Re: macroscopic vs microscopic degrees of freedom

[Rick Tarara <rbtarara@SPRYNET.COM>]

> And I like "internal energy," but to each his or her own.
>
> > James Prescott Joule operated his paddle-wheel and called the long-term
> > result heat.  Lots of other people do the same.
>
> Perhaps.  I don't really care.
>
> John Mallinckrodt      mailto:ajm@csupomona.edu
> Cal Poly Pomona          http://www.csupomona.edu/~ajm

I repeat my earlier stated concerns.  While these attitudes are certainly OK
amongst practicing Physicists, are they really OK amongst teachers of
Physics?  Do we make physics even more inaccessible to students if every
instructor has his/her own set of pet definitions and unique curricula such
that REAL conflicts (for the student) occur when moving from one course to
the next?

Rick