Physics News from the AIP No 2, Term 1 2005



VicPhysics News: Term 1, No 1 2017

Dear ,

This is a bumper issue to start the year. VCAA has released the new specifications for end of year exam with changes to the style and format. Check out how other teachers did the Practical Investigation in Unit 2 last year. The Physics Teachers Conference is only three weeks away and the VCE lectures for students at Melb Uni start soon, plus loads of new resources

Table of Contents

1. VCAA's 'Advice for Teachers' and new 'Exam Specifications'.

2. Update on Resources from the Unit 3 Course Planning Days

3. Unit 2 Survey by Vicphysics: Practical Investigation

4. Physics Mentor Scheme for 2017

5. Classic Physics Papers: Links to original papers

6. Resources for Flipping Physics

7. Cheap High Speed Video Recording for Analysis in Physics Experiments

8. Vicphysics events in 2017

9. Free online PD on i) Assessment for Learning in STEM Teaching, ii) The Discovery of the Higgs Boson

10. Forthcoming events for Students and the General Public

a) Journeying to the centres of the Planets, 5:30pm, Monday, 6th Feb, Pullman Melbourne in Albert Park.

b) Cosmology: from the Big Bang to the formation of atoms, 6.30pm, Friday 10 February, Swinburne University

c) Physics Lectures for VCE Students: Physics of Motion, 6pm Thursday, 16th February, University of Melbourne

d) Physics Days at Luna Park: Bookings are open

11. Forthcoming events for Teachers

a) Physics Teachers' Conference, Thursday, 16th February, La Trobe University

b) Astronomy from the Ground Up!”, 28th - 30th April, Parkes Observatory

12. Physics News from the Web

a) Tiny device pumps out one electron at a time

b) Decoding the quantum horizon

c) Ultra-low-cost, hand-powered centrifuge is inspired by whirligig toy

The next meeting of the Vicphysics Teachers' Network will be at 5pm on Thursday, 2nd February at Melbourne Girls' College. All teachers are welcome to attend this or any other meeting. If you would like to attend, please contact Vicphysics at vicphys@

Regards,

Frances Sidari, Jane Coyle, Barbara McKinnon and Dan O'Keeffe.

The executive of the VicPhysics Teachers' Network

1. VCAA's 'Advice for Teachers' and new 'Exam Specifications'.

a) 'Advice for teachers'

VCAA released its 'Advice for teachers' late last year. The 107 page booklet can be downloaded from

The table of contents is:

• Developing a program. 1

• Terminology in the study design. 5

• Scientific investigations. 7

• Measurement in science. 12

• Learning activities. 18

• Unit 1: What ideas explain the physical world? 18

• Unit 2: What do experiments reveal about the physical world? 27

• Unit 3: How do fields explain motion and electricity? 48

• Unit 4: How can two contradictory models explain both light and matter? 57

• Sample approach to developing an assessment task from Units 3 & 4. 67

• Performance descriptors. 72

• Appendix 1: Types of scientific inquiry. 79

• Appendix 2: Scientific inquiry methods. 80

• Appendix 3: Controlled experiments and hypothesis formulation. 82

• Appendix 4: Defining variables. 85

• Appendix 5: Scientific poster sections. 86

• Appendix 6: Suggestions for effective scientific poster communication. 88

• Appendix 7: Assessment task types. 89

• Appendix 8: Examples of problem-based learning approaches in physics. 91

• Appendix 9: Sample teaching plan. 93

• Appendix 10: Definition of verbs in VCE Physics Study Design. 101

• Appendix 11: Employability skills 102

b) New exam specifications

A sample exam paper is expected by the end of Term 1. In the mean time the new exam specifications are available at

In summary the duration and reading time are unchanged, but the structure and the total number of marks are significantly different. There will be a Section A of 20 multiple choice questions, each worth one mark for a total of 20 marks, while Section B will be the usual mixture of short answer and extended answer questions worth a total of 110 marks, giving a total of 130 marks for the 150 minute paper. It is presumed that both sections could include questions from any Area of Study in Units 3 & 4.

