PERC 2010 Abstract Detail Page
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| Abstract Title: | Investigating student understanding of thermodynamics concepts and underlying integration concepts |
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| Abstract: | As part of work on student understanding of concepts in advanced thermal physics, we are exploring student understanding of the mathematics underlying physics concepts. One area in which we have done this is with integration in the contexts of thermodynamic (P-V) work, which is process-dependent, and changes in internal energy, a (process-independent) state function. Physics majors answered paired questions, one in a physics context and the other an analogous integration question stripped of physical context, to investigate whether some of the difficulties identified as physics conceptual difficulties could have origins in the mathematics. We found similar difficulties in the work and one-dimensional integral questions. With state functions, student performance strongly favored the physics version. We also asked the math questions to calculus students, with similar results. Our findings have implications for mathematical roots of some physics conceptual difficulties and for student understanding of, and the overlooked sophistication of, canonical representations. |
| Abstract Type: | Contributed Poster |
Author/Organizer Information | |
| Primary Contact: |
John R. Thompson University of Maine Dept. of Physics and Astronomy 5709 Bennett Hall Orono, ME 04469-5709 |
| Co-Author(s) and Co-Presenter(s) |
Donald B. Mountcastle, University of Maine |
