Advanced Level H2 Physics Chapter 1 Measurements - Framework of Concepts (In Progress)

Before I plan my lessons and assessment and what I want to teach for Physics, I tend to write down a framework of concepts for my lessons.  I looks similar to the syllabus but more in detail as I tend to break it down further into skills and specific concepts that I want to teach.  Decided to document them here and add on it and hope it will be useful to all.

If you think that I have missed out anything points and wish to add on, do leave your comments and I will look into it.

Topic 1 Measurements

The topic of measurements consists of 4 main subtopics:

1.1 Physical Quantities and Units
1.2 Errors and Uncertainties
1.3 Scalars and Vectors
1.4 Orders of Magnitude

1.1 Framework of Concepts and Skills for Physical Quantities and Units

1.2 Errors and Uncertainties- 2 Feb 2015

For Physics at A-levels, the treatment of errors and uncertainties is simplistic and yet difficult for students.  We do not do standard deviations and variance in Physics but get students to understand that quantities that are measured have some inherent uncertainty in them and these errors propagate to the calculations and hence there are inherent errors even in derived values.

The rules to get the uncertainties are rather straightforward, however as they are not derived for students, students do not understand that these are therefore just estimates.  For my classes I tend to do the derivations with them and then also look into other methods for determining the uncertainties e.g. calculus and statistics to broaden their horizon.  

They is the first part where students themselves realize that there are no standard answers, like in secondary school, for Physics.  Many stump at the qualitative parts as tutors (and examiners) give contextual questions where often experiments and results are shown and students are expected to identify systematic and random errors.  Most give very generic answers not pertaining to the question or fail to explain why the error they have identified is a systematic or random one and hence often do not gain credit.  Assessment of the contextual question can be done either in main paper or practical paper.

1.3 Vectors and Scalars - 2 Feb 2015

On Nuclear Radiation Part 3: Effects of Different Radiation

This is a third part to a series of FAQs which I received from my friends and family after the Nuclear Accident in Japan Fukushima.  Note that most of the notes came from a set of lecture notes that I compiled 2 years ago.  The lecture notes were integrated from various sources which was used for lecturing Nuclear Physics for A-levels. 

(Picture from Reuters:  The No.3 nuclear reactor of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant is seen burning, March 14, 2011. REUTERS/Digital Globe.)

Question:  Of the Types of Ionising Radiation, which is the most harmful?  How do they affect the human body?

This is a complex question, as each type of ionising radiation impacts the body differently. In general, the effect of ionizing radiation on the human body or any other living things depend on three things:

1. The type of ionizing radiation which was absorbed,
2. The number of cells affected, the number and
3. The amount and the rate at which ionizing radiation was absorbed.

  Let us look at the effect of each type of ionizing radiation

• Alpha-particles:

Even though alpha-particles have a short range in air and can be stopped by the skin or a sheet of paper, it will still pose a danger if it gets into the body through ingestion and inhalation.

Alpha particles are the largest of the radiation and carry a charge of (+2e) - hence possessing the greatest ionization power, the particles will deposit their energy over a smaller volume (possibly only a few cells) if they enter the body and cause more damage to these few cells.

Radon gas (one of the key sources of lung cancer in US) is an example of an isotope that radiates alpha particles during of its course of decay and hence, there has been suggestions for buildings to be tested for Radon gas.

•   Beta Particles:

Beta-particles have a longer range than alpha-particles, but ionise much less strongly. Therefore, they do around 1/20 th of the damage done by the same dose of alpha particles.  But with greater penetrating power, affect a greater number of cells.

•   Gamma Rays, X-rays :

Gamma and x-ray are pure energy (photons) and have no mass.  They are however very penetrating and can easily pass through the whole body, and hence will still interact with many atoms in the body as they pass through.  Both X-rays and gamma rays spread their energy over a large volume, which causes less damage per collision. Of course at very high levels of exposure, they can still cause a great deal of tissue damage. Furthermore, because of their penetrating ability, they can easily reach internal organs and bones which is why large doses can be used to damage cancer tissue.

Interaction of Radiation and Cells
So how do the radiation affect the cells and human body?
The effects of the radiation can be characterised as:

• Direct effects
• Indirect effects

Direct Effects
For direct effects, the radiation interacts with the atoms of the DNA molecule, or some other cellular component critical to the survival of the cell.

