Dr. Vasudeva Aravind (left) and Dr. John Heard.

            Drs. Vasudeva Rao Aravind and John Heard, assistant professors in the physics department of Clarion University, published an article, "Physics by Simulation:  Teaching Circular Motion Using Applets," in the Latin American Journal of Physics Education, Vol. 4, No. 1, January 2010, pp. 35-39.

            In their article, the authors discuss how a freely available web-based simulation, in combination with a theoretical lecture and questionnaire designed to instigate students' logic can be used to teach and learn certain aspects on the topic of circular motion. This is a key topic in the introductory, college-level physics sequence, and the authors expect that many college and high schools through out the world, which may not have expensive pedagogical tools will benefit from using this simulation. The authors also statistically demonstrate the effectiveness of this technique by sharing experiences from their own classrooms.

            This article is available online at: http://www.journal.lapen.org.mx/jan10/LAJPE_333_Vasudeva_preprint_corr_f.pdf

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