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Re: Physics Myths



Rick & Bea Tarara

Thanks to Jim, Jack, and all the others who have shown that most
real-world phenomenon are just too damned complicated to even try to
discuss with non-physics majors at a math level below complex
variable/partial differential equations. This certainly goes a long
way towards solving the problem of too much material to cover in too
little time. ;-)

Rick

Thank heaven science progresses and people learn through a gradual process
where we don't have to totally expunge all previous knowledge and experience
because it might not completely agree with the views currently espoused.

If people learned and science progressed in this fashion, people wouldn't
learn and science wouldn't progress.

Incidentally, there is an excellent article by Marcia Linn at UC Berkeley
in the latest Educational Researcher. Marcia pioneered the use of MBL
to teach thermodynamics to middle school students about ten years ago and
has continuous research on curricula for over five. Many (including myself)
consider her one of the best-founded people in the world at studying how
people learn science, and probably the best in the world at teaching
thermodynamics to grade school students.

She suggests that a modified caloric theory produces the most appropriate
curricula for that level and best solves most of the phenomena we deal with
in our everyday experience. She devised this method partially by studying how
mechanical engineers solve real-world problems in their everyday practice,
and also because it sets up kinetic theory with a rich set of models, as
was the historical case in the field of thermodynamic science.

Cheers, Dan M

Dan MacIsaac, Assistant Professor of Physics and Astronomy, Northern AZ Univ
Visiting Asst Prof, Purdue Univ; Adjunct Faculty, Indiana Univ at Kokomo
NEW NET ADDRESSES: danmac@nau.edu http://www.phy.nau.edu/~danmac