We talked with Jeff about his team’s experiment on what NASA doesn’t want us to refer to as the “Vomit Comet.” He showed videos and data of the experiment they did, which involved investigating the orbits of objects coupled with a spring.
There will be no GPD this week (11/21/12), but we’re still looking for coaching volunteers for the following week.
We spoke with Aaron Titus about how he’s used project-based learning in his school’s physics major program. He shared details for lots of projects and we all discussed logistical, creative, and timing issues with this kind of learning.
This week we’re talking with Jeff Regester about ”Hooke’s Law Orbital Motion: An Experiment Flown on NASA’s “Weightless Wonder” Aircraft.”
Our speaker this Wednesday will be Professor Aaron Titus, from High Point University in North Carolina.
Here is an abstract for his talk:
Physics on steroids — how to give your physics class a shot in the arm
I like to define undergraduate research as asking interesting questions and finding answers to those questions. The kinds of topics that many GPD members have described in their blogs are great examples. Video analysis is one of the most economical and flexible experimental techniques to enable students to do undergraduate research, starting with introductory physics. Students’ projects will be demonstrated, with an emphasis on the benefit of undergraduate research in introductory physics in high school and in the first two years of college.
