Transcript Superconductivity and School Physics

The
SUPERCOMET
Project
– developing new educational material
for upper secondary physics
Vegard Engstrøm, M.Sc.
Lars Meisingseth
Sara Ciapparelli
[email protected]
Simplicatus AS
ITC ’Enrico Tosi’
SUPERCOMET
project
• SUPERCOnductivity Multimedia Educational Tool
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Computer application + teacher guide/seminar
From December 2001 to June/December 2004
€ 650 000 budget, 75% support from EU LdV
3 universities (Trondheim, London, Ljubljana)
2 upper secondary schools (Trondh., Busto A.)
1 scientific publishing house (Zanichelli Ed.)
1 science communication company
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SUPERCOMET
II
• Follow-up project 2004-2007
• Dissemination, further development
• Partners in 15-20 countries
– Teacher education institutions (develop and
adapt teacher seminar + teacher guide)
– Secondary schools (develop application
contents, classroom testing, seminar testing)
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SUPERCOMET products
• Computer application
– CD-ROM or download, SCORM compatible modules
– Produced by Simplicatus AS
• Teacher guide
– Booklet with 30-40 pages per language
– Published by Zanichelli Editore, Spa
• Teacher seminar
– 8 hours in-service training
– Developed and tested by University of Ljubljana
• 4 languages (English, Italian, Norwegian, Slovene)
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Physics curricula
• Superconductivity not mentioned at all
• Understanding superconductivity
requires concepts from many topics:
– Energy conversion, heat and temperature
– Particle model of matter, solid state physics
– Electricity
– Magnetism
– Mechanics
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Computer application
• Modules with selected curriculum topics
• Superconductivity - history and applications
• Interactive animations enhance understanding
• Virtual Laboratories let pupils experiment
• Scenarios let pupils take on different roles
• Electronic version of teacher guide
• Search engine, quizzes, glossary, FAQ, tip box
• Links to web resources and literature references
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Teacher guide
• Technical information for the CD-ROM
• Connection with national curricula
• Motivation for choosing superconductivity
• Pedagogical aspects of using ICT
• Overview of physics/superconductivity modules
• Overview of virtual laboratories and scenarios
• Sample lessons
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Teacher seminar
• Get acquainted with computer
application
• Introduction to and motivation for
choosing superconductivity
• Pedagogical aspects and motivation for
using ICT in physics teaching
• Demonstrations, a sample lesson
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1933: Meissner effect
Superconductors have two remarkable attributes.
One is the ability to conduct electric current with
zero resistance. This was discovered by H. K. Onnes
in 1911. The other ability has to do with magnetic
fields, and was discovered in 1933 by Walter
Meissner and Robert Ochsenfeld in Germany. When
a material becomes superconducting, it ejects any
magnetic field lines that would normally go straight
through it. We say that it has zero magnetic
permeability.
Ferromagnetic materials, like iron, have very high
magnetic permeability. Magnetic field lines can be
packed closely in iron in order to make it a powerful
magnet. The Meissner effect is exactly the opposite
of ferromagnetism – a superconductor with no
magnetic field is practically “anti-magnetic” – it will
be repelled by a magnet no matter what pole that
faces the superconductor, unlike any other material.
Hence a superconductor exhibits perfect
diamagnetism.
Year
1900
1920
1933 1940
1960
1980
2000
T(K)
273
160
HgBaCaCuO
1993 & 1994
140
120
TlBaCaCuO
1988
100
= under pressure
Y BCO
(LBCO)
1987
80
HTS
60
40
20
1900
Nb NbN
Hg Pb
1911
1920
19?? 19??
1940
Nb3Ge
19??
Nb3Sn
19??
1960
LaBaCuo
1986
1980
2000
Year
1
Scenario Overview: Energy Crisis
Scenario description
Choose goals
Research
Documentation
Discussion/Presentation
Choose your role
Please read about all the different
phases of the scenario work
before you start doing the
research.
The journalist
The journalist communicates information
and news through media like the radio,
television, newspapers or the Internet. The
work involves getting information from
people from all layers of society, as well as
seeking out events to describe them.
Written sources are used to collect
background material and information. The
journalist analyses the information at hand
and highlights the aspects of a case the
recipients find interesting.
Today, mass media play an important part
in society. The value of information has
increased drastically in the last decades.
The way a journalist chooses to describe a
case can have a huge impact on peoples’
opinion.
Computer application
 Interactive (learning by doing)
 Animated (better understanding of concepts)
 Differentiated (designed for different cultures)
 Relevant (to syllabus/curriculum topics)
 Motivating (physics has developed)
 Meaningful (everyone should learn something)
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Learning aims
• Theory
• Uses
is related to evidence
of physics phenomena
• Technological
implications of discovery
• Communicate scientific ideas
• Relationship between physics and everyday life
• Connections between fields of physics
• The process of gaining new scientific data
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Physics curricula
• School curricula focus on ”ancient physics”
– Newton, Kepler, Bernoulli, Einstein, Planck
• Little connection between different topics:
– e.g. mechanics and electricity
– e.g. thermophysics and mechanics
• SUPERCOMET explores the connections
– between subject areas themselves
– between subject areas and superconductivity
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Superconductivity
• Prime example of contemporary physics
• Connects with all parts of the curriculum
• HTS time scale  lifetime of the students
– High Temperature Superconductivity disc. in 1986
– Organic Superconductors discovered in 1979
– Low Temperature Superconductivity disc. in 1911
• Many useful applications today
– Industry, medicine, transportation  Exciting future!
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