a mini-post you can have fun with
I managed to survive a bit of remote online instruction. While it doesn't fit my teaching style, it seems clear it's going to be with us for awhile. Labs are a big issue for science and engineering courses. Watching videos and running simulations isn't a rich experience, but what is? A few of us have been thinking about that recently. The fact that most students have access to a smartphone opens up some real possibilities. A smartphone is basically a computer with a lot of sensors and a network connection. The trick is to get raw data from the sensors and devise experiments students can run or - better yet - design on their own. You need an app with a good interface.
I know of a few projects working on apps to get at sensor data. They tend to fill different niches, but there are some existing apps.
recommendation
Get phyphox from Apple's AppStore or GooglePlay. (if you have a choice I recommend the iPhone version as the variety and quality of sensors is well-defined). It's a free download from Bergische Universität Wuppertal. Their webpage (English and German) has some experiments including some videos and forums. It's a great starting point.
Chemistry seems more difficult and I think biology needs real samples if you're going to get serious, but I'm confident we'll see some inventiveness. We'll probably see other sensors and adaptors that attach to phones. Microscopes are naturals and I have an ultrasound adaptor that is a dandy bat detector. Some would be easy - like a simple spectrograph and others would take some design and manufacture. Many could be vastly cheaper than current lab gear if enough units were sold. A school system or university could just give them to students. Also old smartphones can be donated to kids who don't have one - you don't need a network connection for most of this.
Engineering has huge possibilities with Arduino kits and simple sensors and actuators. So much exists - it's a question of crafting projects and instruction.
I would love to see inexpensive, easy to calibrate environmental sensors. Environmental work would be a lot of fun and could engage students socially and politically. Imagine mapping out toxic substances at the block level around the country. Collaborative student science.
And all of this works for the amateur at home. Perhaps someone needs to restart SciAm's old Amateur Scientist column or create and Amateur Technologist... and I'm particularly interested in the intersection of this and art (folks like Shuli would probably be or already are all over it as she's already in the space).
And I'm working on an amateur project of my own. (although that's usually the case)
exciting times
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