Such an interaction may affect the ability of the cell to reproduce and, thus, survive. If enough atoms are affected such that the chromosomes do not replicate properly, or if there is significant alteration in the information carried by the DNA molecule, then the cell may be destroyed by “direct” interference with its life-sustaining system.

Indirect Effects
However, the probability of the radiation interacting with the DNA molecule is very small since these critical components make up such a small part of the cell. The radiation has a higher probability interacting with the water that makes up most of the cell’s volume.

When radiation interacts with water, it may break the bonds that hold the water molecule together, producing fragments such as hydrogen (H) and hydroxyls (OH). These fragments may recombine or may interact with other fragments to form toxic substances, such as hydrogen peroxide (H2O2), which can contribute to the destruction of the cell.


In general, the following are possible effects of radiation on the cells:
1. Cells are undamaged.
Ionisation may form chemically active substances which in some cases alter the structure of the cells. These alterations may be the same as those changes that occur naturally in the cell and may have no negative effect.


2. Cells are damaged, but the damage is repaired and they continue to operate normally.
Some ionizing events produce substances not normally found in the cell. These can lead to a breakdown of the cell structure and its components. Cells can repair themselves if the damage is limited. Even damage to chromosomes is usually repaired.


3. Cells are damaged, repaired but is mutated.
When cells divide to reproduce, an exact copy of the cell's chromosomes are created for the new cell. If the DNA of the chromosome is damaged, the instructions that control the function of the cells and reproduction are also damaged.

If the cells reproduce instead of die, a new mutated cell may be produced. In many cancers, the instruction that turns off cell growth are somehow damaged causing cells to reproduce out of control, creating tumours.

Ionizing radiation, along with many other substances such as some chemicals, heavy metals and intense e.m. waves can damage cells in this manner.

Radio-Sensitivity of Cells:
Not all cells in the human body respond in the same way to radiation.  The most radiosensitive cells are those which :

*have a high division rate

*have a high metabolic rate

*are of a non-specialized type, and

*are well-nourished.

Examples of radio-sensitive cells :

*reproductive cells

*Blood forming tissues

* Epithidium of skin

*Epithidium of gastrointestinal tract.

This is why when people go on radiotherapy, their alocepia (hair loss) tends to occur as hair is a fast growing cell.  This also why young children/babies and foetuses carried by pregnant mothers are especially susceptible to radiation. This is because children/babies are growing rapidly, with more cells dividing and thus a greater opportunity for radiation to disrupt the process.

Related Links  and Previous Related Posts:

1)  On Nuclear Physics Part I :  What is Radiation?  Does a person continue to radiate radiation after he has been irradiated?

2) Can we therefore make the radioactive isotopes non-radioactive by chemical reactions etc.?

3)  Japan's Nuclear Concerns Explained by CNN

4)  Why do the Spent Fuel Rods Need to Be Cooled Down?  What happens If they are Not?  - External Blog :  Fukushima's Spent Fuel Rods Pose Great Dangers.

5) Scientific American Article : Radiation's Complications: Pinning Health Problems on a Nuclear Disaster Isn't So Easy

On Nuclear Radiation_Part 2

This is a continuation from a previous blog on nuclear radiation.


I hear that Radioactivty is both a Spontaneous and Random Process, what do the two terms mean?  Is there a difference?  Can we therefore make the radioactive isotopes non-radioactive by chemical reactions etc.?

Yes, radioactivity is both a random and spontaneous process.  Let us explain what it first means to say that it is a "random" process and then talk about the "spontaneous part.

Random Process:

By random, we mean that for a sample of radioactive isotopes, we do not know at an instant of time which one will decay.  It also means that when we select a particular atom, we do not know when it will precisely decay.

What is however associated with this process is a probability of decay and that is manifested as what is known as half-life of the sample.

Beyond the scientific community, it is a common misconception that the half-life of a sample determines the time it takes for it to become non-radioactive.

This is not true, it is only the time taken for it to decay to half its initial activity.  (by layman terms that may be the amount of radiation emitted per unit time.)

In the case of nuclear waste from nuclear fission power plants, it becomes rather complicated, as the waste product consists of many radioactive isotopes, some ranging to short half lives ( e.g. Iodine-131 ~ 8days) to extremely long half lives ( Tc-99 ~ 220,000 years and I-129 ~ 17 million years).

