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Physical Review Physics Education Research
written by Alexander Volfson, Haim Eshach, and Yuval Ben-Abu
Circular motion is embedded in many circus tricks, and is also one of the most challenging topics for both students and teachers. Previous studies have identified several misconceptions about circular motion, and especially about the forces that act upon a rotating object. A commonly used demonstration of circular motion laws by physics teachers is spinning a bucket full of water in the vertical plane further explaining why the water did not spill out when the bucket was upside down. One of the central misconceptions regarding circular motion is the existence of so-called centrifugal force: Students mistakenly believe that when an object spins in a circular path, there is real force acting on the object in the radial direction pulling it out of the path. Thus, one of the most frequently observed naïve explanations is that the gravity force mg is compensated by the centrifugal force on the top of the circular trajectory and thus, water does not spill down. In the present study we decided to change the context of the problem from a usual physics class demonstration to a relatively unusual informal environment of a circus show and investigate the spectators' ideas regarding circular motion in this context. Thus, the goal of the present study is to examine the concepts of a heteroaged population regarding circular motion phenomenon provided in the context of a circus number as expressed in focus-group interviews following the number.
Physical Review Physics Education Research: Volume 16, Issue 1, Pages 010134
Subjects Levels Resource Types
Classical Mechanics
- Motion in Two Dimensions
Education Foundations
- Alternative Conceptions
Education Practices
- Informal Education
- Learning Environment
General Physics
- Physics Education Research
- Scientific Reasoning
- Informal Education
- Reference Material
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Free access
License:
This material is released under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license.
Rights Holder:
American Physical Society
DOI:
10.1103/PhysRevPhysEducRes.16.010134
Keywords:
centripetal force, circular motion, circular motion survey, circus physics, focus groups, inertia, informal focus groups, kinematics focus group, physics misconceptions
Record Creator:
Metadata instance created June 15, 2020 by Lyle Barbato
Record Updated:
December 30, 2022 by Caroline Hall
Last Update
when Cataloged:
June 2, 2020
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AIP Format
A. Volfson, H. Eshach, and Y. Ben-Abu, , Phys. Rev. Phys. Educ. Res. 16 (1), 010134 (2020), WWW Document, (https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevPhysEducRes.16.010134).
AJP/PRST-PER
A. Volfson, H. Eshach, and Y. Ben-Abu, Identifying physics misconceptions at the circus: The case of circular motion, Phys. Rev. Phys. Educ. Res. 16 (1), 010134 (2020), <https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevPhysEducRes.16.010134>.
APA Format
Volfson, A., Eshach, H., & Ben-Abu, Y. (2020, June 2). Identifying physics misconceptions at the circus: The case of circular motion. Phys. Rev. Phys. Educ. Res., 16(1), 010134. Retrieved May 3, 2025, from https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevPhysEducRes.16.010134
Chicago Format
Volfson, A, H. Eshach, and Y. Ben-Abu. "Identifying physics misconceptions at the circus: The case of circular motion." Phys. Rev. Phys. Educ. Res. 16, no. 1, (June 2, 2020): 010134, https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevPhysEducRes.16.010134 (accessed 3 May 2025).
MLA Format
Volfson, Alexander, Haim Eshach, and Yuval Ben-Abu. "Identifying physics misconceptions at the circus: The case of circular motion." Phys. Rev. Phys. Educ. Res. 16.1 (2020): 010134. 3 May 2025 <https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevPhysEducRes.16.010134>.
BibTeX Export Format
@article{ Author = "Alexander Volfson and Haim Eshach and Yuval Ben-Abu", Title = {Identifying physics misconceptions at the circus: The case of circular motion}, Journal = {Phys. Rev. Phys. Educ. Res.}, Volume = {16}, Number = {1}, Pages = {010134}, Month = {June}, Year = {2020} }
Refer Export Format

%A Alexander Volfson %A Haim Eshach %A Yuval Ben-Abu %T Identifying physics misconceptions at the circus: The case of circular motion %J Phys. Rev. Phys. Educ. Res. %V 16 %N 1 %D June 2, 2020 %P 010134 %U https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevPhysEducRes.16.010134 %O application/pdf

EndNote Export Format

%0 Journal Article %A Volfson, Alexander %A Eshach, Haim %A Ben-Abu, Yuval %D June 2, 2020 %T Identifying physics misconceptions at the circus: The case of circular motion %J Phys. Rev. Phys. Educ. Res. %V 16 %N 1 %P 010134 %8 June 2, 2020 %U https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevPhysEducRes.16.010134


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