NSF Award
9650377
It is the objective of this project to equip two laboratory courses in the Department of Physics with new computers. The Department of Physics and Astronomy has a policy that requires a separate co-requisite laboratory with each Physics or Astronomy course. Most students who enroll in these courses are significantly deficient in scientific, technological, and computer skills. In addition, most nonscience students find the laboratory a burden. Therefore, one must be creative in acquiring the student's interest and maintaining a meaningful educational experience in the lab. With the development of the Internet, it is possible to access scientific and technological databases worldwide, for example, meteorological and astronomical images. With the incorporation of computers and Internet applications into the introductory Physics and Astronomy laboratory, this project can accomplish several objectives. Firstly, students gain valuable exposure to computers. Secondly, students are exposed to the latest science and technology. Thirdly, computer projects properly integrated into a laboratory are a good mechanism to increase the interest of nonscience students. Fourthly, the use of the Internet helps the student realize that meteorology and astronomy are very active and dynamic fields, even at the introductory level. Finally, the current approach to computer simulations in the astronomy laboratory, in which the student is sent to the computer center, can be replaced by in-class instruction where the frustration of dealing with unfamiliar software and hardware can be mitigated. Current estimates are that 225 students (23 percent of the total college enrollment) would use these computers per academic year. The college is expanding the summer session, increasing the usage by an additional 30 to 50 students. The department is also planning to generate a laboratory manual entitled, `Incorporating the Internet in the Introductory Laboratory.` This contains information concerning all aspects of using the Internet in a classroom. It features information on the possible problems one might face, solutions to those problems, and methods of locating remote databases. In addition, the lab manual can include exercises designed to give the student a better understanding of the images of interest (i.e., meteorological, astronomical, etc.).