There are problems in dealing with the shorter half lives radioactive isotopes and longer radioactive isotopes.  In general, the short-lived ones though having a short half live decays rapidly, also emits alot of radiation and that tends to generate alot of energy.  This is why in the case of the nuclear accident at Japan, though there are some spent (used fuel ) continuous cooling is needed to bring the temperature down.

For the case of the isotopes with long half-lives, the activity is smaller but the impact is for a longer period of time, with half lives of 220, 00 years and even million years, this means the radioactive substance will still be emitting radiation many, many years after we have gone.   Proper disposal and storage of these waste will therefore be needed as well.

Spontaneous Process:

Understanding the spontaneity part will also help understand why we cannot just destroy or hasten or slow down the radioactivity of the radioactive isotopes.  Radioactivity comes about because the isotopes are energetically unstable and they try to achieve stability by emitting radiation.  It is termed a spontaneous process, as its activity (decay) is unaffected by external pressures, temperatures or any chemical processes.  You need time to just let it decay and to come to a stable state.

This is why we also cannot just add chemicals, heat the spent fuel and to treat it to make it safe.  You need proper containment procedures to keep it away from possible risks of contamination.

Officials in protective gear check for signs of radiation on children who are from the evacuation area near the Fukushima Daini nuclear plant in Koriyama, March 13, 2011. Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano confirmed on Saturday there has been an explosion and radiation leakage at Tokyo Electric Power Co's (TEPCO) Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant. The biggest earthquake to hit Japan on record struck the northeast coast on Friday, triggering a 10-metre tsunami that swept away everything in its path, including houses, ships, cars and farm buildings on fire. (Kim Kyung-Hoon/REUTERS)

Other Relevant Links:

(1)  On Nuclear Physics Part I :  What is Radiation?  Does a person continue to radiate radiation after he has been irradiated?

On Nuclear Radiation_Part 1

The Japan's Friday Earthquake and Tsunami has caused Japan's nuclear reactors to malfunction and meltdown, many people may be wondering on the effects of radiation and what harm it may cause and what are the immediate and long term effects.

I was talking to my husband and a few friends and was surprised to find that they did not know what was radioactivity and the possible health effects (which left me quite frustrated, as I had gone through radiotherapy before and so was very sure that at least my husband should have known the risk that I was exposed to.)   Anyway, I took for granted that most people should know, so I was also quite shock when I heard some of questions asked. 

My husband remarked that this was because the biological effects was in the A-level syllabus and I had taught it and so I knew, but I should "enlighten" those who did not take Physics through my blog....anyway I will try my best and present the following as a FAQ in parts.  (so that it can be slowly published).

[I have to note that much of these were taken from a set of lecture notes I prepared for A-levels two years ago and takes references from many websites, so not all the work are my original work, though I consolidated most.]

(Picture Taken from stock.xchng at http://www.sxc.hu/.  H-Bomb by Sergey Lebedev.)

What is radiation?
The main danger from radiation is the damage it does to the cells in your body.


Most of this damage is due to ionization when the radiation passes, although if levels of radiation are high there can also be damage due to heating effects as your body absorbs the energy from the radiation.

Types of ionizing radiation includes :

• alpha particles  (Helium nucleus)
• beta particles (electrons and positrons)
• gamma rays
• X-rays, and
• neutrons

Alpha and Beta particles are further known as direct radiation as they transfer energy directly to their target materials.

Gamma rays, x-rays, as well as neutrons are known as indirect radiation, as they affect the cells in the body by transferring energy to neighbouring atoms. This causes the atoms to become excited and they can produce secondary electrons and photons that can continue to transfer the energy to nearby atoms.


So what are the harms associated with exposure to these radiation?  Does a person continue to radiate radiation after he has been irradiated?

To understand this, we need to make distinction between internal exposure vs. external exposure as well as irradiation and contamination.

Internal Exposure vs. External Exposure

There are two ways in which people can get exposed to radiation exposure :

• Internal Exposure,
• External Exposure

o Internal Exposure is exposure of radioactive material taken into the body by inhalation, ingestion absorption through skin, or through an open wound.

o External Exposure is exposure of radiation sources outside the body.

 Internal exposure can continue if the radioactive material remains in the body. In contrast, external exposure will not occur again once the radiation has penetrated the body.

Outside the nuclear and scientific community, there is a general misunderstanding that everything exposed to ionizing radiation is contaminated and dangerous forever. This is not the case, and there is a big difference between something being irradiated and something being contaminated.

