• Overall description of the book
• Purpose for writing the book
• Selling points
• Outstanding features of the book

 

Overall Description of the Book

 

Wonders of Technology is a conceptual physics text aimed at non-science majors.

 On the background of the technological and cultural heritage, the text develops topics that lead to an understanding of the latest advances in science and technology. Adaptive optics developed in   “Symphony of Light and Sound”, Digital Communications in “Bridges over Space and Time”, and Guided Missiles and Space Probes in “The Ultimate Ride” are a few examples.

 The text ends with glimpses at the frontiers between science and fiction, raising fascinating questions ranging from the feasibility of intergalactic travel, to the secret of teleportation, and the mysteries of the conscious mind.

 

Purpose for writing the book,

The approach I am taking in introducing the physics concepts is by depicting their role in today's technology, specifically the technology familiar to the students.

Why this approach?

There is more or less a consensus that physical principles form the basis for the understanding of the vast majority of natural phenomena. And yet, physics as is taught today is perceived by many students as “user-unfriendly” – they think that physics is hard, abstract, and in fact of little or no relevance to their life.

 The approach I am taking is aimed at alleviating exactly this kind of perception by placing the students on familiar ground that will provide a fertile environment for an easier assimilation of new knowledge.

 The complexity of today’s technology is built on rather straightforward physical principles. Many use this technology every day, but are unaware of how and why the things work. The students who are generally aware of the usefulness of these materials and devices are motivated to seek understanding of the principles underlying their operation by starting the learning process with the products rather than by first developing the quantitative laws that eventually suggest such applications.

By using this approach, students who otherwise have inhibitions regarding the scientific method in describing the physical laws, become more receptive and even develop an interest in knowing these physical principles.

Furthermore, the text exposes the students to a wide range of practical applications in today’s technology, which are not covered in other textbooks.

 Selling Points

If I were to describe the book to someone, I would highlight the following central selling points and beneficial features:

 

• ·         The excitement of understanding the technology available to you, and the scientific concepts that underline their operation;

• ·         Being able to make sense of the technical specifications of the products you buy and use, and be more selective based on that; 

• ·         Feeling you are part of the action because you built and manipulated the technology.

• ·         When reading scientific and technological news, you will be able to make sense of their contents.

• ·         You will remember the concepts behind materials and devices not because you heard about them, not because you read about them, but because you built and manipulated them.

 

Outstanding features of the Book

 

Features - Narrative

 

The features of this text are:

• ·         multidisciplinary approach,

• ·         emphasis on technological and real life applications,

• ·         exercises to enhance critical objective thinking, and

• ·         design flexibility to allow for vertical curricular integration. 

 

The text employs topics that captivate the interest of most students because they have immediate impact upon their lives.  Unit format in this text stresses a project / laboratory / hands-on approach.

The text emphasizes the process of socializing scientific information and teaching students how to obtain additional information for life-long learning.  Students achieve science literacy by studying the processes, concepts, and significant details of modern experimental science and technology.  Students are required to apply the material they learn in class to every-day applications.  Activities and tests encourage development of the mental skills necessary to think scientifically; the ability to understand and respond critically to science articles and programs in the popular media, and give students some understanding of the relationships of science to religion, ethics, politics, economics, and the arts.

Unit Format

  The unit format stresses project/laboratory/hands-on components.

The lecture and the laboratory are integrated in a logical sequence, and the text stresses the following objectives:

(a) Students should learn something meaningful for their lives;

(b) Students should develop a desire to learn more about the phenomena;

(c) Students should reach a conceptual/quantitative understanding of the natural phenomena and their relevance to science, technology and society.

Class size are small (30-40 students) with high student involvement

 

Segment I:  Lecture component. Instructor's presentation, is multimedia and interactive. During this period the instructor introduces the topics from life-related experiences, using films, demos, simulations, etc. 

a.     The topics emphasize the interdisciplinary nature of the phenomena to be examined, the evolutionary nature of the technology, and stress historical, cultural, philosophical relevance.

b.     The lecture is to provide structure, inspiration, demonstrations, is not comprehensive, points out difficulties.

c.     The lecture is delivered in a way that requires solutions to problems and questions raised in this phase. This way a seamless transition to the laboratory part is provided.

d.     Additional information within the same topic (from same discipline or interdisciplinary) are organized as projects the students prepare and present to their classes.  Due to its  interdisciplinary approach, students taking the course have a broader understanding of all science. They learn how to get more information on the subject if job or any other circumstances require this.