It is worth noting that this awarding of one mark for multiple choice questions in physics is a significant departure from recent practice. Traditionally, as for the recent questions in the Detailed Studies sections of past exams, each question was worth two marks on the basis of the amount of work and time the student needed to devote to the question, often requiring interpretation, analysis and calculation.

The shift to one mark for this type of question, which has been the case in the Section A of Biology and Chemistry exams for some time, may suggest a major shift in exam design to more basic simple recall type questions, but something of which Physics curriculum in Victoria has little experience.

Alternatively, the style and demand of each question may remain unchanged, but now only worth one mark, which would mean that in the exam, students will get more value from their time spent answering Section B questions than the questions in Section A, and so given the time pressures of the exam, should do Section A last.

The exam is expected to also assess the Unit 4 Area of Study 'Practical Investigation'. This seems to be the implication of the statement in the specifications: 'Examination questions may relate to one or more areas of study and may integrate research methodologies and ethical principles. The weighting of examination questions will reflect approximately the weighting of the outcomes in the study design. '

So, rather than there being separate questions on the principles of experimental investigations, it seems such questions will be embedded in other Areas of Study and relate to that content. The last part also suggests that of the 110 marks for Section B, about 21 marks will assess aspects of the skills associated with practical investigations.

The sample paper is expected to be released sometime towards to end of Term 1 and at that stage we will get a better idea of how to re-design our own assessment tasks and adapt our exam preparation.

2. Resources from the Unit 3 Course Planning Days An Update

The newsletters at the end of last year described the material from the Course Planning Days that is now on our website. One of the sessions on the day considered sample assessment tasks for Unit 3. The feedback from the groups has been used to update the following tasks.

• a report of a physics phenomenon for the Field AoS

• data analysis for the Motion AoS

• an explanation of the operation of a device for each of the Fields AoS and the Electrical energy AoS

• annotation of practical activities for Motion AoS

• solution to a scientific or technological problem

These can be accessed at the course planning webpage, and the webpages for the respective Areas of Study.

3. Unit 2 Survey by Vicphysics: Practical Investigation

At the end of last year, a previous edition of this newsletter included analysis of the survey results on the Options questions. This item is on the questions on how the Practical Investigation was done.

The analysis of the full survey can be accessed at

42 teachers completed the survey.

Topic Selection:

• 28% provided a small set of topics from which the students could choose.

• For 55% of the respondents, the students were able to suggest topics of their own or choose from a list of possible topics.

• For 17% the students had to suggest their own topics.

How many students work individually and how many in pairs?

All students worked individually: 5 teachers

All students worked in pairs: 9 teachers

All students worked individually or in pairs: 17 teachers

All students worked in pairs or in groups of 3: 21 teachers

6 teachers had groups of four or more.

It can be argued that nearly all practical investigation topics really only require one or two students, perhaps the occasional complex topic may require three pairs of eyes and three pairs of hands, but it is hard to imagine a topic in which four students are productively engaged.

What topics did the students investigate?

Most respondents provided an extensive list of their students' topics. The list of over 140 topics can be accessed at the above website. There were many innovative topics in the list e.g.

• Investigating domino fall,

• Friction of a shopping trolley,

• Optimum weight ratio for a trebuchet,

• Does the mass of a marble change the ripples it produces when dropped into a tank of water?.

Most of the topics were on Motion, while a good number were on the Flight and Ball games Options. Five of the other options also got a mention.

Some of the topics related to Unit 1 content on Thermodynamics and Electricity, while a few respondents listed topics that were basic formal experiments, such as Newton's 2nd Law. Both these types of activities are inappropriate as topics for the Unit 2 Area of Study 'Practical Investigations'.

Also few respondents listed only one topic. If it was the case that the whole class did the same topic, then this situation is not in the spirit of practical investigations.

Weeks of Class Time for the Practical Investigation

|Weeks |Percentage |

|2 |29% |

|3 |43% |

|4 |26% |

When was the Practical Investigation done?

