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January 4–7, 2014
Monday afternoon
Session EA: Apparatus Magic
Location: Salon 3
Sponsor: Committee on Apparatus
Date: Monday, January 6
Time: 7:30–8:20 p.m.
Presider: David Sturm
EA01:
7:30-7:40 p.m. Mission to Mars
Contributed – David Venne, 3735 Burr Oak Dr., Racine, WI 53406;
Lego’s Mindstorm robots will be the vehicle used to teach my students
the physics of spaceflight and astronomy. Students will be expected to
build and program Martian rovers that will actually travel on a “Mars
board.” The rovers will be required to visit and test samples at two
sites to determine what the Martian environment is like. Students will
be exposed to a variety of STEM applications while at the same time
having fun!
EA02:
7:40-7:50 p.m. A Quantitative Comparison of Four
Different Lighting Types
Contributed – Stephen A. Minnick, Kent State University, at Tuscarawas,
New Philadelphia, OH 44663;
Most students have little idea of the differences between the four basic
types, incandescent, CFL, LED, and halogen, of household light bulbs
being marketed. In order to drive home these differences and dem-
onstrate the tradeoffs between lighting quality, efficiency, and costs,
a new laboratory experiment has been developed suitable for high
school and undergraduate students in basic science courses. For each
lighting type, various quantities such as input power, light output, and
efficiency are measured and then compared. Light quality from each
bulb is determined by using inexpensive spectroscopes.
EA03:
7:50-8 p.m. A Simple LED Light Source for Multiple
Online Experiments
Contributed – Joseph J. Calabrese, DeVry University, Columbus, OH
43209;
If experiments conducted outside of the physics laboratory are to
become a standard part of online physics courses, the cost to the stu-
dent must be minimized. Additionally any apparatus used by students
without supervision must be easy to use. I will present a relatively
inexpensive, easy to use, LED circuit that can be used for experiments
in physical and geometric optics as well as a measurement of Planck’s
constant. Using one piece of apparatus for multiple experiments can
help control costs. Using the same apparatus multiple times can help
the student gain confidence and reduce the overall learning curve for
the laboratory portion of an online course. Data from experiments
will be shown.
EA04:
8-8:10 p.m. The Magic (Demos) of Paramagnetism
and Diamagnetism
Contributed – James J. Lincoln, PhysicsVideos.net, 5 Federation Way,
Irvine, CA 92603;
This past summer I made a video on Diamagnetic and Paramagnetic
substances. This gave me a chance to research and discover some of
the more familiar materials that have these properties and figure out
creative ways to demonstrate that they are influenced by magnetic
fields; even when the effect is weak. In this talk I will explain what
makes a substance Diamagnetic and/or Paramagnetic and provide
ideas and tips for acquiring and utilizing the most familiar and most
powerful among these substances.
EA05:
8:10-8:20 p.m. Young’s Modulus of Selected
Metallic Wires Using Improvised Apparatus
Contributed – Judelyn L. Patero, Surigao del Sur State University, Canti-
lan, Surigao del Sur Tandag City, Philippines;
.
In the elasticity of matter, the behavior of elastic materials are de-
scribed in terms of elongation, external force applied to elastic materi-
als, stress, strain, and elastic moduli such as Young’s modulus, Shear
modulus, and Bulk modulus. Demonstrations of this elastic modulus,
particularly Young’s modulus in the classroom are usual problem
because acquiring an apparatus for this purpose is expensive. In this
project, Young’s modulus apparatus is fabricated. The improvised
Young’s modulus apparatus is tested using copper, stainless steel, and
galvanized iron wires. The copper wire of diameter 0.42 mm has a
Young’s Modulus of 10.04 x 1010 N/m
2
± 6.783 N/m
2
which is 8.7%
than the known value. On the other hand, the Young’s modulus of GI
wire of diameter 0.555 mm and stainless steel wire of diameter
0.42 mm are 17.92 x 1010 N/m
2
and 18.021 x 1010 N/m
2
, respectively.
The improvised apparatus is functional and can be used for classroom
experiments and demonstration.
Session EB: Partnerships between
Two-Year and Four-Year Schools
Location: Salon 4
Sponsor: Committee on Physics in Two-Year Colleges
Co-Sponsor: Committee on Professional Concerns
Date: Monday, January 6
Time: 7:30–8:20 p.m.
Presider: Tom Herring
EB01:
7:30-8 p.m. Inquiry Lab Modules: Research-like
Labs in a Community College
Invited – Chitra G. Solomonson, Green River Community College,
Auburn, WA 98092-3622;
Christine K. Luscombe, Andrew H. Rice, University of Washington
Keith A. Clay, Green River Community College
Partnerships between two-year and four-year colleges can be a
win-win for both schools. This talk will describe one such partner-
ship between Green River Community College and the University of
Washington. The partnership exists at many levels -- the speaker, a
two-year college instructor, works in a research lab at the University
of Washington during the summer where she learns to fabricate and
characterize organic solar cells. She uses this to create a research-like
lab for her students in the calculus-based physics class at the two-year
college. The talk will detail why the partnership works, the benefits for
both institutions, as well as some of the hurdles that arise in building
and sustaining the partnership. Ideas for similar partnerships will be
discussed.
EB02:
8-8:10 p.m. AACCESS: A Partnership to Recruit
Students to Major in Physics and Chemistry
Contributed – Ramon E. Lopez, University of Texas at Arlington, Depart-
ment of Physics, Arlington, TX 76019;
The Arlington Academy for Community College Exceptional Students
in Science (AACCESS) is a partnership between the University of
Texas at Arlington (UTA) and Tarrant Community College District
(TCCD) that is funded by the National Science Foundation under its
S-STEM program. AACCESS recruits talented students from TCCD
who then transfer to UTA to major in physics or chemistry. AAC-
CESS students receive a $10,000/yr scholarship, the opportunity to
engage in research with UTA faculty, and academic support and men-
toring. In this presentation, we will describe the partnership between
TCCD and UTA, how students are selected and mentored, and how
an AACCESS community of students has been created. The program
is now entering its fifth year, so we have data that allows us to judge
the effectiveness of the program. We will demonstrate that retention
and graduation rates for AACCESS students are much higher than
