Physics Investigations
_Hands-on investigations
Every chapter of Essential Physics is supported by at least two hands-on investigations. |
_Investigating nature with LabVIEW
Teacher's Edition for both Student Book and Laboratory Investigations Manual. |
_Interactive simulations
Teacher's Edition for both Student Book and Laboratory Investigations Manual. |
_Real-world applications with design projects
As part of the engineering and technology applications included in Essential Physics, throughout the curriculum students engage in design projects. The goal is for students to apply physics to create a solution to a real-world design problem. At least one optional design project is included in each chapter. Student teams identify real physics constraints, construct prototypes to make observations and measurements, and then use physics to refine their design. The design problems become progressively more challenging throughout the year. An example is a project to design a speaker using a coil of wire, magnet, and cardboard disk. The LabVIEW software and compatible instrumentation allows students to excite the speaker with different frequencies and then use a commercial microphone to measure the response. Students modify design parameters--such as mass, diaphragm size, and magnet location--in order to improve the performance. |