Day 22: Computational Model for Atomic Model of an Ideal Gas

Yesterday, I presented the atomic model of an ideal gas, which students are familiar with from chemistry, from a physics perspective. I didn’t have a paradigm lab to introduce this model. Instead, I shared a GlowScript computational model ported from the VPython hard-sphere model of a gas. We didn’t have time to explore the model today, but will on Monday.

Screen Shot 2014-09-20 at 12.38.59 AM

This evening, I read about a much better way to start this unit from Scott Thomas. He had his students develop and explore this computation model over an extended period of times and find the relationship between average kinetic energy and temperature. Next year will be better!

  ##thermo ##paradigmlab ##computationalmodeling ##setbacks  

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