Contamination vs. Irradiation

o Irradiation:

When something has been irradiated, the irradiation stops as soon as the source of ionizing radiation has been removed. The same can be said about the energy of ionizing radiation.
However even the irradiation has stopped, the biological effects of the irradiation may still occur if un-repaired cell damage has been inflicted.

o Contamination:

When contamination occurs, the source of the ionizing radiation itself is transfered, such as when radioactive isotopes in solid, liquid or gaseous forms are introduced into the environment.
When something has been contaminated with radioactive isotopes, it will remain radioactive until the radioactive isotope has decayed to a safe level.

Hence, from above we see that although one is irradiated by radiation, you do not become radioactive after that and become the source of radiation.  This is why food exposed to microwaves do not emit microwave or food that has been treated with X-rays to lengthen their shelf lives are not sources of X-rays themselves.

However, for the case of Japan, as the nuclear reactors are spewing out particles that are radioactive, the particles can be inhaled by people or get attached to the clothes, the bodies or the vehicles that are passing through.  Furthermore, the fall out will land in the water, on the soil etc.  Those people and objects that have particles attached to them or have inhaled the particles, consumed the particles or "drank the particles" would therefore continue to emit radiation.  This is why people are advised to wear mask and stay indoors. And food from the sources needs to be scanned as the fishes and subsequently the produce may contain high amount of radiation. 

This is the principle we use for carbon dating.  Carbon-14 is a radioactive isotope that is continually ingested and inhaled by animals and plants.  Due to biological decays and its radioactive decay, the proportion in a living material is more or less fixed and hence there is a stable amount of radiation we emit.  When however a living thing die, we stop taking in Carbon-14.  That is why the radioactivity reduces and by looking at the reduction, we can date back the once living artifacts to the year it "died".


I hear that the winds are blowing the steam, the fallout of the explosions into the sea?  So is the problem solved?

That depends on how you see it,  if the fallout goes towards the sea, the radioactive particles will deposit into the ocean, this means that marine life will get a greater exposure to the radiation and will also ingest a greater amount of radioactive particles.  This goes for the same if the steam and smoke gets carried by the winds into the atmosphere, this means the area that is exposed to the radioactive particles are greater but will also mean more distributed and evened out.

Some people are actually hoping for rain, as the precipitation will keep the affected area more confined, but this means the distribution is also more concentrated.


Coming up next
(1)  Can we therefore make the radioactive isotopes non-radioactive by chemical reactions etc.?
(2)  You mentioned alpha particles, but I also know that alpha particle can be stopped by paper,so out of the radiation which is less harmful, and what are the impacts of each type of radiation?
(3)  Some people say swarthing iodine the bodies will help prevent the radiation from harming the body, is it true?  If it is not true, then why are the governments buying iodine pills?
(4)  How do we know that a person has been irradiated, are there visible signs e.g. glowing etc? 
(5)  What are the short term and long term biological effects of exposure to radiation?

A Reading on the History of the Vernier Scale

(Source of picture:  http://www.sxc.hu/ by Dora Pete)


I was doing some readings on American Journal of Physics today and came across an interesting article.  Thought that this was rather timely as we had just finished a unit of "Measurements" in A-level Physics at my school.  It was would be a good reading for students as it details the historical development of the vernier scale and the vernier callipers happen to be one instrument that students are suppose to know.

Details of the Article are as follows :

Author:  Kwan, Alistair
Article Name:  Vernier Scales and Other Early Devices for Precise Measurement
Journal :  American Journal of Physics
Abstract:  (taken from AJP)

Vernier scales have been extensively used since the 17th century. They replaced the Nonius scale, a unpopular device due to difficulty in its fabrication and use, and they coexisted alongside other types of scales that increased measurement precision and accuracy in complementary ways. The author suggests that the success of Vernier and diagonal scales is due not only to simplicity of fabrication, but also to their exploitation of visual hyperacuities.

Access:  Subscription to AJP is needed.

Competency Tests in A-level Physics

After teaching for so many years,  I would like to consolidate some of the questions and design a series of test to assess my students ability towards A-level physics.  This series of tests will be topical based and matched towards the learning outcomes required that for A-levels,  I will also identify key skills that would be required each topic and break down the learning outcomes into smaller key concepts.  Research on misconceptions will be done for each topic and consolidated.  Then I will design questions for each topic.

