*|MC:SUBJECT|*

1. Physics Days at Luna Park in 2024
Earlier this year over 2800 students attended the four days at Luna Park, so Luna Park has offered five days for next year. The dates are Monday 4th March to Friday 8th March.
Luna Park bookings will not open until next term, but schools can now seek approval for their school administrations. The student fee has not been finalised, this year it was $29.50.
Aerobatic displays have been requested, but confirmation is not received until February.
The worksheets have not been updated since they were first written in 2004. The terminology for forces has changed and there have been some content changes, so the worksheets will be updated in Term 4.

There are several phone apps that can be used to record motion at Luna Park including Physphox, SparkVue, EasySense, Vernier and Physics Toolbox. For safety reasons phones cannot be held during the ride and must be securely pocketed. A vest for a phone or datalogger can be booked, more details later.

Ann-Marie Pendrill from Lund University in Sweden has written a number of articles on amusement park physics that are available on 'open access'. This one is on 'Smart phones and Newton's First Law in escalators and roller coasters'. Over 20 more can be found by going to the search key at the top of the article, typing in her name and clicking 'open access only' down on the left.

Return to top

2. An idea to assist physics students with low maths skills
Jack Replinger, a US physics teacher who has set up the Positive Physics website, has prepared maths cheat sheets for students with low maths skills, one for each sub-topic, such as kinematics. 19 in total. Each sheet lists the relevant equations, gives each equation a name, e.g. average velocity rule, and also includes all its manipulations with different variables being the subject of the expression. It also has a table of relevant terms with symbols, units and definitions with accessible explanations.

The sheets can be copied from the website, but they are not available as a download. He uses v_o and v_f , not u and v, so some editing needs to be done.

Return to top

3. Teaching students about Climate Change
Keith Burrows has compiled an impressive list of resources for teaching about climate change. These can be found at this website. The website also includes his presentation at PHYSCON 2023 titled 'Connecting with our students on Climate Change', check under 'More', then 'References'. The video of his talk is also on the Vicphysics Youtube channel. There is also additional material on the Vicphysics webpage on climate change.

Return to top

4. An Experiment: Using AI to answer an Extended Response Exam Question ctd
In the last newsletter there was an item on using AI to generate responses to an NHT exam question which asked students to explain the energy levels in the hydrogen atom in terms of the properties of the electron. The item had a link to an article with the AI responses for different audiences, e.g. a simplified version as if for a Year 10 student, also for a Year 12 physics student, as well as different formats, as text and in dot point form. These have now been added to with AI responses for a university physics student and for a university physics lecturer. This is the set of responses.

The different responses may suggest ways to present the concepts to different audiences..

Return to top

5. Events for Students

a) . Physics Gymnasium Lecture for Students: Weekly on Thursdays at University of Melbourne
The last lecture will be held this week.
The remaining lecture in the program is:

Sept 7^th: Using Stars to Awaken the Giants at the Heart of Galaxies – How Unlucky Stars Reinvigorate Black Holes – Assoc. Prof. Katie Auchettl. What happens when a star wanders too close to a supermassive black hole just minding its own business? It gets messy!. Join us as Associate Professor Katie Auchettl unpacks this rare, but sticky situation and explains how observing them can help us understand more about these hungry behemoths.

At 5:30pm, there will be snacks and drinks with the lecture starting at 6:00pm and finishing at 7:00pm
To register click here.

b) Revision Lecture: Sunday, 10th September. Online and in person at Swinburne University of Technology
Bookings close this Wednesday at 3:30pm.
The Revision lecture this year will be delivered on-line and in person. The presenter will be Colin Hopkins, with chat room support for online participants from Sandor Kazi and Paul Cuthbert.
The program will run from 10:00am until 2:50pm with two 50 min morning presentations and a 10 min break in between, followed by a 60 min lunch break, with two more 50 min sessions in the afternoon.
Swinburne University is not only providing lunch, but also offering 25 min Astro Tours and campus tours at lunch time. They will also have Course Advice booths in the lunch area.
Notes will be available in a digital format.
Cost: $25, payment by credit card only. If schools wish to book a large group, please contact Vicphysics.
Venue: Level 2, AMDC Building, Swinburne University of Technology, Burwood Rd, Hawthorn.
Students can register for the lecture and the tours at the Students webpage on the vicphysics website.
Getting there: Glenferrie railway station, Six tram routes (16, 48, 70, 72, 75 and 109). Free car parking across Burwood Rd in the council car park.

c) Holiday programs
i) Swinburne Wantirna campus: 19 - 21 September. Prep to Year 8. Cost: $24.50 for one hour session. For further information click here.
ii) Australian Synchrotron: 19 & 20 September. Years 8 - 10 and 10 - 12 programs. Costs: $40 - $55 for half day workshops. For further information click here.
iii) Swinburne Hawthorn campus. 25 & 26 September. Prep - 8. Cost: $24.50 for one hour workshop. For further information click here.

