Can String Theory Be An Educational Force Multiplier?

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    Can String Theory Be An Educational Force Multiplier? - Presentation Transcript

    1.  
    2. Robert Karplus Lecture
      • Can String Theory Be An
      • Educational Force Multiplier?
      • Sylvester J. Gates, Jr.
      • John S. Toll Professor of Physics and
      • Center for String and Particle Theory Director
      • University of Maryland
      • Physics Department
      • Rm. 4121
      • College Park, MD 20742-4111
    3. Overview of Talk
      • Being Informed By The Public Of A
      • Science Educational Possibility
    4. Overview of Talk
      • Being Informed By The Public Of A
      • Science Educational Possibility
      • From Conceptualization to Implementation
    5. Overview of Talk
      • Being Informed By The Public Of A
      • Science Educational Possibility
      • From Conceptualization to Implementation
      • Tools For Implementation
    6. Overview of Talk
      • Being Informed By The Public Of A
      • Science Educational Possibility
      • From Conceptualization to Implementation
      • Tools For Implementation
      • Interim Report
    7. Being Informed By The Public Of A Science Educational Possibility
      • String Theory Has Made A Breakthrough In the Public
      • Consciousness
      • * A search on “string theory” at www.google.com
      • reveals 1,080,000 webpages.
      • String Theory Has Made A Breakthrough In the Public
      • Consciousness
      • * A search on “string theory” at www.google.com
      • reveals 1,080,000 webpages.
      • * “The Elegant Universe,” a book by Brian Greene, was an
      • international best-seller and paved the way for numbers
      • of other such books.
      • String Theory Has Made A Breakthrough In the Public
      • Consciousness
      • * A search on “string theory” at www.google.com
      • reveals 1,080,000 webpages.
      • * “The Elegant Universe,” a book by Brian Greene, was an
      • international best-seller and paved the way for numbers
      • of other such books.
      • * “The Elegant Universe,” a NOVA/PBS television documentary,
      • repeated this success for video presentations.
      • * Hundreds of popular-level presentations on this topic
      • have been given at lectures, symposia, etc. at universities,
      • laboratories, colleges, libraries & museums.
      • * Hundreds of popular-level presentations on this topic
      • have been given at lectures, symposia, etc. at universities,
      • laboratories, colleges, libraries & museums.
      • * This is an international phenomenon with books and other
      • materials being translated into other languages (‘06 visit to
      • Mali revealed TEU was broadcast with sub-titles in France).
      • * Hundreds of popular-level presentations on this topic
      • have been given at lectures, symposia, etc. at universities,
      • laboratories, colleges, libraries & museums.
      • * This is an international phenomenon with books and other
      • materials being translated into other languages (‘06 visit to
      • Mali revealed TEU was broadcast with sub-titles in France).
      • * The current speaker has given approximately 150 such
      • presentation since 1988 (March 2007 presented two
      • popular level presentations in India and participated in the
      • video-taping for an Indian t.v. science documentary).
      • * ‘Superstring Theory: The DNA of Reality,’ (a 12 hour, 24 DvD
      • collection of lectures on string theory at the popular level)
      • generated approximately half a million dollars in sales within
      • six months of its release.
      • This Raises Questions:
      • “ Can This Remarkable Amount Of Public Interest In String Theory
      • Be Made To Serve An Educational Goal?”
      • “ If The Answer Is Affirmative Then How Is This To Occur?”
      • For several years, considerations and deliberations on this have
      • occurred for the speaker. A model course was envisioned to test
      • this as a project in curriculum development.
    8. From Conceptualization to Implementation
      • PHY 144: Prototyping The Concept
      • During the spring term of 2007 at Gustavus Adolphus College,
      • SJG is the resident Rydell Visiting Professor working together
      • with Prof. Steven Mellema, a class designated as PHY 144 is
      • currently underway. A primary goal is to develop an innovative
      • new approach to the teaching a general science course for non-
      • STEM (science, technology, engineering mathematics) students.
      • The class meets typically four days a week.
      • Course Webpage :
      • http://physics.gac.edu/~mellema/phy144syl.pdf
      • Let’s view the webpage briefly via a ‘pdf-enabled
      • peek.’
      • Five Course Intellectual Foci
      • * CULTURE & SCIENCE
      • Five Course Intellectual Foci
      • * CULTURE & SCIENCE
      • * HISTORY & SCIENCE
      • Five Course Intellectual Foci
      • * CULTURE & SCIENCE
      • * HISTORY & SCIENCE
      • * PHILOSOPHY OF SCIENCE
      • Five Course Intellectual Foci
      • * CULTURE & SCIENCE
      • * HISTORY & SCIENCE
      • * PHILOSOPHY OF SCIENCE
      • * RELIGION & SCIENCE
      • Five Course Intellectual Foci
      • * CULTURE & SCIENCE
      • * HISTORY & SCIENCE
      • * PHILOSOPHY OF SCIENCE
      • * RELIGION & SCIENCE
      • * SCIENCE
      • Five Course Intellectual Foci (Examples)
      • CULTURE & SCIENCE
      • The Two Cultures: An Essay by C. P. Snow
      • HISTORY & SCIENCE
      • Leucippus, Democritus & the Atom
      • Aristarchus, Eratosthenes, the Size & Shape of the Earth
      • J.G. Stoney & The Electron
      • Five Course Intellectual Foci (Examples)
      • PHILOSOPHY OF SCIENCE
      • The Unreasonable Effectiveness of Mathematiics in