I believe this topical tests will be useful for students and teachers.  Teachers can use it to assess problems that students may have pertaining to each topic and may design instructional programmes or remediation programmes with further emphasis on the weaker areas that the students may have pertaining to the topic.  Students can also use it to assess how well they have learnt a particular topic.

Since the tests are meant to identify key weak areas, multiple-choice questions will be designed.

I have started work on the topics and will take about two years to finish.  I intend to do reliability and validation studies on the topical tests as well.

I welcome any feedback to any misconceptions other teachers may have on any topics in A-levels and any suggestions pertaining to what should be placed in the question bank.

I believe that this test will also be useful for students taking AP (B) Physics and those students in the IB syllabus, with some tweaks as Physics will fundamentally be Physics and there are similiarities to be seen across the syllabi.

A Resource for Teaching Semiconductors: The Solar Cell

An Introduction to Solar Cells

Phys. Teach. 48, 306 (2010)

http://link.aip.org/link/?PHTEAH/48/306/1

[Picture from: http://www.sxc.hu/photo/1054612, johnnyberg, The essens of summer]

The study of Semiconductors and explanation of its behaviour by band theory was introduced into the H2 Physics Syllabus in Singapore for A-level Physics in 2006. Generally, for this topic we learn the mechanics of it, but so far there has been little exploration of its applications in real life.

The May 2010 issue of the Physics Teacher (see link below) carries an interesting article on how solar cells work. It explains the workings of it using band theory as it is a semiconductor. It should find great relevance in today with environmental issues becoming a pressing problem that the world faces.

The link is listed below. I would like to explore how to further apply this article to classroom teaching and integrate this into the A-level syllabus, either as a reading for an activity that can enthuse students or even as an examination question.
The abstract is quoted below:

Abstract : (©2010 American Association of Physics Teachers)

"Most likely, solar cells will play a significant role in this country's strategy to address the two interrelated issues of global warming and dependence on imported oil. The purpose of this paper is to present an explanation of how solar cells work at an introductory high school, college, or university physics course level. The treatment presented here will be qualitative and somewhat simplified, in order to reach the desired audience; references are provided for a more detailed and mathematically sophisticated treatment. It is hoped that this paper will, in a small way, motivate students to learn more about this technology, so critical to the energy and environmental future of this country. "

Why a smaller sphere having a smaller charge can have an electric field that is stronger than a larger sphere having a larger charge?

This is a followup post to my previous post on the misconception that a smaller spherical conductor will have a larger charge and hence there is a greater possibility of it being discharging.

I did the same question with another of my class today.  However, this time, this class of students had more problems in visualising why a smaller sphere having a smaller charge could possibily have a stronger electric field at the surface.  I also had students who told me that their secondary school teachers told them that it was the charge per unit area that mattered and asked me how to reconcile this with the concept of electric field being stronger.

Let us address the first issue first.  To aid in the visualisation.  I drew the following picture.  In this case, we had already made a calculation of 0.3 micro-coulomb on the small sphere and 0.9 micro-coulomb residing on the larger sphere.  So if there is one electric field line drawn for each 0.1 micro-coulomb charge on it sphere, then we see can have:

So from the diagram above, we see that the although there is less charge on the smaller sphere, the electric field lines could be closer, and hence the E-field could be stronger.

Now for the second question, was the secondary teacher right in saying that it is the charge per unit area that mattered.  Two ways to understand this, first the diagram shows fundamentally an essential point in drawing field lines, the no. of field lines are proportional to the charge, therefore have a greater no. of charge per unit area, essentially means more electric field lines per unit area and hence the field lines will be closer and in other word, the electric field is stronger.

Alternatively, those who prefer to see equations will have 

From the equation, we can see that the electric field strength at the surface of the charged sphere can be written as a constant multiplied by  (Q / surface area of sphere), so essentially the secondary teacher who relates the electric field at the surface to the Q per unit area is actually correct.

Quantum Mechanics Conceptual Survey

My friend sent me a research paper on Quantum Mechanics Conceptual Survey (QMCS).

The QMCS is a survey to assess students' understanding of quantum mechanics and is intened to be used to measure the relative understanding of quantum mechanics.  As with the most conceptual tests used for research, the authors have protected the security of the test by keeping it from becoming available to students.  After administering the test, they do not post solutions or allow students to take the tests home.  They have also administered it online but on a password-protected enviroment with warnings to students not to distribute it.

