Education prepares you to be a member of the disciplined group that will run our country effectively. Education also can prepare you for the opportunities and qualities of living which can be challenging, exciting, and emotionally satisfying. But nobody owes this to you!! For example: you would not wish to drive over a bridge or have a serious medical operation, if respectively the engineers, or medical doctors did not know what they were doing at the highest possible level. And so think and think deeply, as you prepare yourself for your future.

Professor Henry Gurr
February 1999 (v31)

Discussion. As you learn Physics, you are going through very large concept shifts many of which:

1. Are expressed in highly abstract & compact equations.
2. Are expressed in a very specialized language. This language is chosen to achieve exact application and a wide range of general usage.
3. Involve strange ideas. Many of these ideas are invisible, such as atoms, molecules, or force fields!
4. Are opposite to what you would think. Some physics ideas violate our common sense and thus often appear illogical, useless, and even wrong to the unenlightened beginning student.(See Footnote 3)
5. Involve an enormous amount of effort, even drudgery, to gain necessary skill in this knowledge.

Because of the above, many of the learning steps in science, and especially physics, involve concept mix-ups, uncertainty, logical contradictions and strenuous need to sort out confusion. This is why you must take control of your learning. You must constantly be asking both simple (and deep pondering) questions. For example, you should be asking yourself and those around you:

1. Why does that happen?
2. But that seems to contradict________.
3. If that’s true, then what would happen is__________.
4. But I know it doesn’t happen that way!
5. But I do not see how such could be true.
6. I don’t see______.
7. You are telling me that_________but________.

You must notice small problems and take action and ask questions. Otherwise you are probably not learning at a deep enough level! If you avoid this effort, you are wasting your time in Physics!!!

II. In the USCA Catalogue under Mission Statement you would read the following: Communicating effectively using numerical, notational, and other symbolic systems. In this area the Objectives for Physics Class are:

1. To learn how to construct coherent mental pictures of the physical world by means of equations, maps, meaningful diagrams, and graphical data summaries.
2. To somehow not accept the symbol systems, words on paper, maps, etc. as the end goal of physics or science classes. You are to use the symbol systems as "pointers", which are trying to direct your attention to the deeper reality that is in the events and processes of the word itself. You have to learn how not to be blocked by these very symbolic systems which trying to show you something beyond the symbol system itself. In other words; do not confuse the map with what the map is trying to show.
3. To realize that Human Communication is highly dependant on the knowledge and thinking skills of the listener or reader.(See Footnote 4) Therefore nearly all communication may be either ambiguous or at best unclear. This is especially true for any new subject you are expected to learn. As you are well aware, you must already know a topic X before you can understand (or even hear) a discussion of topic X.(See Footnote 5)
4. To achieve full integration of the "world of daily experience" with the symbolic "paper world" in physics class. You are to realize that learning facts, collecting data, making calculations, writing lab reports, and solving problems, although necessary and important, are not an end in themselves. If you sometimes have the feeling "I’m never going to use this stuff……… ever", then you have already missed the point! These activities are a means to achieve a much more important objective: You should be using what you have learned in Physics to build a new world-view: You are to see that you are building up an abstract system of knowledge which is altogether a system for perception into what is happening in the Physical, Biological, and Chemical world and a very specialized system for guiding your actions in that world! The difficulty of building this new world-view leads to the following.

Discussion. The science student and science professor may easily fall into a kind of hidden trap. Activities such as reading, problem solving, writing lab reports, are a symbolic world (all on paper) and these activities can easily become sort of an artificial "paper world" or "ivory tower" which effectively becomes divorced from the real world itself.(See Footnote 6) This happens because 95% of what students are doing is in that purely symbolic world and on paper! Professors cause this problem. There are additional reasons that compound the problem:

1. The steps necessary to achieve what we shall call "full integration" of learned material with the physical world are (by the evidence) not at all easy for students to achieve.(See Footnote 7)
2. Moreover, it is not possible to directly point or directly teach how to achieve the proper integration. And because of the compounding difficulties, an attempted "direct teaching" would probably cause even more confusion.
3. Many of the actual topics of physics involve concepts like atoms, fields, and forces, which are invisible and intangible.
4. From which it follows that the integration of these concepts with worldly events requires students to accomplish additional conceptual tasks, which are invisible and elusive!
5. In addition to not being able to teach this integration, it is not easy to test for it. There are too many interwoven "tasks" to be learned, and too many ways to "get it wrong" For this reason testing (to be sure you have "put it together" correctly) is not possible. And any attempt to do so would involve many vague and misleading questions, causing great time loss and confusion and misdirected effort.

In view of the above, how are you to proceed?

Your prior education is of limited help because most professors accept that "passing the test" is a sufficient performance standard. Your physics professor will try to help by regularly showing "real world" applications and by making available lots of "things" (physical demonstrations) for you to play with. But you must take the time to get involved. Sometimes it is important to just enjoy playing and discovering. And always be asking "What am I supposed to see?"

Your textbook Conceptual Physics is an excellent guide here to very important topics and productive ways to look at physics. Do not be put off by "simplistic" presentation and all the cartoons. Despite appearances, this book will be a reliable guide in how to apply Physics to the world.

Just knowing (from these pages) that deeper physics objectives exist will be a good start! Perhaps the following discussion will help.

As stated above, the world and how you look at it scientifically, are to become one inter-woven fabric! Here you will notice considerable emphasis on "integrating" (bringing together) what you have learned with what you see happening around you. You should actively and intensely observe and think about everything that goes on around you. Actively think and ponder.

Notice small discrepancies. Pursue points of confusion. With these two habits you acquire additional knowledge & insight and thus achieve an ever more solid and coherent understanding of the phenomena in question. You are to realize that you are the only person "close enough" (to what’s "going on" in your own mind) to know what you know and what you should learn better. You are the only one who can know reliably; 1) If you are confused. 2) Have contradictory thinking/knowledge. 3) If you have not taken the time to gain skill and accuracy in calculations. 4) If you have not taken the time to look at a suggested demonstration apparatus.

Waiting for the professor to find out you have not completed important learning can never be allowed for the person who wants to learn: The professor may never find your omission or it may happen too late!(See Footnote 8)

You are the only person who can ask questions and press for answers and seek the "coherence that produces powerful understanding". You need to realize that how many perceptive (or even ordinary) questions you are asking yourself or other people, is a measure of how well you are taking leadership in the process of noticing, paying attention, thinking, and thereby creating your own intellectual growth. These are the basic habits of outstanding people of all walks of life and in every good student. (See footnote #4)

It is hoped you see that taking your own initiative will yield much more satisfactory learning: 1) You know when you are learning properly. 2) The evident power and usefulness of what you have learned, will actually help you enjoy and be rewarded by the learning that you accomplish! 3) Ultimately, you will see that you have to desire to learn and be your own quality control. You must notice when something doesn’t make any sense. You must always be on the look-out for contradictions or any even small error. In addition you must actively seek to combine real world events with the textbook topics you are learning.

1. You are to realize that academic grades are not (and can never be) an effective measure of what you as a student have accomplished. Grades can at best provide only minimal guidance as to what you should be doing in order to further your own understanding of "how the world works"(i.e. real education). You are to realize that grades enforce(See Footnote 10) a very specific behavior, which may or may not be in your best interests. For reasons stated above, your education and learning, (what you desire for yourself) can only be under your control. And come to think of it, a good habit for the rest of your life!
2. Grades have the net effect of placing your efforts under the control of an other person. You end up doing only what you are told to do, which is clearly insufficient. Also this is not a good habit to allow in a country (ours!) where the stability of a democracy depends on persons who are intelligent, well trained, clear thinking, alert, free, and self-reliant. These are the necessary characteristics of citizens who take an active part in guiding the organizations and governing of the society in which they are immersed.
3. You are to realize that in general (but most especially in the present day education setting - See Footnote 11) working for a grade, even an A, will achieve outward form(See Footnote 12) of knowledge but very little of the intended function of education and knowledge(See Footnote 13). You, the learner, must truly and earnestly desire(See Footnote 14) knowledge for its own sake. You must want knowledge for yourself, for your future life and life work. Then and only then, will your study be productive. You’ll study differently and ask a lot of penetrating questions. You’ll search for meaning and acquire habits that help you gain knowledge more rapidly. You’ll see things differently and gain much more satisfaction from your efforts. Perhaps the work is harder in some ways, but ultimately much more rewarding despite the concentrated effort.(See Footnote 15) And besides, a grade of "A" may happen without your even worrying about it!

