Re: [Phys-l] Bad physics in National park

[Bernard Cleyet <bernardcleyet@redshift.com>]

Also appropos the scientific method thread:

I just (yesterday) used $2 (New at RAFT) to purchase "CALIFORNIA  
Science"  (Grade 5) [Macmillan/McGraw-Hill].  Normally I would  
consider this a very frivolous purchase, but --  I flipped thru it to  
find the ever present "Scientific Method".  It's on p. V.    
Emphasis:  It is page V.  The facing page continues w/  "Be a  
Scientist". The title of the TOC for the first chapter.  What is  
Science p.2,   Observation 4,  Question and Hypothesis 6,    
Experiment 8,   Collecting Data 10,  Conclusion 12,  etc.

California indoctrinates early.

None of the Program  authors are physicists.  One of the contributing  
authors is a Physicist (UCSD professor) and she should know better.    
Of the ~ 48 content consultants, editorial advisory board, task  
force, and teacher reviewers, only one is identified as a physicist.   
He's evidently not a member of this list, but at least one of his  
colleagues is.


bc is reminded of the Loyola quote.  And too busy to read for  
additional howlers.

p.s. OTOH, some one has suggested that such physicist objections are  
overruled.


On 2009, May 22, , at 12:25, Anthony Lapinski wrote:

> That's so strange.
> Who writes textbooks?
> Who edits them?
> Who checks for the accuracy?
> And who cares about these things?
>
> Forum for Physics Educators <phys-l@carnot.physics.buffalo.edu>  
> writes:
> > Yeah, but don't try to change textbooks, or encyclopedias.  You  
> > may meet
> > with either a completely cold shoulder, or a polite reply that it  
> > will be
> > changed, but you know the request went into the circular file.  It  
> > took
> > several years to get a change in the Information Please almanac.
> >
> > And if you try to tell a teacher that the text is wrong they will  
> > often
> > rebuff you.
> >
> > John M. Clement
> > Houston, TX

cut