Ruth Chabay
North Carolina State University

Computing in the Introductory Physics Course

Traditionally the introductory calculus-based physics course has focused 
only on problems that can be solved analytically with algebra and basic 
calculus. In mechanics, this emphasis on a restricted set of problems with 
known solutions does not let students experience the power of the 
Newtonian synthesis, which allows the open-ended prediction of motion into 
the future, given initial conditions and interaction laws. In E&M, it 
restricts field calculations to special cases. The Matter & Interactions 
curriculum includes computation as an integral part of both the mechanics 
and E&M semesters. Students at NC State and other institutions using this 
curriculum write computer programs to predict and animate in 3D the 
behavior of interacting systems, and to calculate and display electric and 
magnetic fields in 3D. The introduction of computing into the curriculum 
raises a number of questions, including how to design highly efficient and 
effective instruction on computing, and how to identify and deal with the 
particular difficulties students have with computing in the context of 
physics. I will report on studies focusing on these issues in the context 
of mechanics, and will describe their impact on this component of 
instruction.