Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®
Articles 1 - 2 of 2
Full-Text Articles in Physics
Conceptual Development About Motion And Force In Elementary And Middle School Students, Dewey I. Dykstra, Dale R. Sweet
Conceptual Development About Motion And Force In Elementary And Middle School Students, Dewey I. Dykstra, Dale R. Sweet
Physics Faculty Publications and Presentations
Methods of physics education research were applied to find what kinds of changes in 4th, 6th, and 8th grade student understanding of motion can occur and at what age. Such findings are necessary for the physics community to effectively discharge its role in advising and assisting pre-college physics education. Prior to and after instruction the students were asked to carefully describe several demonstrated accelerated motions. Most pre-instruction descriptions were of the direction of motion only. After instruction, many more of the students gave descriptions of the motion as continuously changing. Student responses to the diagnostic and to the activity materials …
Double-Glazing Interferometry, Vincent Toal, Emilia Mihaylova
Double-Glazing Interferometry, Vincent Toal, Emilia Mihaylova
Articles
This note describes how white light interference fringes can be seen by observing the Moon through a double-glazed window. White light interferometric fringes are normally observed only in a well-aligned interferometer whose optical path difference is less than the coherence length of the light source, which is approximately one micrometer for white light. Obtaining such fringes in a Michelson interferometer is not a trivial task.1 The interferometer is typically illuminated with a monochromatic source and the path length difference adjusted with a wedge angle between the interferometer mirrors so that five or six vertical fringes are visible, indicating nearly equal …