Segment II: The laboratory component of the text employs the scientific method, that develops the critical thinking. Within the Scientific Method it is emphasized:

• 1.     the Nature of scientific statements (testability);

• 2.     Objective vs. subjective judgments;

• 3.     Limitations of science;

• 4.     Interdisciplinary nature of science;

• 5.     Science and society

Small groups of students develop projects that have relevance to the problems raised during Segment I.  Depending on the skills of each individual, the students develop projects that allow for vertical integration.

Many experiments are carried out in stages designed in increasing order of complexity, each of which could be considered as an end in itself, depending on the degree of skill of the group performing it.

Cookbook quantitative labs are avoided, conversation is encouraged, and speculation is rewarded.

Segment III: Development of Enrichment Components (Recitation).  At the conclusion of the hands-on project, a general discussion of the topic, its relevance to personal life, technology, and other sciences follows. Back of chapter problems are de-emphasized in order to concentrate on content rich problems (real life experiences).

The discussions focus on the interdisciplinary nature of the phenomena. Interactive-computer programs are used.

Organization of the text

The text is intended to have two versions. One will be for the student, and another for the instructor.

The student version is organized as a text - lab manual. Each chapter contains the narrative, that will be covered during the lecture part of the period, and the second one is dedicated to the laboratories. It is designed so that the students can use it as a workbook. At the end of the semester, they will have a complete record of their entire activity in the workbook that can be used for further reference.

The version for the instructor will have detailed description and results for each experiment, and also the answers for the questions, and suggestions on multimedia, audio-visual materials and demos for the lecture.

 Features vs. Benefits

Features Benefits Background technology and social and cultural ramifications for each chapter. Stimulating material for enhanced curiosity in developing the projects that lead to the understanding of the physical concepts.    Informative reading for the layman who chooses not perform the experimental part. Large number of projects Very useful resource for any laboratory environment Hands-on labs that lead to the understanding of the concepts. The projects are easy to develop and the concepts easy to understand and remember. Easy to understand the technology and correlate to concepts.  Gives the students the confidence that technology is not beyond their understanding. List with materials, equipment and sources for commercially available kits/supplies for each project      Provides the lab instructor with a handy list of materials, equipment, supplies and also possible distributors.   The labs provide for vertical integration Most labs have several parts that usually are in increased order of difficulty, that can be tailored for different audiences, from middle school to high school, to community college, to college. For example, making a telephone with a paper cup, magnet and wire, might be suitable for middle schools, while examining the alternating current and electromagnetic induction with an oscilloscope, require more sophistication. Each lab ends with a class discussion     Very useful feature for clarification of the concepts. It emphasizes the main features developed during the lab. Class discussion eliminates misconceptions. Discussions of the errors involved in the running the project and also of the limitations of the information gathered by the project. Discussion also focuses on possible improvements of the project. The text has additional questions not covered that require further research. The questions encourage the student to perform additional research at the library or on the Internet. This places the student in real life situations in which he/she has to find answers not found art the end of the book. The text has several projects involving field trips They are designed to combine fun and high tech, such as navigation by using a GPS unit, or studying force and energy at an amusement park. Most laboratories are inexpensive to set up Because the labs can be assembled inexpensively, they should be appealing to environments without to many resources. Many projects are competitive Projects such as car races (measuring average speed) or picking up paper clips with a homemade electromagnet (correlation between electricity and magnetism) are very appealing to the students. Most projects require team work Working in groups has shown a positive influence on most students. Homework is organized as projects Measuring the distance to the moon or assembling a telescope are some examples. I noticed that the students not only enjoy doing them, but they become creative attempting to expand on the skill or knowledge. Part of the final exam is designed as an independent study Part of the final exam is designed as a research project that is chosen to the extent possible within the area of the interest of the students’ major. Examples are: for a music major  - the analysis of the harmonics produced by a musical tone, or building a synthesizer. The exercises and worked out examples have a practical side. To a large extent the exercises have a practical component. For example, the concept of power and energy is introduced by examining the electric bill. The lecture and lab are directly linked, and have continuity. The projects and their significance are introduced during the lecture in order to clarify questions raised there. For example, when discussing the evolution of the photography, the project related to it involves understanding how a camera works, that leads in turn to topics in the geometrical optics.

Ancillary AIDS:

 The following ancillary aids are included in the book: 

__y_ Answers or Solutions __y_ Bibliography __y_ Chapter Introductions __y_ Chapter summaries __y_ Charts __y_ Color __y*_ Computer Disks

__y_ Discussion Questions __y_ Experiential Exercises __y_ Glossary __y_ Graphs __y*_ Instructor’s manual __y_ Learning Objectives __y_ Line Drawings

__y_ Name Index __y_ Photographs __y_ Problems __y_ Readings __y_ Study/Test Questions __y_ Subject Index __y_ Vignettes __y_ Visual Aids __*_ Others: Powerpoint presentations for lecture.

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