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Useful Websites
Files added in 2012
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POSTNOTES: Briefing Notes on Science and Technology Issues: British Parliamentary Office |
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Since 1992 the British Parliamentary Office has produced short briefing notes, along with occasional longer reports that focus on current science and technology issues. The notes aim to summarise the key issues on a particular topic in attempt to anticipate policy implications for parliamentarians, so they are not just summaries of the underlying science. However, the notes are very accessible in language, comprehensive and authoritative and would be useful background material for students. They do tend to have a UK focus and each is about 4 pages long. This is an excel file of 421 titles sorted by physics, biology, etc | |||
Links added in 2012
Lightning Investigation and Analysis
Lightning is one of nature's most spectacular phenomenon. Tom Warner seeks to document lightning's beauty, power, and ferocity using an array of optical and electromagnetic sensors in hopes of better understanding its behavior. Since 2007, he has used high-speed cameras capable of recording lightning at up to 100,000 images per second. These cameras enable us to see lightning like never before as we can clearly watch lightning propagate downward from the clouds or upward from tall objects. The website features Investigations, Projects and a Gallery.
Radiation Therapy for Cancer - A Fact sheet
A detailed fact sheet addressing 11 specific questions with various words in the answers hyperlinked to explanations and definitions. The website is from the National Cancer Institute of the National Institutes of Health (US).
Eyes on the Sky
National Science Foundation(US)website of videos and photos on observational astronomy as well as information on future challenges.
The Science of Food
This website from Penn State University (US) serves as a forum for news, views and discussion about all things related to the science of food: food chemistry, microbiology, engineering, process technology, and nutrition. Also discussed are issues related to food safety, GMO foods, organic foods, health and wellness. There is also a significant section on Food Physics.
Cap Journal: Communicating Astronomy to the Public
An on-line Journal of quality, about 40 page, that comes out about three times a year.
Asteroid Watch
NASA website that features, images, videos, audios, interactives and downloads.
The physics of mobile phones
A Yale University site on 'The Physics of Cell Phones'. It includes several sections including lesson plans and teacher resources.
International Nuclear Information System (INIS)
The INIS is the responsibility of the IAEA, the International Atomic Energy Agency. INIS is one of the world's largest collections of published information on the peaceful uses of nuclear science and technology. It offers online access to a unique collection of non-conventional literature. The information is technical and search terms need to be specific.
Physics Careers Slide Shows - Insights
Physics InSight is a series of slide shows designed to inform and excite undergraduates about physics, but they may have some useful content for secondary students. Slide show topics include: Diverse physics careers, Physicist salary information, Current physics research, Resources for undergraduate physics majors and Opportunities for undergraduates.
Sun Trek
SunTrek is a UK website designed for students. It explores the Sun and its effect on Earth. There are images, videos, activities and classroom resources. The style is more suited to junior secondary, but should engage older students.
Astrosphere - New Media Association
Astrosphere New Media Association is dedicated to promoting science and skeptical thought through internet-based technologies and distribution. They focus their efforts on the creation of technologies and content that enable better astronomy communications and greater astronomy content access for the public. These technologies can take many forms, and include (but are not limited to): blogs, podcasts, social networks, interactive data tools, and community content sites (such as wikis).
History of the Laser
Several pages of information including text, interviews and photos.
Calculate your Radiation Dose
The site is prepared by the US EPA with US references. There is an extensive range of resources available elsewhere on the site.
Electrical Engineering: Global History Network
The IEEE Global History Network is a wiki-based platform dedicated to preserving and promoting the history of innovation in the fields of electrical engineering and its allied fields. There is considerable educational material but much is related to history, but the site is very comprehensive.
Scitalks: Smart people on cool topics
Prominent speakers across the full range of science. Search on Physics gives over 100 including Feynmann and Bethe and many others. Worth searching through the long list.
Photos of Physicists
Some of the favorite photos of physicists and astronomers from the files of the American Institute of Physics. They reveal the physicists' human side and the environments of scientific work. Photos are available from US$10 each.
