The Wilson cloud chamber is an apparatus used for detecting and observing the trails of alpha/beta rays or even cosmic rays in saturated gas conditions. The principle of this device is based upon the powerful ionization of the aforementioned rays within the medium. This article will provide instruction for creating a classic version of the cloud…

There are hundreds of satellites in orbit around Earth. Readily available data about them can be a treasure trove for investigations by students at all levels. Orbital parameters and energy changes can be explored. Many of these satellites transmit signals that can be detected by an inexpensive radio receiver--a scanner--designed to receive FM…

Enzyme kinetics and inhibition studies are crucial in biochemistry education and research. Conventional methods often require expensive equipment and reagents, potentially limiting their accessibility in limited resource settings. Our approach sought to develop a cost-effective experimental design for studying enzyme kinetics and inhibition.…

An NMR tube cleaner that is quickly and easily constructed from everyday laboratory equipment is described. This cost-effective option removes the need to purchase a fragile, more expensive model. The small footprint of the device lends itself to being given a permanent place in the laboratory, but it is also simple enough to disassemble and…

In an earlier article I argued that much of what used to be called "modern physics" stems from the intersection of two earlier technologies: high vacuum and high voltage. In this article I will discuss the induction coil, invented in the 1830s, reinvented in the second half of the 19th century, and still used today to produce the high…

A Finderscope is a low-power telescope with a relatively large field of view. It has the same line of sight as the main telescope, helping the main telescope easily find the target. One of the differences between a telescope and a finder is that the finder has crosshairs to aid in accurately pointing at a target. You can see the crosshairs and the…

Space telescopes are some of the most precise and complicated machines ever built. Not only must they survive the harshness of space travel, but they also need to be incredibly accurate: misalignments by fractions of a millimetre can have huge effects on the quality of the images they capture. In 1990, the Hubble Space Telescope became the first…

In this work, we have developed a versatile three-in-one single beam visible colorimeter for undergraduate laboratory courses. The battery and mains electricity supply (utility power), wired and wireless data logging, and 3D-printed components are three important highlights of the developed visible colorimeter. The system is based on a low-cost…

Scientific instruments have long been a vital part of science, paving pathways to remarkable scientific advancements. Such advancements have changed the world both socially and culturally, especially in the past few decades. Students can be introduced to this idea through the concepts of nature of science (NOS): scientific observations are often…

In this article, we present an intriguing experimental exercise that does not fall foul of improper use of instrumentation. The activity is designed as an electronics exercise where the role of the instruments in the measurement of the RC time constant is considered. Essentially, we study the accuracy and precision of a measurement of the RC time…

Experiments serve different purposes in chemistry education ranging from illustrating a certain subject matter to providing data for school-based research projects. When students use these experiments to collect data and draw conclusions, it is important that these experiments are valid. In this study, a new experiment for the determination of the…

The reflection and refraction of light are more familiar to students than the reflection and refraction of sound. Reflection and refraction that occur during the transmission of sound waves are common phenomena in everyday life but are often difficult to understand during actual learning. In this study, we developed a sound reflection and…

Chemical safety is a discipline that cuts across all other chemical disciplines and also impacts other laboratory sciences. It is an essential part of chemistry and continues to evolve with the science it supports. This paper provides a short background about ACS's growing involvement with chemical safety education that stems from support from ACS…

This study sought to use simple, less costly, robust equipment and constructivist pedagogies, that promote and foster learning, to enable an intact class of 81 teacher trainees in a teaching programme to form their own authentic concepts through fun-filled, engaging social interactions. Data were collected by means of two-tier diagnostic…

This work describes the design and testing of a low-cost light-emitting diode (LED)-based nephelometer for turbidity analysis. It also describes the use of this nephelometer for context-based learning (CBL) experiments designed for teaching laboratories. The LED nephelometer is simple, low-cost, and robust, providing similar results as a…