About a third did the practical investigation in the second half of Term 3, the rest did it in Term 4.

Use of a Poster for all or part of the assessment for the Practical Investigation

90% used a poster in the assessment with 43% using it as part of the assessment, 38% as the sole assessment component and while 10% did not specify whether the poster was the sole or part contributor to the assessment.

How will you do the Practical Investigation differently next time?

Some won't change anything, while some others will start earlier. Specific changes proposed were:

• assess in stages,

• more emphasis on the students' planning of the task,

• more topic choice for students,

• less similar topics,

• restrict to pairs,

• provide more feedback to students,

• prepare the Year 10's

For what aspects of the Practical Investigation would you like further ideas or resources?

Suggestions included:

• examples of rubrics

• exemplars of posters

• More ideas on possible PI topics, requiring basic equipment

• assessing group involvement

• Uncertainty calculation- there seems to be a few methods out there and I would like to know what approach is expected for the Units 3 & 4 exam.

• Lots of resources online for creating posters

• More ideas on what students can do, with a little bit of explanation of how it can be done (rather than just a one-line idea).

4. Physics Mentor Scheme for 2017

The Physics Mentor Scheme will operate again next year. It is designed for beginning physics teachers and also for teachers teaching at Year 12 for the first time. There will be a Beginning Physics Teachers In-Service on 4th April, but if you would like a mentor from the beginning of the year please contact Vicphysics at vicphys@. The mentors can visit the school once a term to talk over matters and will be available for phone and email conversations.

5. Classic Physics Papers: Links to original papers

The many members of the UK physics teachers' forum, 'talkphysics' contribute a host of useful resources every time someone puts in a request or call for help. A recent call to locate sources of the famous papers of physics generated several sites. These are listed below, with a brief description of the more interesting articles.

i) Classical Scientific Papers - Physics . This is a 400 page volume of facsimile copies of original papers on:

• Radioactivity by Rutherford,

• The structure of the atom by J.J. Thomson, Rutherford, Geiger & Marsden, Moseley and Chadwick on,

• further developments on the PE Effect, particle accelerators and X-ray spectra by Cockcroft & Walton and Compton on, and

• experimental equipment by C.T.R. Wilson and Aston.



ii) A directory of over 60 papers is at . Articles include:

• The 1833 and 1834 papers by Faraday on 'Experimental Researches in Electricity'

• The 1895 paper by Rontgen 'On a new Kind of Rays'

• The 1913 paper by Neils Bohr titled 'On the Constitution of Atoms and Molecules' and his 1921 paper on 'The Electronic Structure of Periodic Table'

• The 1927 paper by de Broglie on the Theory of Quanta

• The three 1901 papers by Planck 'On the law of Distribution of Energy in a normal Spectrum'

• The three papers by Rutherford on the scattering on α and β particles by matter, the structure of the atom and the nuclear constitution of the atom in 1911, 1914, 1920 resp.

• A translation of Schrodinger's 1935 paper 'The present situation in Quantum Mechanics', the cat paradox paper.

iii) Papers on Quantum Physics

Over 100 papers, many in their original language. Significant papers in English include:

Bohr:

• On the Constitution of Atoms and Molecules

• On the Spectrum of Hydrogen

• On the Quantum Theory of Line-Spectra

• Atomic Structure

• The Structure of the Atom and the Physical and Chemical Properties of the Elements

• The Electronic Structure of Periodic Table

• Can quantum-mechanical description of physical reality be considered complete?

Einstein:

• On the Electrodynamics of Moving Bodies

• Does the inertia of a body depend upon its energy-content?,

• Do gravitational fields play an essential part in the structure of the elementary particles of matter?