Return to top

6. Events for Teachers

Physics at 5. An opportunity to network
Wanting to bounce around some lesson ideas, mull over a tricky question, or unpack a physics concept?
Vicphysics is hosting a weekly, half-hour online Zoom drop-in session on Tuesdays at 5:00pm.
Great opportunity to check in with other colleagues about any aspect of Physics teaching and learning! The discussions will be moderated by members of the Vicphysics Committee.
This is the zoom link. The Meeting ID is 815 1456 7258 and the Passcode: 459295. The Waiting Room will be used.
The same link, ID and passcode will be used for future Tuesday gatherings.
Each meeting is planned to go for about 30 minutes.

Lab Techs Workshops, Weds 13th September, Camberwell Grammar School
The Workshops are on again this year, back in the last week of Term 3.
Bookings close this Wednesday at 3:30pm.
The program offers a range of workshops including:

Learning new skills e.g. repairing a multimeter, using a CRO, using a Ruhmkorff coil,
Soldering: An introduction to the Art with Harvey Edwards from Principles and Practice
Electronic data methods in the Physical Sciences with Megan Simkins from Ciderhouse
Electronic data collection with Amanda Lovett from Modern Teaching Aids
Physics Demonstrations for Open Days and Using Science Toys with Man Lam from Mount Alexander College (to be confirmed)
Tour of lab and prep room facilities including animal house plus Laboratory management hints with Svetlana Marchouba, Camberwell Grammar School.

Cost: $75, lunch is included.
For more details and to book, click here.

The Force and Motion Workshops: John Monash Science School and Christian College Geelong
The intensive module steps teacher through the key concepts and skills to successfully teach the relevant Year 7 - 10 curriculum content.

Why your colleagues should participate:

Deepen their conceptual understanding of key concepts in electric circuits
Engage in practical activities that they can directly deploy in your classroom
Unpack typical student misconceptions and learn best practice pedagogy for combating them
Improve their ability to differentiate curriculum and assessment student achievement
Access materials to support your classroom practice prepared by experienced teachers and science education academics associated with the Vicphysics Teachers' Network
Become part of a network like-minded teachers who are striving to improve their practice

These two events are next term. They will be six two-hour sessions with the JMSS event on Thursdays from 26th October and the Geelong event on Tuesdays from 24th October, starting at 4:30pm for both venues.
Cost $240 per participant for each workshop. A discount is available for teachers from low ICSEA schools.
For more details and to book click here.

Course Planning Day for Units 3 and 4 in 2024, Friday, 10th November. Online and in person at Swinburne University of Technology.
Vicphysics is organising a Course Planning Day for Friday, 10th November, the day after the Physics exam and the day before the assessors' meeting. It will be held at Swinburne University of Technology and also online. The program is:
9:00       Welcome
9:15       Presentation on new content in the Study Design, in particular additions to Special Relativity with Theo Hughes, Cornish College
10:00     Small Group Discussion on Course Planning: teaching order, weeks per Area of Study, etc.
10:40     Morning Tea
11:10 School-based Assessment for Unit 3 and 4 with Maria James, VCAA Science Manager
12:00      Small Group Discussion on Assessment Tasks: consideration of examples, completion of a draft,
12:45 Lunch
1:30     Presentation on styles of practical activities with Rachael Gore, Albert Park College
2:15 Small Group Discussion on selecting practical activities.
3:00       Finish
Lunch will be provided for in-person participants.
Cost: $90 non-subscribers, $80 subscribers in person. $50 non-subscribers, $40 subscribers online.
Registrations are open at the Vicphysics website.

PHYSCON 2024: 23rd February, 2024. Call for presenters

Victorian Physics Teachers' Conference Friday, 23rd February, 2024 at Swinburne University of Technology

Call for Sessions:
After the buzz of PHYSCON 2023 with over 300 participants and 40 workshops, Vicphysics is looking forward to presenting another hybrid conference for Physics teachers in partnership with Swinburne University of Technology. The mix of local, national and international presenters and participants made for an excellent event.

For PHYSCON 2024 we are scheduling four workshop sessions in addition to innovative and inspiring keynotes from quantum specialist Dr Liam Hall and astronomer Dr Sara Webb, check our PHYSCON 2024 webpage for details.
One of the workshop presenters will be Joe Cossette from the US. Joe has just been named as 2023 Teacher of the Year by the Physics Teacher Education Coalition (PhysTEC), which is a partnership of the American Physics Society (APS) and the American Association of Physics Teachers (AAPT). This is his webpage.

