Physics

The goal of the "Quick Twenty" project is to create a quick and fun introduction to STEM songs in each field (biology, math, etc.), making it easy for instructors and administrators to understand how songs can be used for education, and leading to wider adoption of STEM songs for teaching. We think that a "quick twenty list" in each field (not intended to be an objective and authoritative ranking; more like "twenty diverse examples of good songs") will accomplish this.

Between 2005 and 2017, three musical theatre productions were self-penned and produced, all promoting understanding of key concepts in the historical and theoretical development of Physics. This session will outline some of the successes this approach to pedagogy has had and the extent to which musical theatre can enable the understanding and enjoyment of complex concepts in the teaching and learning of Physics, as well giving all those involved an understanding that creativity and imagination are behind all intellectual and artistic endeavours.

The works discussed will include:

The video poster will be a brief outline of a project funded by the Stephen Hawking Foundation to create five music videos about high school physics. Research was done prior to their creation to inform the best approach to the song writing, video production, and accompanying resources and evaluation was conducted on the efficacy of the videos and their appeal to students and teachers.

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This presentation will document a project in collaboration with the Physics department of the University of Oxford in which physicists used collaborative songwriting to reach children from hard to reach populations around Oxford. The presentation will outline the project, and the evaluation data, and ask in what ways the lessons learned can be applied to a classroom setting, and also how lyrics can be used for assessment for learning.

Lynda Williams, a.k.a. The Physics Chanteuse, will share songs and stories about her career as a science entertainer and producing and performing science songs for clients such as PBS, NPR, AAS, APS, AGU, AAAS, and other scientific organizations, featuring favorite songs such as "Annie Jump Cannon," "Freaky Wave," "The Lovon," "Nuclear Winter," and "Forensic Entomology."

Check out her blog at:
http://lyndalovon.blogspot.com/2014/09/lynda-williams-brief-resume.html

Atomic Clock will be presented as a music video poster that explores the interplay between objective time set by clocks and subjective time experienced by humans. It is produced by Rock In The Classroom which is a nonprofit organization that creates topical music videos for educational purposes and general audiences. A draft of our video will be included through the email link on the proposal page. Atomic Clock examines the possibility of time as an illusory construct even as most of us do not apply this principle to our daily lives.

There is a very extensive collection of music videos from all over the world available in www.youtube.com. Some of them were, unwittingly I think, made so that they are excellent illustrations of a physical law. As an example we have the case of Newton's Second Law using the Atwood Machine, illustrated in the video of a song "The Logger" (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iA5RGI3zn20).