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Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons

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Full-Text Articles in Physical Sciences and Mathematics

Chasing Polys: Interdisciplinary Affinity And Its Connection To Physics Identity, Tyler Scott Dec 2014

Chasing Polys: Interdisciplinary Affinity And Its Connection To Physics Identity, Tyler Scott

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This research is based on two motivations that merge by means of the frameworks of interdisciplinary affinity and physics identity. First, a goal of education is to develop interdisciplinary abilities in students' thinking and work. But an often ignored factor is students interests and beliefs about being interdisciplinary. Thus, this work develops and uses a framework called interdisciplinary affinity. It encompasses students interests in making connections across disciplines and their beliefs about their abilities to make those connections. The second motivation of this research is to better understand how to engage more students with physics. Physics identity describes how a …


A Computational Model Of Memetic Evolution: Optimizing Collective Intelligence, Noah Welsh May 2014

A Computational Model Of Memetic Evolution: Optimizing Collective Intelligence, Noah Welsh

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The purpose of this study was to create an adaptive agent based simulation modeling the processes of creative collaboration. This model aided in the development of a new evolutionary based framework through which education scholars, academics, and professionals in all disciplines and industries can work to optimize their collective ability to find creative solutions to complex problems. The basic premise follows that the process of idea exchange, parallels the role sexual reproduction in biological evolution and is essential to society's collective ability to solve complex problems. The study outlined a set of assumptions used to develop a new theory of …


Assessing College Students' Understanding Of Acid Base Chemistry Concepts, Yanjun Wan May 2014

Assessing College Students' Understanding Of Acid Base Chemistry Concepts, Yanjun Wan

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Typically most college curricula include three acid base models: Arrhenius', Bronsted-Lowry's, and Lewis'. Although Lewis' acid base model is generally thought to be the most sophisticated among these three models, and can be further applied in reaction mechanisms, most general chemistry curricula either do not include Lewis' acid base model, or quickly mention it at the end of the acid base chapter, because of the concern that Lewis' model may confuse general chemistry students (Shaffer 2006). While such a disconnection in curriculum might put students to disadvantage as they try to construct solid and coherent acid base mental models, there …