Partnership for Integration of Computation into Undergraduate Physics

This is the first of a series of computational/graphing activities on scalars and vectors designed for the intermediate Electricity & Magnetism course using a text such as Griffiths “Introduction to Electrodynamics”. These activities are 1. Scalar and Vector Fields 2. Div, Grad, Curl 3. Vector Fields Scalar and Vector Fields is an in-class activity that will introduce students to differences between scalar and vector fields as well as how to visualize them. This is a computational version created from the Five Minute Physics interactive simulations found at https://teaching.smp.uq.edu.au/fiveminutephysics/index.html#course=phys2055&lecture=Fields This is an exploratory activity for students to explore the visual representations of scalar and vector fields. Learning Outcome: Identify scalar vs. vector fields mathematically and visually. Be able to draw or plot simple field diagrams.