4, 2014 1:51PM - 2:03PM |
G3.00014: Weird-World, Weird-World Ivan Schuller, Rich Wargo We will present the first in a series of videos designed and produced specifically as a pilot for the YouTube audience to playfully explore interesting and unusual phenomena that physics reveals, and their uses in modern life. No talking heads, no pedants, no complicated theory -- but rather a visually captivating and often kooky comical look at exclusion principle, entanglement, tunneling and the retinue of exceedingly strange things that happen in classical and quantum physics and how we understand and actually use this weirdness each and everyday. Produced by the UC San Diego-based creative partnership between an active physicist and established university based science media producer responsible for the highly successful and comical nanoscience caper When Things Get Small, this will pilot an on-going series with the specific goal of entertaining and engaging audiences of all ages. The series has planned distribution and marketing on YouTube though the unique programming and distribution capacities of University of California Television to commence in 2013. [Preview Abstract] |
Tuesday, March 4, 2014 2:03PM - 2:15PM |
G3.00015: Outreach with Team eS Through Science Festivals and Interactive Art Installations Amanda Yoho, Glenn Starkman The Team eS project aims to acclimate (pre)teens to scientific concepts subtly, with fun, accessible, and engaging art and activities hosted at public community festivals, online at a dedicated website, and using social media. Our festivals will be centered around an interactive art installation inspired by a scientific concept. We hope to provide a positive experience inspired by science that these teens can reflect upon when encountering similar concepts in the future, especially in settings like a classroom where fear and anxiety can cloud interest or performance. We want to empower teens to not feel lost or out of the loop -- we want to remove the fear of facing science. [Preview Abstract] |
Follow Us |
Engage
Become an APS Member |
My APS
Renew Membership |
Information for |
About APSThe American Physical Society (APS) is a non-profit membership organization working to advance the knowledge of physics. |
© 2024 American Physical Society
| All rights reserved | Terms of Use
| Contact Us
Headquarters
1 Physics Ellipse, College Park, MD 20740-3844
(301) 209-3200
Editorial Office
100 Motor Pkwy, Suite 110, Hauppauge, NY 11788
(631) 591-4000
Office of Public Affairs
529 14th St NW, Suite 1050, Washington, D.C. 20045-2001
(202) 662-8700