What has been stated above is contrary to much of your educational experience. I hope you see the 1) necessity to take personal control of your education, 2) the necessity of achieving intensive integration of the symbolic "paper world", with the real world, combined with 3) need for paying close attention to small discrepancies/confusion and 4) the problem of grades. The objective of this physics course will be to help you discover and practice how to learn in this way. Talk to your professor, if you doubt or have trouble discovering how to proceed.

Accessory Objective A: Changing & improving the manner in which you learn is also an objective of this Physics class. And thus the study of processes of learning, perception, and memory become student learning objectives:

1. To learn how to learn even more effectively and reliably.
2. To learn what learning modes (styles) work best for you and
3. To become quite skilled at seeing new ideas, despite conceptual blocks.
4. To learn how to work with fellow students to help each other learn effectively and have more fun and challenge.
5. To learn how to increase attentiveness, curiosity, and interest in the correspondence between (what’s happening in the world) and (what you know) both with common sense and a scientific mind.
6. To learn to be constantly to be alert to (even small) discrepancies between what’s happening in the world and what you know.

Accessory Objective B: Proceeding from the above discussion there are the following correlated objectives:

1. To take leadership to assist the professor and class to actually do those things that yield productive learning.
2. To shift your lab report writing into topics you need to write about, in order to promote learning in areas that need the greatest development.

As has been pointed out by many authors, the "ivory tower/paper symbolic world", discussed earlier in this document, achieves the form of knowledge but not the function of knowledge. In this appendix we examine why and how certain activities (possibly self-defeating) can become solidly entrenched in a human society.(See Footnote 16)

In any culture, there are necessary activities such as finding food, protection from danger, providing shelter, etc. These activities are necessary for survival (i.e. the function). Each new child must treat as valuable what they see (and experience) in the grown-ups around them. Then they must learn how to perform the same activities. And then as adults take up the responsibility of actually doing these activities the rest of their life. The survival of the community depends on it! This is how it should and must be. But inevitably some part(s) of the learned activity may be wrong or incomplete, especially in times of rapid change like our own times. In addition, an even more serious problem arises. Each generation learns merely the surface " appearances" (i.e. the form) of what is to be learned but does not learn the reasons (i.e. the function) for these activities. So after several generations, people are performing actions that complete just the "surface appearances" leaving out entirely what was at one time, the intended purpose of the activity. (Here study the Astrology discussion of footnote 16.) When people do not learn the reasons that once informed, guided, gave purpose to their actions, the intended purpose (function) is forgotten and often no longer achieved! We recognize these actions in our own time as "cultural" or "traditional".(See Footnote 17) These words are a clue identifying human actions that take place devoid of the original reason for doing them. The form is there, but function is long since gone. (See Footnote 18)

When you grow up in a society it is very difficult to see this form vs. function problem. People around you don’t see the problem, because (nearly) everyone has forgotten (or never learned) their history. But once you do see this "problem" you will see countless examples everywhere, language, fashion, architecture, religion etc. And the consequences in wasted effort and misplaced purpose, and confusion, are great indeed! The wheel turns around and around with more and more accumulated dross, with less and less reason to do it! The Forms vs. Function disparity will afflict you until you learn to recognize it!

Your physics professor believes that much of that which passes as education in our own time is surface appearance (form) of learning and knowledge but not the real thing! The true purpose (function) of education is not being adequately achieved.