Many students do not know what it means to add two functions graphically. Students are shown graphs of two simple functions and asked to sketch the sum.
Write something you know about angular momentum.
Write one thing you know about the derivative.
Write the equation for the electrostatic potential due to a point charge.
Instructor's Guide
Prerequisite Knowledge
Students will usually have seen the electrostatic potential due to a point charge in their introductory course, but may have trouble recalling it.Whole-Class Conversations
As students try to remember the formula, many will conflate potential, potential energy, force, and electric field. Their answers may have some aspects of each of these. We use this question to get the iconic equation into the students' working memory in preparation for subsequent activities. This question also be used to help student disambiguate these different physical quantities.
Correct answers you're likely to see
\[V=\frac{kq}{r}\]
\[V=\frac{1}{4\pi\epsilon_0}\frac{q}{r}\] You may want to discuss which constants to use in which contexts, e.g. \(k\) is short and easy to write, but may be conflated with other uses of \(k\) in a give problem whereas \(\frac{1}{4\pi\epsilon_0}\) assumes you are working in a particular system of units.
Incorrect answers you're likely to see
- Two charges instead of one \[\cancel{V=\frac{kq_{1}q_{2}}{r}}\]
- Distance squared in the denominator \[\cancel{V=\frac{kq}{r^2}}\]
- Vector values \[\cancel{V=\frac{kq\, \hat r}{r}}\]
Possible follow-up questions to help with the disambiguation:
- Relationship between potential and potential energy \(U = qV\)
- Which function is the derivative of the other: \(1/r\) or \(1/r^2\)?
- Which physical quantity (potential or electric field, potential energy or force) is the derivative of the other?
- What is the electrostatic potential conceptually?
- Which function falls off faster: \(1/r\) or \(1/r^2\)?
- What are the dimensions of potential? Units?
- Where is the zero of potential?
Wrap-up
- This could be a good time to refer to the (correct) expression for the potential as an iconic equation, which will need to be further interpreted (”unpacked”) in particular physical situations. This is where the course is going next.
- This SWBQ can also serve to help students learn about recall as a cognitive activity. While parts of the equations that students write may be incorrect, many other parts will be correct. Let the way in which you manage the class discussion model for the students how a professional goes about quickly disambiguating several different choices. And TELL the students that this is what you are doing. Deliberately invoke their metacognition.
- Many students may not know that the electrostatic potential that we are talking about in this activity is the same quantity as what a voltmeter reads, in principle, but not in practice. You may need to talk about how a voltmeter actually works, rather than idealizing it. It helps to have a voltmeter with leads as a prop. Students often want to know about the “ground” lead. We often tie a long string to it (to symbolize making a really long wire) and send the TA out of the room with the string, “headed off to infinity” while discussing the importance of setting the zero of potential. The extra minute or two of humerous byplay gives the importance of the zero of potential a chance to sink in.
We use this small whiteboard question as a transition between The Distance Formula (Star Trek) activity, where students are learning about how to describe (algebraically) the geometric distance between two points, and the Electrostatic Potential Due to a Pair of Charges (with Series) activity, where students are using these results and the superposition principle to find the electrostatic potential due to two point charges.
This activity is the initial activity in the sequence Visualizing Scalar Fields addressing the representations of scalar fields in the context of electrostatics.
Students are asked to "find the derivative" of a plastic surface that represents a function of two variables. This ambiguous question is designed to help them generalize their concept of functions of one variable to functions of two variables. The definition of the gradient as the slope and direction of the "steepest derivative" is introduced geometrically.
Students consider the relation (1) between the angular momentum and magnetic moment for a current loop and (2) the force on a magnetic moment in an inhomogeneous magnetic field. Students make a (classical) prediction of the outcome of a Stern-Gerlach experiment.
Write Newton's 2nd Law for a single mass.
Notes:
LG 2024: I added the Euler-Lagrange equation as an example of a generalized statement of Newton's 2nd Law. I'm planning on using a Lagrangian approach for the 2-body problem.
Students find a wavefunction that corresponds to a Gaussian probability density.
In this sequence of small whiteboard questions, students are shown the contour graph of a function of two variables and asked to find the derivative. They discover that, without a function to differentiate, they must instead think of the derivative as a ratio of small changes. This requires them to pick two nearby points. Which two?
Make a graph of \(r=\frac{2}{\pi}\, \phi\)
Student consider several curves on a spacetime diagram and have to judge which curves could be worldlines for an object.
Students each recall a representation of vectors that they have seen before and record it on an individual whiteboard. The instructor uses these responses to generate a whole class discussion that compares and contrasts the features of the representations. If appropriate for the class, the instructor introduces bra/ket notation as a new, but valuable representation.
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In this introductory lecture/SWBQ, students are given a picture as a guide. They then write down an algebraic expression for the vector differential in rectangular coordinates for coordinate equals constant paths.
This activity can be done as a mini-lecture/SWBQ as an introduction to Vector Differential--Curvilinear where students find the vector differential in cylindrical and spherical coordinates..