What makes a physics demonstration effective for teaching complex concepts?

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When I was an undergraduate student at the University of Toronto, enrolled in a special course titled, “Mathematics, Physics & Chemistry,” we had some outstanding professors who were also showmen, in the style of Richard Feynman. Every Christmas they would put on a demonstration called “A Christmas Box Lecture.” It was an annual ritual on …

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How did von Neumann’s perfect memory affect his research and teaching methods?

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John von Neumann was born on December 28, 1903, in Budapest, Hungary. John (baptized as János) was readily recognized as a child prodigy, possessing an eidetic memory and at age 6 displayed the ability to divide two eight-digit numbers in his head. His family often entertained guests with demonstrations of his prodigious memory. The guests …

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What are the different categories measured in standard IQ tests?

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The most widely-used IQ tests are the Wechsler, the Stanford-Binet and the Raven’s Progressive Matrices tests. Wechsler (WAIS III and WAIS IV) In 1955, American psychologist David Wechsler published a new intelligence test that became known as the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale (WAIS). He defined intelligence as “the global capacity of a person to act …

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What is the effectiveness of cooperative learning in academic achievement?

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Cooperative learning in schools involves placing students in groups to discuss and work together toward the solution of a particular problem. For example, students in a middle school might be asked to estimate the weight of a large cylindrical shipping container full of golf balls, given the dimensions of the cylinder, and the diameter and …

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Why do scientists prefer mathematical explanations over intuitive ones?

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Our intuition is a wonderful source of ideas for innovations, general judgments and quick assessments. However, what it provides us in fast and frugal modes of thinking, it lacks in precision and scope because it is compiled from our internalized experiences. Consequently, it is often incorrect, especially when dealing with realms like quantum physics where …

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How did society’s attitude toward intellectual and tech-savvy people change between 1960-1990?

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Exactly 64 years ago today, John F. Kennedy was inaugurated at the 35th President of the United States. On May 25 of that year, he promised to land a man on the moon by the end of the decade. The USSR had launched a satellite in 1957 and the US was about to invest a …

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What are examples of scientists using everyday objects to solve complex problems?

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There are many examples of scientists who used everyday objects to solve complex problems. I will share only two in this post but there are many more than most people realize. In 1941, George de Mestral after taking his dog for a walk in the woods, discovered that the dog’s fur was full of burrs. …

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What are the most recent studies measuring IQ of top scientists and intellectuals?

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There are to my knowledge, no recent studies of the IQs of the top scientists or intellectuals, because most scientists have not made public their IQ scores, that may have been taken when they were in school. A relatively small number of IQs of scientists and intellectuals in other areas are available. (For example, Richard …

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What makes the Monty Hall Problem difficult for many people to understand? Is there a psychological reason behind this difficulty?

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In a previous post (The Monty Hall Dilemma: Part 1 – Intelligence and IQ ) I explained, in some detail, the meaning and origin of the Monty Hall Dilemma that had sparked widespread public controversy in 1988, following an answer that Marilyn vos Savant posted in her Ask Marilyn column in The New York Times. …

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Has the level of difficulty in mathematics increased over time? Are we less intelligent than our predecessors?

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Mathematics as a body of knowledge has expanded exponentially since the beginning of the 20th century. Historian of mathematics, E. T. Bell said that Henri Poincaré (1854–1912) was probably the last mathematician who understood all of the fields of mathematics during his time. Since then, mathematics, developed in academia and in industry has exploded in …

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