How Do You Mass What You Cannot See? Using Paper Clips to Help Students Learn How Electron Mass Was First Measured

Authors

Rob Hingstrum, Logan-Magnolia High School, Logan, Iowa
Jacob Pleasants, Portage High School, Portage, Wisconsin
Shannon McLaughlin, Norwalk High School, Norwalk, IowaFollow

Document Type

Article

Abstract

Many students wrongly presume that scientific knowledge is mysteriously discovered and often believe the development of this knowledge is beyond their ability to comprehend. The activity presented here – appropriate for high-school chemistry and physics students – challenges these misconceptions. Students are engaged in thinking and creativity similar to how the first scientists accurately measured the mass and charge of an electron. Through this process, students develop a deep understanding of how the mass and charge of an individual electron was determined. This activity addresses National Science Education Standards A, B, E, and G and Iowa teaching Standards 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6.

Publication Date

Winter 2011

Volume

38

Issue

1

First Page

8

Last Page

12

Copyright

© Copyright 2011 by the Iowa Academy of Science

Language

en

File Format

application/pdf

Recommended Citation

Hingstrum, Rob; Pleasants, Jacob; and McLaughlin, Shannon (2011) "How Do You Mass What You Cannot See? Using Paper Clips to Help Students Learn How Electron Mass Was First Measured," Iowa Science Teachers Journal: Vol. 38: No. 1, Article 4.
Available at: https://scholarworks.uni.edu/istj/vol38/iss1/4