Perimeter Institute: Past Public Lectures
The Perimeter Institute has on file videos of an enormous number of public lectures and talks. The webpage has very useful search options. It offers 'Public lectures' and 'All talks' (the latter includes lectures too academic for secondary students), as well as choice of audience (general public, students, teachers) and education level (basic, intermediate and advanced). Some of the talks include: The Secret Life of a Snowflake, My Top 10 Bonkers Things about the Universe, Before the Big Bang (Roger Penrose) and What Banged?.
Cavendish Laboratory - Outreach
The website has information on each of the discoveries at the laboratory by J J Thomson, Rutherford, CTR Wilson, the Braggs, Aston, Chadwick, Cockcroft and Walton, Crick and Watson, Bell and Frisch. The information is largely text based in simple language with some images and animations.
NTNU Java applets
This website of applets by Fu-Kwan Hwang from National Taiwan University has been running for many years. It now has contributions from many people across most areas of physics. It is designed along Bulletin Board lines.
Virtual Physics Labs
A collection of applets at Central Connecticut State University (CCSU). Mechanics(16), Electricity, Magnetism & Light (37). Some are traditional and some are links to PhET.
The Physics Classroom
This website features i) Tutorials, ii) a Multimedia Studio of animations and applets on the full range of physics content as well as Quicktime movies and iii) Shockwave files. There are also prac and teaching resources for teachers.
ComPADRE: Physics and Astronomy Education Communities
ComPADRE is a US based network of free online resource collections supporting academics, teachers and students in Physics and Astronomy Education. Each of the collections contain materials designed for a specific community. The teacher section has resources fro K - 12 teachers, Physics images and articles to stimulate interest and a link to the highly regarded Physical Sciences Resource Centre (PSRC). There is also an extensive physics education research section. The section for students features tutorials, magazines and career information.
Science Posters
A range of posters produced by the SciArt Project. The posters contact some text, but the emphasis is on good design and the use of colour. Posters (8.5" x 11") can be downloaded for free, 18" x 24" can be ordered. There are physics posters on aurora, Models, Seeing Light, Snow Butterflies and Opals, Levitation, Women in laboratories, etc.
Animation Studies
Quicktime animation studies by the Physics Dept of New York University on Waves and Special relativity. The studies are simple and effective with clear explanations.
ASTER Photo Gallery
Images from NASA's ASTER project. ASTER stands for Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer. There are images of cities, landscapes, glaciers, etc.
Artificial Retina Project
The U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) Artificial Retina Project is a collaborative, multi-institutional effort to develop an implantable microelectronic retinal prosthesis that restores useful vision to people blinded by retinal diseases. The ultimate goal of the project is to restore reading ability, facial recognition, and unaided mobility in people with retinitis pigmentosa and age-related macular degeneration. There is information about how the AR works and patient stories.
Five Physics Lessons for Obama
This is a short article in the Journal 'Foreign Policy' by the author of 'Physics for Future Presidents'. It addresses the issues of Terrorism, Energy, Nuclear Energy, Global warming and Space.
On the Cutting Edge - Professional Development
This is a website of the Science Education Resource Center in the US. The site is nominally about improving the teaching of geoscience, but the resources and strategies on Assessment, The Affective Domain, Teaching Methods and Metacognition apply to science, if not learning, in general.
POSTNOTES: Briefing Notes on Science and Technology Issues: British Parliamentary Office
Since 1992 the British Parliamentary Office has produced short briefing notes, along with occasional longer reports that focus on current science and technology issues. The notes aim to summarise the key issues on a particular topic in attempt to anticipate policy implications for parliamentarians, so they are not just summaries of the underlying science. However, the notes are very accessible in language, comprehensive and authoritative and would be useful background material for students. They do tend to have a UK focus and each is about 4 pages long. So far 421 briefings have been prepared.
General
The Lab
The ABC Science site,The Lab, is a rich resource for science teachers and students, with new material being added almost every day.
Physical Science Resources Centre
The American Association of Physics Teachers has a very comprehensive site called Physical Science Resources Centre.
WWW Virtual Library for the History of Science, Technology & Medicine
The WWW Virtual Library for the History of Science, Technology & Medicine is a virtual library of Internet resources on the history of science, including biographies, journals and organisations.
