Fall 2010 TSAAPT WORKSHOPS

University of Texas – San Antonio – October 22 - 23, 2010

FRIDAY

W1 “New Ideas for Teaching Physics: Centripetal Force”, presented by Trina Cannon, Highland
Park High School, Dallas
Let Centripetal Force lab no longer be an event like Whack-a-Mole with flying stoppers. Try
the Flying Pigs, the Tinkerbells or superman. Use force diagrams and the principals of circular
motion to analyze these flying objects. You can be a winner and take one home for your class.
Limited to 24 participants – 2 hours – Cost: $5.00

W2 “Pre-Lab & Lab Activities in Newtonian Mechanics”, presented by James Mangold, CSEP&S
Key to success of a lab activity is the student’s prerequisite skills. This workshop focuses on
5 pre-lab white board activities with the corresponding lab activities in Newtonian mechanics
utilizing the GMLAD. The activities will cover projectile motion; kinematics, Newton’s 2nd Law,
Determination of Friction and its Coefficient, Conservation of Energy, Determination of the
Spring Constant, and Conservation of Momentum in 2 Dimensions.
Limited to 24 participants – 2 hours – Cost: $2.00

W3 “Telecommunications and Sound”, presented by Regina Barrera, Lee College; Paul Williams,
Austin Community College; and Tom O’Kuma, Lee College
We will build an amplifier that we will apply to sound and wireless communications. We
will make an amplifier that drives a simple speaker. We will also modulate a laser beam, detect
it with a photocell and amplify the detected signal demonstrating wireless communications
across the room. The activities and materials will be provided so that you can demonstrate them
in your classroom or just for your own enjoyment. Activities and materials will be provided.
Limited to 15 participants – 3 hours – Cost $15.00

W4 “Teaching About Magnets and Magnetism”, presented by Evelyn Restivo, Waxahachie Early
College High School, Navarro College and Texas A&M Commerce and Karen Jo Matsler,
PTRA/AAPT
A series of demonstrations and activities about magnets and magnetism developed using
cheap and simple materials that are commonly available and easy to use. The teaching approach
allows students to think on paper while observing and developing patterns to explain the
behavior of magnets. The activities are designed to provide adequate time and opportunity for
students to explore magnetism and address misconceptions.
Limited to 24 participants – 2 hours – Cost $5.00

(Abstracts for the Saturday workshops are on reverse side)

SATURDAY

W5 “Building an Electric Guitar from PVC”, presented by Regina Barrera, Lee College; Paul
Williams, Austin Community College; and Tom O’Kuma, Lee College
A 1-string electric guitar will be built from easily available materials such as PVC pipe,
wood, nuts, a peizo-electric crystal, and steel wire with a little bit of confidence and some
Physics know-how. The guitar can be used to demonstrate acoustic principles such as how
frequency changes with the length of the string. Principles can be checked with measurements
made with a microphone. Activities and materials will be provided.
Limited to 15 participants – 3 hours – Cost $12.00

W6 “Innovative Resources and Merging Ideas In Nuclear Physics”, presented by Evelyn Restivo,
Waxahachie Early College High School, Navarro College, and Texas A&M Commerce and
Karen Jo Matsler, PTRA/AAPT
This workshop will include a series of activities to show the newest experimental research in
nuclear physics using innovative resources and merging ideas from Perimeter Institute, PTRA
and QuarkNet. From the Perimeter Institute an activity that will allow students to model how a
Global Positioning System (GPS) consisting of more than 30 satellites orbiting the Earth at an
altitude of 20 200km sends out signals in the microwave band to receive location information.
From the Physics Teaching Resource Agents Guide activities to help students learn about
radioactivity and nuclear reactions using simulations. The QuarkNet portion will include an
overview of the physics of the LHC and activities that were designed to help students visualize
very small and very large objects using conceptual models.
Limited to 24 participants – 2 hours – Cost $5.00