Open Source Physics Research Articles

The Physlet Approach to Simulation Design

Over the past two years, the AAPT/ComPADRE staff and the Open Source Physics group have published the second edition of Physlet Physics and Physlet Quantum Physics, delivered as interactive web pages on AAPT/ComPADRE and as free eBooks available through iTunes and Google Play. These two websites, and their associated books, add over 1000 interactive exercises for the teaching of introductory physics, introductory and intermediate modern physics, and quantum mechanics to AAPT/ComPADRE.

The Ball and Beam System: A Case Study of Virtual and Remote Lab Enhancement With Moodle

Web-based labs are key tools for distance education that help to illustrate scientific phenomena, which require costly or difficult-to-assemble equipment. Easy Java Simulations (EJS) is an authoring tool that speeds up the creation of these kind of labs. An excellent proof of the EJS potential is the open source physics (OSP) repository, which hosts hundreds of free EJS labs. Learning management systems, such as Moodle, provide social contexts where students interact with each other. The work described in this paper looks for the synergy of both tools, EJS and Moodle, by supporting the deployment of EJS labs into Moodle and thus enriching them with social features (e.g., chat, forums, and videoconference). To test this approach, the authors have created the ball and beam lab, which helps students of automatic control engineering to train different advanced techniques (robust, fuzzy, and reset control), and compare their performance in relation to a conventional proportional-integral-derivative control.

ВИКОРИСТАННЯ OPEN SOURCE PHYSICS У LCMS MOODLE

While designing and development of e-learning courses the LCMS MOODLE standard elements are deficient. This may be due to the fact that sometimes it is impossible to conduct demonstration experiments of physical phenomena or processes in the existing conditions of the institution, especially for laboratory work when you want to simulate a particular process without actually having physical devices and equipment. A teacher can use standard components (modules activity) to build the course in LCMS MOODLE. In case the teacher has not enough standard modules for students training activities, including physics, he can add other modules that are not included in the official version of the MOODLE system. EJSApp module can be one of them. With help of EJSApp module the teacher can add Java-applets created with Java simulation in LCMS MOODLE using Library Open Source Physics.

Development of students’ conceptual thinking by means of video analysis and interactive simulations at technical universities

Video analysis, using the program Tracker (Open Source Physics), in the educational process introduces a new creative method of teaching physics and makes natural sciences more interesting for students. This way of exploring the laws of nature can amaze students because this illustrative and interactive educational software inspires them to think creatively, improves their performance and helps them in studying physics. This paper deals with increasing the key competencies in engineering by analysing real-life situation videos – physical problems – by means of video analysis and the modelling tools using the program Tracker and simulations of physical phenomena from The Physics Education Technology (PhET™) Project (VAS method of problem tasks). The statistical testing using the t-test confirmed the significance of the differences in the knowledge of the experimental and control groups, which were the result of interactive method application.

Comparison of Physics Frameworks for WebGL-Based Game Engine

Recently, a new technology called WebGL shows a lot of potentials for developing games. However since this technology is still new, there are still many potentials in the game development area that are not explored yet. This paper tries to uncover the potential of integrating physics frameworks with WebGL technology in a game engine for developing 2D or 3D games. Specifically we integrated three open source physics frameworks: Bullet, Cannon, and JigLib into a WebGL-based game engine. Using experiment, we assessed these frameworks in terms of their correctness or accuracy, performance, completeness and compatibility. The results show that it is possible to integrate open source physics frameworks into a WebGL- based game engine, and Bullet is the best physics framework to be integrated into the WebGL-based game engine.

Commentary: Open-source hardware for research and education

Commentary: Open-source hardware for research and education

OpenFOAM을 이용한 대규모 환경재현 시스템 내에서의 환경변수 제어 시뮬레이션

The feasibility of a unique greenhouse, named as Gradient Biome, is now being examined extensively in the University of Tokyo. It is a large chamber (length:200m, width:50m, height:40m) in which the weather, such as temperature and humidity, of the tropical zone through to that of the frigid zone on the earth is reproduced with continuous gradient. In the Gradient Biome, ecosystems (mainly plants) corresponding to each weather are introduced and the possible responses of this ecosystems to the expected global warming are to be observed. Since one of the expected responses is the shift of the ecosystem(s) toward the region of suitable environment, there should be no artificial obstacles, which can prevent the shift, inside the Biome. This requirement is not so easy to be satisfied since the environment tends to be homogeneous. This paper presents the results of the numerical studies conducted to find the ways of how the temperature and humidity in the Gradient Biome could be reproduced. One of the contributed solvers of OpenFOAM, which is an open source physics simulation code, was modified and used for the numerical simulations.

A Simple Interactive Software Package for Plotting, Animating, and Calculating

We introduce a new open source (free) software package that provides a simple, highly interactive interface for carrying out certain mathematical tasks that are commonly encountered in physics. These tasks include plotting and animating functions, solving systems of coupled algebraic equations, and basic calculus (differentiating and integrating functions of a single variable). This package was created using Easy Java Simulations (Ejs),1 so we will refer to it simply as Ejs-Math. It can be downloaded from the Open Source Physics collection of the comPADRE digital library.2

Using Tracker as a pedagogical tool for understanding projectile motion

This article reports on the use of Tracker as a pedagogical tool in the effective learningand teaching of projectile motion in physics. When a computer model buildinglearning process is supported and driven by video analysis data, this free OpenSource Physics tool can provide opportunities for students to engage in activeenquiry-based learning. We discuss the pedagogical use of Tracker to address somecommon misconceptions concerning projectile motion by allowing students totest their hypothesis by juxtaposing their mental models against the analysis ofreal-life videos. Initial research findings suggest that allowing learners to relateabstract physics concepts to real life through coupling computer modelling withtraditional video analysis could be an innovative and effective way to learn projectilemotion.

