In this brief article, the authors discuss Georg von Békésy's experiments showing the existence of traveling waves in the basilar membrane and that maximal displacement of the traveling wave was determined by the frequency of the sound. The place theory of hearing equates the basilar membrane to a frequency analyzer. The model described in this…

With real particle collision data available on the web, the amazing dynamics of the fundamental particles of the standard model can be explored in classrooms. Complementing the events from the ATLAS experiment with animations of the fundamental processes on the quark and gluon level makes it possible to better understand the invisible world of…

Acquiring complex conceptual knowledge requires learners to self-regulate their learning by planning, monitoring, and adjusting the process but they find it difficult to do so. In one experiment, we examined whether learners need broad systems of support for self-regulation or whether they are also able to learn with more economical support…

There are important research issues surrounding the best methods for evaluating creativity of animation. This study proposed an approach to evaluate the creativity of short animation by adopting Linkography. This article reported the results of two experiments performed to test this approach. In study 1, participants identified as impressive a set…

The illusion of understanding hypothesis asserts that, when people are learning with multimedia presentations, the addition of animation can affect metacognitive monitoring such that they perceive the presentation to be easier to understand and develop more optimistic metacomprehension. As a result, learners invest less cognitive effort when…

This study investigated the influence of cognitive support for learning computer-based tasks using animated demonstration (AD) on instructional efficiency. Cognitive support included (1) segmentation and learner control introducing interactive devices that allow content sequencing through a navigational menu, and content pacing through stop and…

Previous cognitive models of memory have not comprehensively taken into account the internal cognitive load of chunking isolated information and have emphasized the external cognitive load of visual presentation only. Under the Virk Long Term Working Memory Multimedia Model of cognitive load, drawing from the Cowan model, students presented with…

The study examined the effects of video-based multimedia instruction on secondary school students' achievement and retention in biology. In Nigeria, 120 students (60 boys and 60 girls) were randomly selected from four secondary schools assigned either into one of three experimental groups: Animation + Narration; Animation + On-screen Text;…

A highly familiar type of movement occurs whenever a person walks towards you. In the present study, we investigated whether this type of motion has an effect on face processing. We took a range of different 3D head models and placed them on a single, identical 3D body model. The resulting figures were animated to approach the observer. In a first…

Undergraduate biology education provides students with a number of learning challenges. Subject areas that are particularly difficult to understand include protein conformational change and stability, diffusion and random molecular motion, and molecular crowding. In this study, we examined the relative effectiveness of three-dimensional…

Animated models use animations and explanations to teach how a problem is solved and why particular problem-solving methods are chosen. Often spoken explanations are proposed to accompany animations in order to prevent overloading the visual channel (i.e., the modality effect). In this study we adopt the hypothesis that the inferior performance of…

This paper presents a game of industrialisation, based on a paper airplane, that mimics real world production ramp-up and blends classical engineering courses together. It is based on a low cost product so that it can be mass produced. The game targets graduate students and practitioners in engineering fields. For students, it offers an experiment…

Two experiments used eye tracking to investigate a novel cueing approach for directing learner attention to low salience, high relevance aspects of a complex animation. In the first experiment, comprehension of a piano mechanism animation containing spreading-colour cues was compared with comprehension obtained with arrow cues or no cues. Eye…

Animated pedagogical agents with characteristics such as facial expressions, gestures, and human emotions, under an interactive user interface are attractive to students and have high potential to promote students' learning. This study proposes a convenient method to add an embodied empathic avatar into a computer-aided learning program; learners…

In two experiments, we investigated how learners comprehend the functioning of a three-pulley system from a presentation on a computer screen. In the first experiment (N = 62) we tested the effect of static vs. animated presentations on comprehension. In the second experiment (N = 45), we tested the effect of user-control of an animated…