7,221 research outputs found
Blogging in the physics classroom: A research-based approach to shaping students' attitudes towards physics
Even though there has been a tremendous amount of research done in how to
help students learn physics, students are still coming away missing a crucial
piece of the puzzle: why bother with physics? Students learn fundamental laws
and how to calculate, but come out of a general physics course without a deep
understanding of how physics has transformed the world around them. In other
words, they get the "how" but not the "why". Studies have shown that students
leave introductory physics courses almost universally with decreased
expectations and with a more negative attitude. This paper will detail an
experiment to address this problem: a course weblog or "blog" which discusses
real-world applications of physics and engages students in discussion and
thinking outside of class. Specifically, students' attitudes towards the value
of physics and its applicability to the real-world were probed using a
26-question Likert scale survey over the course of four semesters in an
introductory physics course at a comprehensive Jesuit university. We found that
students who did not participate in the blog study generally exhibited a
deterioration in attitude towards physics as seen previously. However, students
who read, commented, and were involved with the blog maintained their initially
positive attitudes towards physics. Student response to the blog was
overwhelmingly positive, with students claiming that the blog made the things
we studied in the classroom come alive for them and seem much more relevant.Comment: 20 pages, 6 figure
What can we say about seed fields for galactic dynamos?
We demonstrate that a quasi-uniform cosmological seed field is a much less
suitable seed for a galactic dynamo than has often been believed. The age of
the Universe is insufficient for a conventional galactic dynamo to generate a
contemporary galactic magnetic field starting from such a seed, accepting
conventional estimates for physical quantities. We discuss modifications to the
scenario for the evolution of galactic magnetic fields implied by this result.
We also consider briefly the implications of a dynamo number that is
significantly larger than that given by conventional estimates
Magnetic fields near the peripheries of galactic discs
Magnetic fields are observed beyond the peripheries of optically detected
galactic discs, while numerical models of their origin and the typical
magnitudes are still absent. Previously, studies of galactic dynamo have
avoided considering the peripheries of galactic discs because of the very
limited (though gradually growing) knowledge about the local properties of the
interstellar medium. Here we investigate the possibility that magnetic fields
can be generated in the outskirts of discs, taking the Milky Way as an example.
We consider a simple evolving galactic dynamo model in the "no-z" formulation,
applicable to peripheral regions of galaxies, for various assumptions about the
radial and vertical profiles of the ionized gas disc. The magnetic field may
grow as galaxies evolve, even in the more remote parts of the galactic disc,
out to radii of 15 to 30 kpc, becoming substantial after times of about 10 Gyr.
This result depends weakly on the adopted distributions of the half thickness
and surface density of the ionized gas component. The model is robust to
changes in the amplitude of the initial field and the position of its maximum
strength. The magnetic field in the remote parts of the galactic disc could be
generated in situ from a seed field by local dynamo action. Another possibility
is field production in the central regions of a galaxy, followed by transport
to the disc's periphery by the joint action of the dynamo and turbulent
diffusivity. Our results demonstrate the possibilities for the appearance and
strengthening of magnetic fields at the peripheries of disc galaxies and
emphasize the need for observational tests with new and anticipated radio
telescopes (LOFAR, MWA, and SKA).Comment: 8 pages, 5 figure
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