Research papers

Interactive-engagement versus traditional methods: A six-thousand-student survey of mechanics test data for introductory physics courses

Richard R. Hake

A survey of pre/post-test data using the Halloun–Hestenes Mechanics Diagnostic test or more recent Force Concept Inventory is reported for 62 introductory physics courses enrolling a total number of students N=6542. A consistent analysis over diverse student populations in high schools, colleges, and universities is obtained if a rough measure of the average effectiveness of a course in promoting conceptual understanding is taken to be the average normalized gain 〈g〉. The latter is defined as the ratio of the actual average gain (%〈post〉−%〈pre〉) to the maximum possible average gain (100−%〈pre〉). Fourteen “traditional” (T) courses (N=2084) which made little or no use of interactive-engagement (IE) methods achieved an average gain 〈g〉T-ave=0.23±0.04 (std dev). In sharp contrast, 48 courses (N=4458) which made substantial use of IE methods achieved an average gain 〈g〉IE-ave=0.48±0.14 (std dev), almost two standard deviations of 〈g〉IE-ave above that of the traditional courses. Results for 30 (N=3259) of the above 62 courses on the problem-solving Mechanics Baseline test of Hestenes–Wells imply that IE strategies enhance problem-solving ability. The conceptual and problem-solving test results strongly suggest that the classroom use of IE methods can increase mechanics-course effectiveness well beyond that obtained in traditional practice.

Handbook of Mathematical Functions

Donald A. McQuarrie

Equations of Mathematical Physics

А. Н. Тихонов, A. A. Samarskiĭ, Peter B. Kahn

Mathematical physics plays an important role in the study of many physical processes - hydrodynamics, elasticity, and electrodynamics, to name just a few. Because of the enormous range and variety of problems dealt with by mathematical physics, this thorough advanced-undergraduate or graduate-level text considers only those problems leading to partial differential equations. The authors - two well-known Russian mathematicians - have focused on typical physical processes and the principal types of equations deailing with them. Special attention is paid throughout to mathematical formulation, ri

American Institute of Physics Handbook

Irving E. Dayton

Physics of Fully Ionized Gases

Lyman Spitzer, Raymond J. Seeger

This classic graduate-level volume was the first general but simple introduction to the fields of plasma and fusion research. Since its original publication in 1956, it has served as a valuable reference. Designed for those who have had an introductory course in theoretical physics but are otherwise unacquainted with the detailed kinetic theory of gases, it chiefly emphasizes macroscopic equations and their consequences.The contents are restricted to topics offering a theoretical understanding of plasma and fusion research.

Lectures in Theoretical Physics

Wesley E. Brittin, B. W. Downs, Joanne Downs, Raymond J. Seeger

Introduction to Solid State Physics

C. Kittel, Heng Fan

Methods of Theoretical Physics

Philip Μ. Morse, Herman Feshbach, E. L. Hill

Introduction to Solid State Physics

C. Kittel, D. L. Dexter