Quadcopters (also known as "drones") do not fly in vacuum. This is obvious enough that experimenting on one in a vacuum chamber would seem rather uninteresting, but there is one question that may be usefully addressed by such an experiment: the mechanism for yaw control. Quadcopters control yaw (rotation about the vertical axis) by…

To learn with data, students need "data" to explore. This can be deceptive--data-rich experiences typically involve much more than a straightforward science lab. Solving real problems with data means identifying authentic questions that are meaningful to students and provide a foundation for deep inquiry. Such situations often lend…

In our science for non-science majors course "21st Century Physics," we investigate modern "Hubble plots" (plots of velocity versus distance for deep space objects) in order to discuss the Big Bang, dark matter, and dark energy. There are two potential challenges that our students face when encountering these topics for the…

Working with evidence is a fundamental part of scientific enquiry. Children should be taught to consider evidence and evaluate it. They should make simple comparisons, comparing what happened with what they expected to happen, and try to explain what happened through drawing on their knowledge and understanding. In this article, the author…

Explores strategies in the situation of a runner trying to evade a tackler on a football field. Enables the student to test intuitive strategies in a familiar situation using simple graphical and numerical methods or direct experimentation. (JRH)

Describes two spreadsheets for producing acid-base titration curves, one uses relatively simple cell formulae that can be written into the spreadsheet by inexperienced students and the second uses more complex formulae that are best written by the teacher. (JRH)

Presents the "Before Technology and After Technology" lab where students first complete a simple lab and graph the data by hand and then repeat the lab using graphing calculators. Enables students to see how technology can make data collecting, graphing, and analyzing more fun. (JRH)

Describes three computer programs which operate on Apple II+ microcomputers: (1) a menu-driven graph drawing program; (2) a simulation of the Millikan oil drop experiment; and (3) a program used to study the half-life of silver. (Instructions for obtaining the programs from the author are included.) (JN)

Presents a cooperative activity between home and school in which parents and students examine the growth of a variety of bulbs. Bulbs are taken home to sprout and returned to school to monitor their growth. Students gather data, hone observation and graphing skills, and communicate with their parents on the project. (MDH)

This publication provides information and activities for teaching about vegetables and process skills including observing, classifying, collecting and interpreting data, inferring, measuring, and predicting. There are 12 lessons. Lessons 1 through 5 pertain to growing, rinsing, and observing sprouts. Lessons 6 and 8 through 11 deal with tasting…

Describes a two-week lesson on electric fields that combined lecture, interactive video, lab experimentation, computer spread sheets, and computer-assisted-graphing. (PR)

Provides an example of the integration of science and mathematics learning of one high school physics student in a constructivist classroom. Discusses the student's integration of mathematical and nonmathematical representations and of different mathematical representations in a nonuniform acceleration experiment. Describes a model for integrating…