      • the Natural Sciences: An Essay by E. Wigner
      • Karl R. Popper & Science as Falsification
      • Thomas Kuhn & Structure of Scientific Revolutions
      • Five Course Intellectual Foci (Examples)
      • RELIGION & SCIENCE
      • Giordano Bruno & Galileo
      • James Clerk Maxwell and the Christian Proposition
      • Einstein’s View of Creation
      • Father Georges-Henri Lemaître: A Jesuit Cosmologist
      • Five Course Intellectual Foci (Examples)
      • SCIENCE
      • Illustrative `tour’ of the major strands of physics:
      • Theory of Newtonian Physics
      • Theory of Thermodynamics
      • Theory of Electromagnetism
      • Quantum Theory
      • Relativity Theory
      • Theories of Particle Physics & Cosmology
    9. Tools For Implementation
      • Toward A Hypertext
    10.  
    11. Particle Astrophysics
      • Video Driver
      A collection of 24 half-hour lectures on DvD’s
    12.  
      • Toward A Hypertext
      • A viewing of a vignette can be useful to see how
      • the video presentations are utilized.
      • Primary philosophical foundations for the TTC/
      • DvD lecture series include:
      • (a.) A high level of mathematical sophistication is
      • possible to maintain at the conceptual level if
      • computer graphical imagery (CGI) is used in-
      • stead of mathematical formulae.
      • (b.) To the maximum degree possible, the actual
      • educational content of the presentation should
      • be born by CGI technology.
      • (b.) To the maximum degree possible, the actual
      • educational content of the presentation should
      • be born by CGI technology.
      • (c.) To the maximum degree possible, contextual
      • references of the science should be woven in
      • all discussions.
      • Additional Tools
      • * Quicktime movies used in class.
      • Additional Tools
      • * Quicktime movies used in class.
      • * Real & virtual laboratory exercises using
      • a ‘constructivist philosophy’ for student
      • engagement via small groups (~similar
      • to studio-style) occur.
      • Additional Tools
      • * Quicktime movies used in class.
      • * Real & virtual laboratory exercises using
      • a ‘constructivist philosophy’ for student
      • engagement via small groups (~similar
      • to studio-style) occur.
      • * The World Wide Web is a valuable in &
      • out of class resource.
      • Additional Tools
      • * Essays & homework include a minimal, but
      • some, mathematical computation (algebra,
      • geometry, trigonometry).
      • Additional Tools
      • * Essays & homework include a minimal, but
      • some, mathematical computation (algebra,
      • geometry, trigonometry).
      • * Mathematical concepts of an extremely so-
      • phisticated nature are treated via the CGI
      • (computer graphics illustration) approach
      • followed in the TTC/DvD’s.
    13. Interim Report
      • Interim Report
      • * The division of (non-STEM/STEM) students taking the class is approximately (40%/60%) with an initial total
      • of 25 students.
      • Interim Report
      • * The division of (non-STEM/STEM) students taking the class is approximately (40%/60%) with an initial total
      • of 25 students.
      • * By mid-term only one (non-STEM) student had ‘dropped’ the course.
      • Interim Report
      • * The division of (non-STEM/STEM) students taking the class is approximately (40%/60%) with an initial total
      • of 25 students.
      • * By mid-term only one (non-STEM) student had ‘dropped’ the course.
      • * Informal surveys reveal a high degree of satisfac-
      • tion by students.
      • Interim Report
      • * The initial percentages of female (male)
      • students taking the class was 32% (68%).
      • Interim Report
      • * The initial percentages of female (male)
      • students taking the class was 32% (68%).
      • * The current percentages of female (male)
      • students taking the class was 29% (71%).
      • Interim Report
      • * The initial percentages of female (male)
      • students taking the class was 32% (68%).
      • * The current percentages of female (male)
      • students taking the class was 29% (71%).
      • * Currently no minority students are taking the
      • class.
      • Interim Report
      • * The course is apparently serving distinct purposes for its two populations:
      • (a.) non-STEM students learn they
      • can ‘get it,’ contrary to their own
      • expectations.
      • Interim Report
      • (b.) STEM students are being forced to
      • confront issues outside of science that
      • are important (history, philosophy,
      • communication skills, fostering serious
      • science related discussion, faith-based
      • beliefs, and scientists responsibility to
      • society).
      • Interim Report
      • (c.) The unforeseen level of popularity of this
      • course with STEM students has had the
      • benefit that a high degree of peer-to-peer
      • mentoring (p2pM) occurs.
      • Contact Information:
      • Prof. Sylvester J. Gates, Jr.
      • John S. Toll Professor of Physics and
      • Center for String and Particle Theory Director
      • University of Maryland Tel: 301-405-6025
      • Physics Department Fax: 301-314-9525
      • Rm. 4121 E-mail: gatess@wam.umd.edu
      • College Park, MD 20742-4111
      • http://www.physics.umd.edu/ep/gates/gates.html
      • http://nsbp.org/cgi-bin/nsbp.cgi?page=jgates
      • Contact Information:
      • Prof. Steven Mellema
      • Professor of Physics
      • Gustavus Adolphus College Tel: 507-933-7306
      • Physics Department Fax: 507-933-6104
      • Rm. 210 E-mail: mellema@gustavus.edu
      • St. Peter, MN 56082
      • http://physics.gac.edu/ep/~mellema/
    14.  

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