Re: [Phys-l] index of refraction

["John Clement" <clement@hal-pc.org>]

Religion is belief backed up by faith.  Physics and physics education is
belief backed up by experiments.

Could we call relativity "one true religion"?  I did provide some oblique
references which could be looked up easily on the web!!!  Can faith in
verification experiments be substantiated by experiments?

For Schwartz's power point go to:
http://www.cwsei.ubc.ca/Files/Schwartz_talk.pdf

Perry's work is at:
Michelle Perry (1991) Learning and Transfer- Instructional Conditions and
Conceptual Change, Cognitive Development, 6, 449-468 (1991)

It seems that as soon as a conventional paradigm is challenged, the resort
is to calling the challenge religion.  To quote Spock "That is not logical".
Such references are offensive!!!

There is a good reason why PER curricula do not use verification
experiments.

John M. Clement
Houston, TX

> Sorry - I didn't mean to get into a controversy as to the nature of the
> "one true religion".