Instructors or Physics teachers interested in obtaining a copy can request copy at http://per.colorado.edu/QMCS.

US satellite to monitor debris

US satellite to monitor debris (Click on this link to access the article.)

Source: Straits Times
Date: 4th July 2010

This is a great article to include during the teaching of Gravitation. Students learn about how satellites are launched, and are often taught that they will continue to spiral inward as they lose gravitational potential energy and gain kinetic energy and eventually burn up in atmosphere.

However, in reality, we do leave a lot of debris and trash in space and now we are causing problems for ourselves.

A lesson in National Education perhaps? Though not directly related to Singapore, but relates to character development and the care of the environment, and our responsibility as inhabitants of the earth.

Examination Tip #1 : Useful Stationery to Have - Customised Self-Inking Stamp

  This is strictly not a physics post....but rather a post for all students.  I noticed when invigilating many tests and examinations,  that students spend alot of time writing their name and index no. on every sheet of writing paper that they wish to hand in.  (At least they bother.)  This allows for any pieces of paper that could easily come lose from the stack during the transportation (esp. when you are sitting for internation examinations and scripts get sent from place to place) to be easily traced back to the "owner".  However, it is very tiring especially when you attach more than 10 sheets of writing paper, I had a case where the student attached 20 sheets for the Math paper and ended up writing till he complained that his hands ache.

  One very useful tool to acquire is a Self-inking Rubber Stamp which you can customise what you put on the stamp.  Put your name and centre no./index no. on the stamp.  Use that to stamp across every writing paper you are using.

Recommended Textbooks for Advanced Level Physics Part 3 : United Kingdom Text - Advanced Level Physics by Nelkon & Parker

Textbook Reviewed :  Advanced Level Physics (by Nelkon & Parker)


This was the classic text used by most Singapore schools at the time that when I was still a student.  The current edition is much better than the 6th Edition, which I felt the paper was so thin that I was so afraid to tear it.  It is still one of the key British texts that I constantly refer to, maybe I was familiar with the lay out.

What I Particularly Like About The Text:

This is a text particularly suited for the A-level syllabus.  It contains much information especially on experiments that students particularly need for the A-level examination.

I always recommend this as a reading text for my students, as I find it helps the students to hone the way they write  (in a scientific manner).  Language and arguments are done in a formal manner and it does improve the quality the students write.  Since the A-levels are set by UK examiners, it is best to understand what the examiners are saying.  This helps in understanding of the questions set in the A-levels examinations as well.
  
This is also a good text as it covers everything and also beyond the A-level syllabus, which is good as A-levels do expect the student to be informed beyond the syllabus and provides good grounding.  (Btw, the O-level text - "Principle of Physics" is particularly good...helped me score my distinction in Physics when I did my O-level....was utterly grateful for it.)


What I feel needs to be improved:

The same with all other British texts, I hope to see a version of text with :

• more colour
• highlighting of the more important points in boxes esp. the essential definitions and explanations.
• Layout can be more friendly and aesthetically done
• More pictures (hopefully colourful ones)
• Have scaffolding questions before dumping the students with the examination style questions which are nevertheless important.

Recommended Textbooks for Advanced Level Physics Part 2 : United Kingdom Text - Advanced Physics by Tom Duncan

Textbook Reviewed:  Advanced Physics by Tom Duncan

This is another textbook which I commonly refer to when I prepare for lectures and tutorials. 

What I particularly like about the Textbook:

Explanations are very detailed and clear.  Definitions are again very precise.  I also particularly like the detailed descriptions and well-labelled diagrams of the experiments and all essential experiments are given.  The drawings were often traditional clipart drawings which you could easily duplicate for exams using your pencils, unlike the diagrams nowadays in US texts which tend to replace them by real objects and students may not know the skill to draw the schematic diagrams which they need to produce in examinations.

Areas that can be Improved for the textbook:

  I was first exposed to this text when I was an A-level student - this was the other recommended text besides Nelkon and Parker.  However, I found it a little difficult to follow as the concepts and ideas were not introduced in the sequence taught by my lecturers or tutors, this was further complicated by the fact that the tutors did not point out specifically where I could refer to for each chapter of the text.  To give you an example, for the study of thermal physics I had to look at one chapter for the various bonds of the materials to see how they affected specific heat capacity and another chapter for example on gas laws.  Examples in the texts were also too few and so I found it difficult to scaffold  my learning and found it difficult to apply what I have learnt to the questions given for tutorials.  So eventually, I still stuck on to my Nelkon and Parker.  As a teacher, I got around this problem, as I was familiar with the instructional objectives of each topic, so I usually search for the information I need through the glossary, e.g. suppose I was looking for information on Conservation of Energy, I would then go to the glossary and read through all the relevant pages on Conservation of Energy.