• Elementary derivation of the equivalence of mass and energy

• Knowledge of past and future in quantum mechanics, with Tolman and Podolsky

• Can quantum-mechanical description of physical reality be considered complete? with Podolsky and Rosen

Rutherford: The articles mentioned above

6. Resources for Flipping Physics

Another talkphysics request was for resources using the 'flipped classroom'. Once again several sources were suggested. These are described below.

i) A Level Physics Online: . An online source of hundreds of video tutorials that are freely available. They are on the topics of Quantities & Units; Vectors & Scalars; Motion; Forces; Newton's Laws; Work, Energy & Power; Electricity; Waves; Quantum Physics and Properties of Materials. There is also a list of tutorial on practical skills. The tutorials are for UK AS level and so relevant to our Years 11 and 12. There are also resources for UK A level, but access to these needs to be paid for.

ii) Isaac Physics , is designed to be used by teachers for their classes. Teachers can set up groups, design assignments and track their students' progress. The theory notes are brief, but the problems are comprehensive with an extensive support structure for students. The material is at a range of levels and is a product of the Department for Education of the University of Cambridge

iii) Veritasium by Dr Derek Muller, , has a wealth of engaging videos.

iv) Playposit, , allows teachers to produce interactive videos with their own questions at key points with either i) their own videos, or ii) Youtube videos. The final video will pause at the key point and ask students to complete a task. The video does not proceed until the task is done. Data on the students' tasks can also be obtained. It is free to join.

v) Resources for Flipping Physics, A website set up by a John Eyre, a UK teacher . It cover a large range of GCSE and A level topics and so is relevant to VCE. Each topic, e.g. PE Effect, has a page of descriptive content along with links to applets and AV material.

7. Cheap High Speed Video Recording for Analysis in Physics Experiments

A chance exploration of an intriguing website called 'Instructables' dug up instructions on how do build a cheap high speed video recorder, up to 125 frames per second, using the Sony Play Station PS3 eye camera, which can be purchased on eBay for under $30. The instructions are clear and straightforward. All you need is the camera, a fast computer with a big hard drive (high speed recording generates huge files), open source video analysis software and drivers downloaded from Code Laboratories ( for free download).

The instructions are at

'Instructables' was originally an off shoot of the MIT Squid Labs. It is a website for people to share their ideas about making things () . 'Technology' is one of the headings and a search on physics generated a fascinating list of exotic ideas such as:

• An electronic timer that uses a simple phototransistor circuit as a photogate to produce an audible beep which could be detected by a CRO app.

• Rubens tube,

• Trebuchet,

• Schlieren photography,

• Seeing alpha particles (almost)

8. Events in 2017

Please enter the following dates in your 2017 diary.

• 14th February Physics Teachers' Conference, La Trobe University

• 7th - 10th March Physics Days at Luna Park

• 3rd April Practical Activities Workshops and Equipment Fair, Camberwell Grammar School

• 4th April Beginning Physics Teachers' In-Service

• August Girls in Physics Breakfasts (dates and venues TBC)

• 13th October Closing Date for entries to:

• Victorian Young Physicists' Tournament

• Physics Photo Contest

• Physics Video Contest

• Practical Investigation Poster Competition

• Australian Acoustics Society Prize for experimental research in acoustics

• 24th October Victorian Young Physicists' Tournament (Date and venue TBC)

The future Vicphysics Newsletters will have details of these events and how to book.

9. Free online PD on i) Assessment for Learning in STEM Teaching, ii) The Discovery of the Higgs Boson

i) Assessment for Learning in STEM Teaching

This free on line course is run by the UK's National STEM Learning Centre based at the University of York. Details:

• runs for seven weeks,

• five hours per week,

• starting date: 6th Feb

• certificates available.

The course is designed for English-speaking teachers of STEM subjects in primary and secondary schools. It’s also relevant to trainee teachers; teacher trainers; those thinking about a career in STEM teaching; and developers of STEM-related course materials.

For more details go to

ii) The Discovery of the Higgs Boson

This free on line course is run by the University of Edinburgh.

Details:

• runs for six weeks,

• three hours per week,

• starting date: 27th Feb

• certificates available.

