Bulletin of the American Physical Society
2015 Joint Fall Meeting of the APS and AAPT New England Sections
Friday–Saturday, November 6–7, 2015; Hanover, New Hampshire
Session B3: Contributed Oral Presentations on Education, History & Environment |
Hide Abstracts |
Chair: Deborah Mason-McCaffrey, Salem State University Room: Wilder Hall 102 |
Saturday, November 7, 2015 8:30AM - 8:50AM |
B3.00001: Einstein and Quaternions in 1906: An Alternate History Douglas Sweetser 1905 was Einstein's Annus mirabilis. Special relativity applies to observers traveling at a steady speed. For observers who accelerate, the difficult math called Riemann differential geometry is needed that took Einstein 10 years to master. What if instead, Einstein had been given the math tool known as quaternions (a way to add and multiply events)? Einstein's great skill was in finding things that do not change in Nature. Square the difference in time and space measured between two events: \[ (dt,dR_{i}/c)^{2}=\left(dt^{2}-dR^{2}/c^{2},2dtdR_{i}/c\right). \] For special relativity, the first term is invariant and the other three change. Imagine the three space-times-time terms are invariant but the interval changes. Here is one possibility: \[ \left(dt,dR_{i}/c\right)\rightarrow\left(dt',dR'_{i}/c\right)=\left(e^{-GM/c^{2}R}dt,e^{GM/c^{2}R}dR_{i}/c\right) \] \[ (dt',dR'_{i}/c)^{2}=\left(e^{-2GM/c^{2}R}dt^{2}-e^{2GM/c^{2}R}dR^{2}/c^{2},2dtdR_{i}/c\right). \] The Rosen metric is the first term, which is consistent with tests of weak gravitational fields. At 2nd order PPN accuracy, predictions will differ. A new invariant in Nature may provide an algebraic approach to gravity as useful as special relativity. [Preview Abstract] |
Saturday, November 7, 2015 8:50AM - 9:10AM |
B3.00002: Atmospheric study using Micro Pulse Lidar: A Critical Analysis of Laser Radar Measurements S. Jake Atkins, Nimmi C.P. Sharma Micro Pulse Lidar (MPL) is used in environmental research to produce vertical contour maps of atmospheric scattering. An MPL system detects backscatter from an expanded laser beam transmitted coaxially with the detector, and uses this information to form a quantitative measure of aerosols present at various altitudes. Many factors must be considered in the complex optical system before raw data can be resolved to reliable figures. [Preview Abstract] |
Saturday, November 7, 2015 9:10AM - 9:30AM |
B3.00003: \begin{center} \textbf{Teaching Physics using low-tech experiments in the lecture room} \end{center} Hashini Mohottala Here we report low-tech lab centered physics teaching in introductory level, calculus and algebra based physics courses. Lab-centered physics teaching is relatively under- explored. Our low-tech lab based classroom environments are well-equipped for hands-on learning activities. Laboratories are essential components in every intro-level physics course. But day by day the labs are moving toward high-tech, leaving less hands-on access to experiments. Students who live in virtual worlds are able to complete the high-tech labs in no time, but do not necessarily connect with them. For the most part, they don't find the relevance of the physics concepts they learned in the lecture and relate to the labs. We use less expensive raw materials to come up with experiments to help our students understand relatively confusing physics principals. We assign our weekly quiz problems requiring students to design simple experiments to solve them. In some cases, they collect the data to do the calculations, and other cases use the given information to do the calculations, later setup the experiment, and find result and do error analysis. Quiz sessions are limited only for 30 min. Students are working in groups. Each member in the group has a role and it changes in weekly basis. Beyond technical abilities, low-tech and reformed laboratory based lectures often emphasize teamwork, oral and written communication skills. We observed a substantial improvement in test averages. [Preview Abstract] |
Saturday, November 7, 2015 9:30AM - 9:50AM |
B3.00004: Simple Siphons - The C-Elegans of Fluid Mechanics? William Jumper, Simthyrearch Dy We discuss and compare results from our recent article “Explaining the Simple Water Siphon” and our most recent experimental work on the siphoning of a simple gas, CO2. Furthermore, we elaborate on the experimental and theoretical virtues of the gravity fed reentrant siphon, and its prospects for affording one of the simplest possible platforms for the study of one of the most vexing problems in fluid mechanics, and in nature in general, the forms and emergence of chaos. [Preview Abstract] |
Saturday, November 7, 2015 9:50AM - 10:10AM |
B3.00005: Getting \textbf{WiSE} -- Workshops in Space Exploration -- A Prospectus William Waller, Danilo Marchesini Earth and space science encompasses everything under the Sun -- and goes beyond -- to probe the farthest reaches of the cosmos.~ Science educators can benefit from their students' natural interest in space by becoming more familiar with the discoveries astronomers have made regarding the content, structure, and 13.8 billion-year history of the universe. Towards these ends, Drs. Waller and Marchesini have created three week-long workshops in space exploration, whereby teachers can engage in a wide range of learning activities on the subjects of~1.) Exploring our Solar System -- A Beginner's Guide, 2.) Exploring the Milky Way -- An Insider's Guide, and 3.) Exploring our Universe -- A Spacetime Traveler's Guide. These workshops will take place at Tufts University in July. PDPs will be provided. In his brief presentation, Bill Waller will introduce the scope and sequence of the three workshops and will solicit input on the scheduling details. [Preview Abstract] |
Saturday, November 7, 2015 10:10AM - 10:30AM |
B3.00006: EDUCATIONAL ISSUES PERTAINING TO CLAIMS ABOUT DANGEROUS ANTHROPOGENIC CLIMATE CHANGE/GLOBAL WARMING Laurence I. Gould Many arguments have been made that -- as a result of human activities which emit greenhouse gases (mainly carbon dioxide) -- there is a dangerous trend of increasing global temperatures so as to result in events such as melting glaciers, rising sea levels, and increased storms. Material presented in this talk draws on topics from a one-semester freshman seminar course taught at the University of Hartford in 2009 and again in 2014. The course was devoted to a critical-thinking approach to the topic of Dangerous Anthropogenic Climate Change/Global Warming. This presentation will -- through an analysis which includes some of those arguments and methodologies -- show how curious people can seek a deeper understanding of the issues and thus enhance their ability at scientific enquiry. The material should be of particular interest to students and educators. [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