 As usual, end of chapter problems were usually UK A-level examination questions,  therefore they pose difficulty to a student new to the topic as there was too great a jump from the concepts to the application of concepts to exam-style question.  It would have been better to have some simpler questions that were first relevant and arranged according to the concepts introduced and then the slightly more difficult ones that were more at the examination level, and then finally the examination style questions.

[Note:  Diagram is taken of http://www.amazon.co.uk/.  In the case that anyone wishes for me to remove it I can easily do so.]

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Recommended Textbooks for Advanced Level Physics Part 1 : United Kingdom Text - Physics by Robert Hutchings

Somehow, after 3 months into the Pre-university Physics course, many students would find themselves struggling in the course and approach the tutors for a recommended text.  We usually make a list of a few texts that we use but till date for the Singapore curriculum, we do not have a single text that can satisfy the needs of the Singapore A-level Physics.  As teachers, we ourselves refer to a few texts.  My suggestion is therefore as such.  Pick a textbook that you find readible....you may want to start off borrowing from the library and use it for a few chapters, see if you find it easy to read and understand. before buying it  Supplement with other textbooks from the library when needed.

In this series I will look at a few textbooks that I use in my teaching and preparation of lecture notes and my comments on them.

Basically, there are two types of textbooks that I use - the British Textbooks for A-levels and the US Textbooks. 

The key strength of the British Textbooks are:

• They are very targeted towards the A-levels.  Afterall, the Singapore A-level Physics students are sitting for the Cambridge paper.
• The language is written in a very British style, which is rather formal and precise.  Reading them helps to hone the skills in writing scientifically in a formal manner.
• The definitions are very precise, much more in my opinion to the US texts.  Therefore, they are the key source when I need to look for definitions to put in my lectures.
• There is great emphasis on the experiments that verifies the laws and concepts.  So detailed descriptions with setups are given.  This is great for design experiment questions when sitting for the examinations.
• Contains end of chapter questions that are from the UK examination board.

The key thing that puts me off is the organisation.  Somehow, it may not be very readible, lines after lines after lines of words which you have to go back many times to understand.  Many books are also monochrome with little diagrams and diagrams that are in black-and-white do not appeal to me.  Questions are usually just examination style questions, they do not scaffold learning and are usually not arranged in a manner which follows the sequence the concepts were introduced.

Book 1: Physics (Bath Advanced Science) by Robert Hutchings

This is the textbook that many Physics tutors would refer to for definitions especially when there are disputes amongst ourselves on how much is needed in the definition.  It can a simple argument as to whether "gravitational field strength can be defined as force on a unit charge", which by the way is not accepted by many tutors - it should be "force per unit charge" which conveys a different meaning.

It is mainly the key text as Hutching has been one of the Chief Examiners for the Cambridge A-level Physics paper that Singapore students have been taking for many years.

The book was first published when I was a student and I could not fully appreciate the text.  After reading the topic I often found it lacking in sufficient depth nor scaffolding enough for me to attempt the tutorial questions given to me.   

However, one particular advantage that this text had over others were that there was almost a Data Analysis (DA) question at the end of every topic.  At that time the DA question was relatively new, and very and almost no books carried them and yet we were to be assessed.   For those of you not familiar with what DA questions are, they are questions that gives a set of real life information of and allows you to make analysis on the relationships.  The question itself is very long with alot of information given as figures, charts graphs and the students are given a set of questions which they are expected to decipher and pick out only the relevant data to solve the question at hand.  Questions are very authetic e.g.  apply Conservation of Linear Momentum to the various ball games like cricket, tennis, golf etc.

As a teacher, this is still the key source of reference which I go to for definitions and DA questions.  I have learnt to appreciate some of the intermediate examples set by Hutchings e.g. the long question (which I think contains part (a) to (j)) on the use of indicator diagrams in gas law...doing that question alone helps student really familiarise with the use of First Law of Thermodynamics and the different thermal processes like isothermal, isobaric and isochoric processes.