This free online course introduces the theoretical tools needed to appreciate the discovery, and presents the elementary particles that have been discovered at the tiniest scales ever explored. Beginning with basic concepts in classical mechanics, the story unfolds through relativity and quantum mechanics, describing forces, matter and the unification of theories with an understanding driven by the tools of mathematics.

For more details go to

10. Forthcoming events for Students and General Public

a) Journeying to the centres of the Planets, 5:30pm, Monday, 6th Feb, Pullman Melbourne in Albert Park.

There will be two talks at this combined presentation in the hour from 5:30pm to 6:30pm.

i) 'Journeying to the centres of the Planets' will be presented by Helen Maynard-Casely, Planetary Scientist, Australian Centre for Neutron Scattering, ANSTO

ii) Art and Science Collide: X-ray Fluorescence Elemental Mapping of Nineteenth Century Paintings from The National Gallery of Victoria will be presented by Michael Varcoe-Cocks, Head of Conservation, National Gallery of Victoria

The event is free to attend. The advertising says 'Just turn up!', but a registration website is provided.

Location: Pullman Melbourne Albert Park, 65 Queens Road, Albert Park, VIC 3004

Presenter Organisation: AXAA ( Australian X-Ray Analytical Association)

b) Cosmology: from the Big Bang to the formation of atoms, 6.30pm, Friday 10th February, Swinburne University

Speaker: Prof. Emma Ryan-Weber, Swinburne University, who have an address at the 2016 Physics Teachers' Conference

Abstract: The whole Universe was in a hot dense state, then nearly 14 billion years ago expansion started. Wait... Is the Bang Bang true and how do we know? I will describe the observational evidence for Big Bang Cosmology and how it sets the initial conditions for every atom in the Universe. The talk is especially suitable for year 11 teachers and students studying VCE Physics Unit 1, Area of Study 3 "What is matter and how is it formed".

Time: 6.30pm - 7.30pm

Venue: Swinburne University, Hawthorn Campus, ATC building, ATC101

Map:

Please click on this link for the registration page 

b) Physics Lectures for VCE Students: Physics of Motion, 6pm Thursday, 16th February, University of Melbourne

The now well-established series of “Physics Lectures for VCE Students” are again offered in 2017.

The lectures will be held every three weeks in the Laby Theatre, School of Physics, Melbourne University starting at 6 pm.

The topics will reflect the new study design. Their focus will be on the requirements of the Study design, but will also give students a view of the excitement of Physics as a whole.

The first two lectures in the series are on Thursdays Feb 16 and March 9 at 6 pm in the Laby Theatre at Melbourne Physics.

On Feb 16, Assoc Prof Roger Rassool will begin with the introductory lecture on the Physics of Motion.

On Thursday March 9, Dr. Andrew Melatos will speak on the VCE topic of Thermodynamics. If teachers have not heard Dr Melatos' lecture on thermodynamics, this would be a great chance to do so.

c) Physics Days at Luna Park: Bookings Open

Next year the Physics Days at Luna Park will be on Tuesday, 7th March through to Friday 10th March.

The days will run from 10:00am to 2:00pm, unless an aerobatic display by a member of the RAAF Roulette team is confirmed, in which case the display will be at 10:00am and the Physics Day will run from 10:30am until 2:30pm.

You can book on line at or contact Luna Park by phone on 9525 5033 or by fax on 9534 5764.

The cost will be $25.50 per student with teachers free.

If you wish to book a data logger for a half day, please contact Vicphysics at vicphys@ with subject: Datalogger booking and indicating on which day you will be coming and whether you want Vernier or Pasco.