ScienceNetlinks
The American Association for the Advancement of Science has launched ScienceNetlinks, a website to help science teachers to efficiently identify useful resources.
Nova: Science in the News
The Australian Academy of Science has developed the Internet site Nova: Science in the News. The aim of Nova is to provide teachers and students with accurate and up-to-date information about the scientific, technological, health and environmental issues reported in the media.
ExploraNet
ExploraNet is the site of the Exploratorium, San Francisco, which houses 650 innovative and exciting interactive exhibits in the areas of science, art and human perception. On this website, you will find pictures, news items on science, and electronic versions of the exhibits. The museum is constantly experimenting with new ways to present science on the Internet.
Teaching Advanced Physics
The UK Institute of Physics has established a website, Teaching Advanced Physics, to support new teachers of physics. The site contains advice on how to prepare lessons, as well as lots of ideas for experiments and worksheets.
UK Institute of Physics on-line physics resource
The UK Institute of Physics has also established an on-line physics resource an for teachers and students in the 11- 19 age range. The Teachers section features Experiments, Lessons Problems, Answers, Tests, and Texts. The site is subscription based, teacher access: 55 pounds (UK) for full web access and a CDROM.
Resources at Deakin University
Deakin University has an extensive set of activities for Science Years 5 to 10, that addresses many common alternative conceptions of students. It has sections on i) Astronomy, ii) Earth's climate, iii) Earth's structure, iv) Electricity, v) Force, Motion and Machines, vi) Light, vii) Magnetism, viii) Sound, ix) Water and a few Chemistry topics. Each section opens with a list of key concepts expressed in simple clear language, as well as a list of common alternative conceptions. At the bottom of the page is a link to a pdf file of activities and resources.
Connecting Research in Physics Education with Teacher Education
A collection of articles produced by the International Commission on Physics Education (ICPE)
A Set of Fermi questions
A Set of Fermi questions on estimation.
Colorado Physics
An interactive guide through Modern Physics.
Contemporary Physics Education Project
The Contemporary Physics Education Project is a non-profit organization of teachers, educators, and physicists located around the world. CPEP materials present the current understanding of the fundamental nature of matter and energy, incorporating the major research findings of recent years. It distributes a range of high quality charts.
ABC Science
An excellent site covering science from Prep to Yr 12
Nanodot
Built with the same engine as slashdot, Nanodot is the place to go for the latest news and breakthroughs in nanotechnology.
How Stuff Works
How Stuff Works is a virtual library of information. It is not just useful for years 7 to 10 but senior students and teachers will find it of value. It features articles with graphics and animation, and many questions are archived. The answers are well written with links provided.
History of Physics
The American Institute of Physics has a history that features on-line exhibitions, e.g. Sakharov: Soviet Physics, Nuclear Weapons and Human Rights: The Discovery of Global Warming etc.
New Scientist WebLinks
One of the best collections of science related web links you'll ever see.
Physics Central
This is a "weekly physics feature magazine" site run by The American Physical Society. Areas include: Physics in Action, People in Physics, Picture of the Week, Physics News, Physics Links and How Things Work.
How Things Work
A How Things Work site by Louis Bloomfield from The University of Virginia
Research Papers in Nanotechnology
The Institute of Physics has an on-line Journal "Nanotechnology".
Emilio Segre Visual Archives
The American Institute of Physics History Centre has historical photographs of physicists and astronomers. Over 1000 are available on line.
Digital Photography Tutorials
Learn how to take and edit digital photographs using visual tutorials that emphasise concept over procedure, independent of specific digital camera or lens. Topics range from basic camera tips to advanced techniques. There are over 40 tutorials from 'Understanding digital camera sensors' to 'Photo stitching'.
Science Made Fun
A UK website for junior science. It features podcasts on numerous topics including many physics topics. It has a world wide audience.
Grand Challenges for Engineering
The US National Academy of Engineering initiated a world wide survey to generate a list of grand challenges and opportunities for engineering facing those born at the dawn of this new century. Their website has material on ‘hopes or world needs’ and ‘innovations or technologies, ideas and research’ particularly of those in the 20th century.