Investigating the magnetic interaction with Geomag and Tracker Video Analysis: static equilibrium and anharmonic dynamics

In this paper, we describe how simple experiments realizable by using easily found and low-cost materials allow students to explore quantitatively the magnetic interaction thanks to the help of an Open Source Physics tool, the Tracker Video Analysis software. The static equilibrium of a ‘column’ of permanents magnets is carefully investigated by working on digital photos, while the anharmonic oscillations of a magnetic bar under the action of gravity and of magnetic repulsion are analysed by using a digital video. A detailed comparison between theoretical expectations and experimental results is discussed. We discuss how the magnetic force falls off with the distance between the permanent magnets following an inverse pth power law. Static and dynamic measurements of the force and of the periods for small amplitude harmonic oscillations yield an experimental value for p ≈ 2. The dynamical system is a good example of an anharmonic oscillator. The experiments need simple and inexpensive material to be realized and address a relevant topic in the physics curriculum; thus, they appear appropriate to be used in high school and undergraduate physics courses.

A new 3D visualization Java framework based on physics principles

Computer modeling is a powerful instructional tool which can be used to engage students in the design of physical models to describe, explain, and predict physics phenomena. Because implementing a model is difficult for researchers and teachers as well as for students, professionals almost always use discipline-specific code libraries to access a needed functionality in a platform independent manner. For example, although three-dimensional (3D) visualization is of great importance when displaying computer-generated data or showing complex motion, few users are prepared to deal with hardware accelerated video cards to graphically display a visualization. This paper describes a Java-based 3D framework which is based on physics principles. Our framework is defined using abstract Java interfaces that are implemented in the Open Source Physics (OSP) code library. The library contains a Simple 3D implementation that uses only the standard Java distribution and will run on any Java-enabled computer. This paper introduces a new implementation that makes use of Java 3D to improve both the performance and the appearance of implemented models. Examples are presented using both pure Java code and the Easy Java Simulations authoring tool and these examples are available through the ComPADRE OSP digital library.

Java Applet Technology for Design Interference Optical Coating

Java is a high-level , third generation programming language were introduced Javaoptics Open Source Physics (OSP) as a new simulation for design one of the most important interference optical coating called antireflection coating. It is recent developments in deign thin-film coatings. (OSP) shows multiple beam interferences from a parallel dielectric thin film and the evolution of reflection factors. It is simple to use and efficiently also can serve educational purposes. The obtained results have been compared with needle method

Java Applet Technology for Design Interference Optical Coating

Java is a high-level , third generation programming language were introduced Javaoptics Open Source Physics (OSP) as a new simulation for design one of the most important interference optical coating called antireflection coating. It is recent developments in deign thin-film coatings. (OSP) shows multiple beam interferences from a parallel dielectric thin film and the evolution of reflection factors. It is simple to use and efficiently also can serve educational purposes. The obtained results have been compared with needle method

Utilizing Formative Assessments to Guide Student Learning in an Interactive Physics Learning Environment

In the last decades, many education researchers have been trying to use computerized learning environments to enhance student learning. Without proper instructional supports and guidance, however, students often failed to acquire knowledge from computer-based learning activities. The objective of this study was to demonstrate how research-based formative assessment questions could be used as a framework for providing appropriate scaffolding in a computerized physics learning environment. To achieve this goal, an interactive physics tutor named APT (Assessment-based interactive Physics Tutor) was developed using Java and Open Source Physics. Examples of learning activities in APT were presented in order to highlight how formative assessment questions could be utilized to provide various instructional supports and guidance (e.g., prompting questions, descriptive statements, and computer simulations) tailored to the student's misconceptions. Educational implications of using APT were also discussed.

Innovative Uses of Video Analysis

The value of video analysis in physics education is well established,1,2 and both commercial and free educational video analysis programs are readily available.3 The video format is familiar to students, contains a wealth of spatial and temporal data, and provides a bridge between direct observations and abstract representations of physical phenomena. This has made video analysis attractive for many 2D (and sometimes 3D) motion experiments including projectiles, oscillations, collisions, rotations, and even Brownian motion.4 This paper describes the use of Tracker,5 a free Java video analysis tool developed by the Open Source Physics Project,6 to extend video analysis beyond these traditional applications. Specifically, we discuss the following introductory physics video experiments, all of which are available for download from comPADRE or the BQ Learning database:71). 2D collisions in a center-of-mass reference frame. 2). Modeling the air resistance force on falling cupcake cups. 3). Thermal expansion using single-slit diffraction. 4). Nonthermal emission spectra of lasers, gases, fluorescent dyes, and fluorescent lamps.

The Open Source Physics Collection of Computational Researches for Teaching Physics:

The Open Source Physics Collection of Computational Researches for Teaching Physics:

Open Source Physics Curricular Material for Quantum Mechanics

Much of the difficulty in learning advanced concepts in quantum mechanics comes from trying to visualize abstract problems. This article addresses the situation with interactive curricular material created as part of the open source physics project. In particular, the authors focus on the measurement and time evolution of two-state superpositions in the context of bound states and spin.

An Open-Source XML Framework for Authoring Curricular Material

The Open Source Physics (OSP) project is a synergy of curriculum development, computational physics, computer science, and physics education for scientists and students wishing to author interactive computer-based curricular material. This article illustrates how the OSP project combines physical data and XML tags (data and metadata, respectively) with the Launcher authoring tool to give users an easy-to-use and consistent paradigm for creating, modifying, and distributing Java-based curricular material