Table of Contents
Jose-Miguel Zamarro
Murcia
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The WAVES application allows to introduce the basic concepts about this topic providing an efficient tool to simulate different situations. A main window appears when the application is running with a display where waves under a string will be shown. A toggle button allows to call a control panel from which you can select and change a wide variety of features.
The program is intended to support the presentation of concepts about waves during lectures. It has been developed with Xdev.
WAVES can show the propagation of a perturbation, the dynamics of the propagation along a string, the superposition of travelling waves of opposite direction, the reflection at the end of a string with different reflection coefficients and standing waves.
The topic is important for introductory courses and first university level. It should be of special interest for those students who do not have a deeper knowledge of mathematics but need to acquire a qualitative understanding about waves, e.g. students of life science.
The standard approach to this topic is by introducing definitions and using mathematics to describe the phenomenon.
Wave is a classic topic where animation is an important feature in the teaching process. Using the simulation program WAVES, teachers can use a dynamic medium to teach a dynamic phenomenon. Additionally they have the opportunity to explain these concepts without any mathematical overload. This program will be implemented within an Electronic Book about this topic.
The subtopics which can be covered with this program are:
- Introduction to the concept of waves
- Qualitative understanding of the dynamic of the transmission of a perturbation through a string.
- Visualization of superposition.
- Reflection.
- Standing waves and resonance.
All parameters of the model can be modified interactively.
The model used in the simulation is based in a fundamental feature of waves, the perturbation in one point at an instant is equal to the perturbation one instant before in the preceding point.
To show three different displays with animation and to modify in real time the parameters of the model makes use of high speed machines with outstanding graphic capabilities. These features are regarded as something essential to achieve an adequate appearance of the simulation.
A on-line text describing the main aspects of the program is available.
The application is useful for a teacher who wants to introduce the basic concept of waves. It facilitates to perform the appropriated simulations to introduce the concepts.
An evaluation will be performed by some teachers and reduced groups of students. A chapter of an Electronic Book, written for this application, will be used. It is expected that the introduction of a qualitative understanding of basic concepts will support the following introduction of mathematical methods, especially the wave equation.