11. Forthcoming events for Teachers

a) Physics Teachers' Conference, Thursday, 16th February, La Trobe University

The program includes:

• Day and late afternoon sessions. Participants can attend the day and/or the late afternoon sessions,

• Address on 'The why and how of Practical Investigations' by Brian McKittrick, respected physics teacher and author

• Address on 'Uncertain principles: Is the Heisenberg principle really about uncertainty?' by Dr Russell Anderson, Monash University

• Report by Andrew Hansen, the Chief Assessor, on the 2016 November Exam,

• VCAA Update and Unit 4 Poster presentation and Assessment by Maria James, Science Curriculum Manager, VCAA

• Over 50 workshops across four sessions, some on VCE topics, some on general topics across Years 7 - 12 and others specifically for Years 7 - 10

Copies of the Program and the Registration form are available on the STAV website,

b) Astronomy from the Ground Up!”, 28th - 30th April, Parkes Observatory

The “Astronomy from the Ground Up!” astronomy teacher workshop at CSIRO Parkes Observatory, 28 - 30 April 2017. Bookings are now open.

This is your opportunity to develop your knowledge of how to teach astronomy in an exciting and engaging manner. Over three days in the shadow an icon of Australian science, the Parkes radio telescope, you will have the chance to enhance your confidence and skills in the astronomical concepts required to teach junior high school or primary science. No background or training in astronomy is required for participation in this workshop.

To book and for more details: 

Schools can book in for visits to the Visitor Centre at the CSIRO Parkes Observatory. For details: 

12. Physics News from the Web

Items selected from the bulletins of the Institute of Physics (UK) and the American Institute of Physics.

Each item below includes the introductory paragraphs and a web link to the rest of the article.

a) Tiny device pumps out one electron at a time

b) Decoding the quantum horizon

c) Ultra-low-cost, hand-powered centrifuge is inspired by whirligig toy

a) Tiny device pumps out one electron at a time



Physicists should finally be able to rid themselves of the cumbersome and inaccurate definition of the ampere. That is the claim of metrologists in Germany, who have measured electrical current by counting single electrons travelling along a microscopic wire. The researchers say that their technique will allow scientists in a number of different disciplines to make better measurements of tiny currents.

The move to revamp the ampere is part of a more general overhaul of the SI system of units. It is envisaged that all seven base units – the ampere, second, metre, kilogram, kelvin, mole and candela – will be anchored to unvarying constants of nature. In particular, scientists are eager to redefine the kilogram, which is currently based on the mass of a specific lump of platinum-iridium sitting in a Paris safe and slowly shedding atoms.

b) Decoding the quantum horizon



Patrick Hayden and Robert Myers describe how the study of “qubits”, quantum bits of information, may hold the key to uniting quantum theory and general relativity into a unified theory of quantum gravity.

In 1990 the distinguished theoretical physicist John Wheeler coined the phrase “it from bit” to encapsulate a radical new view of the universe that he had been developing over the preceding 20 years:

“It from bit symbolizes the idea that every item of the physical world has at bottom…an immaterial source and explanation; that which we call reality arises in the last analysis from the posing of yes-or-no questions and the registering of equipment-evoked responses; in short, that all things physical are information-theoretic in origin.”

In other words, what Wheeler proposed is that at the most fundamental level, all of physics has a description that can be articulated in terms of information. While Wheeler’s scientific career ran from early work with Niels Bohr on nuclear fission in the 1930s to quantum electrodynamics, general relativity and the foundations of quantum mechanics, this radical idea received little support at the time. However, in hindsight, we can now see that it was truly visionary.

c) Ultra-low-cost, hand-powered centrifuge is inspired by whirligig toy



A human-powered centrifuge made of paper can generate centrifugal forces of 30,000 g and separate blood into its component parts in less than two minutes. Created by a team of biophysicists and bioengineers at Stanford University in the US, the "paperfuge" costs just $0.20 and is inspired by an ancient whirligig toy. The researchers say the device could be used for disease diagnostics in remote locations, where standard centrifuges are impractical.

Centrifuges spin tubes of biological fluids such as blood and urine at extremely high speeds. This is done to separate them into their individual components or concentrate parasites and pathogens, to enable further analysis, and is vital for diagnosing many diseases. "Centrifugation is at the heart of many diagnostics labs, and is used in many sample-preparation techniques in biology," says Manu Prakash, whose lab at Stanford focuses on frugal science.

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