We will be live streaming as many suitable sessions as possible, so that the experience is accessible to all physics teachers. Participants will also be able to attend important VCAA update sessions and presentations from the Chief Assessor of the VCE Physics examination.
We welcome your submissions of workshop proposals here as soon as possible so that we can build an event that inspires and invigorates all teachers of physics.
Late submissions workshops will be accepted until this Friday, 8th Sept. Registrations will open on the first day of Term 4.

Conference fees:

Type	Early Bird	After 20th Dec
In Person	$320	$350
Online	$270	$300

Discounts:

Individual Vicphysics Subscribers: $50
Student and Retiree Subscribers: $100
School Vicphysics subscribers: $10

Registrations will open in early September.

Return to top

7. Seeking a Physics teacher? Seeking a new position?
The Vicphysics Teachers' Network has a Job Ads page to assist schools in finding a physics teacher.
Scoresby Secondary College has placed an ad on the webpage. Applications close 7th September.
There are nine (9) schools seeking a physics teacher. The Vicphysics webpage above has a link to the Government schools' jobs website. The following Gov't Schools are seeking a physics teacher.

Scoresby Secondary College (closes 7th September)
Bayswater Secondary College (closes 12th September)
Fitzroy High School (closes 5th September
Buckley Park College (closes 5th September)
East Doncaster Secondary College (closes 4th September)
Cranbourne Secondary College (closes 4th September)
Charles La Trobe P - 12 College (closes 3rd September
Mount Eliza Secondary College (closes 3rd September)
MacRobertson Girls' High School (closes 1st October)

The webpage is updated every weekend. The webpage also has a link on how schools can register a position and lodge a payment for this service.

Return to top

8. Vicphysics matters

i) Vicphysics Forum: Tips and Questions for the Physics Teaching Community

The Vicphysics Teachers’ Network has set up an online Forum for teachers to raise issues, seek ideas, offer suggestions, etc. The link is on the top line of our website’s home page: https://www.vicphysics.org/ We hope it will be an opportunity for mutual professional development.

The forum is open to all teachers. If you are a subscriber you can login in the usual way. If you are not a subscriber you can register to just use the forum at ‘My Account’. Given the purposes of this Forum, we ask that you use your real name when generating a topic or a lodging a post.

We hope this Forum will become a valuable medium for the exchange of ideas as we begin planning for the new study design.

ii) Subscriptions: A Vicphysics subscription gives you access to the Teachers section of the website. The subscription will last for a year from the day payment is received. Both individual and school subscriptions are available. Check the homepage for subscription link.

Return to top

9. Physics News from the Web
Items selected from the bulletin of the Institute of Physics (UK).
Each item below includes the introductory paragraphs and a web link to the rest of the article.
a) The Physics of Languages
Much like biological species, languages spread, evolve, compete and even go extinct. To understand these mechanisms, physicists are applying their methods to linguistics, creating the interdisciplinary field of language dynamics.
If the world of research were an ecosystem, with scientists of different disciplines representing different species, then physicists would be classified as invaders. After all, they’ve spread their methods and tools to many other fields over the years, infiltrating not only other natural sciences but the social sciences too.
Born from this invasion, interdisciplinary fields such as sociophysics and econophysics have been developed, in which mathematical models from physics are applied to social contexts, including traffic, crowds and financial markets. These new areas – and the models involved – are part of what’s known as complex systems theory. It concerns systems composed of many elements that interact with each other, producing a collective behaviour that could not be understood if the properties of the individual components were considered in isolation.
b) Cement-based supercapacitor makes a novel energy storage system
A new cost-effective and efficient supercapacitor made from carbon black and cement could store a day’s worth of energy in the concrete foundation of a building or provide contactless recharging for electric cars as they travel across it. The device could also facilitate the use of renewable energy sources such as solar, wind and tidal power, according to the researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and the Wyss Institute, both in the US, who developed it.
c) The physics of hand clapping: here’s how to do it best
There’s more than one way to crash two hands into each other, so which is best?
To see how well handclap measurements fared, the researchers got a group of 24 students to perform single handclaps at various venues in no fewer than 11 different hand configurations. Each of these was defined by a unique combination of the angle at which the hands are held to one another and how much the fingers of one hand overlap with the fingers or palm of the other.
The results are in (Acoustics 2 224). The loudest configuration, generating an average sound pressure level of 85.2 dB, is one in which the hands are held at about 45 degrees to one another and the palms partially overlap. .But decibels aren’t everything when it comes to sound: the frequency distribution is vital too.

Return to top