Olympia Education Center

Today I’m thinking about a simple question: Which “modern physics achievements” are actually in massive everyday demand—yet are still only lightly covered in algebra-based General Physics?

If we want General Physics to feel connected to the real world (and real jobs), we should stop treating modern technology as an occasional “application” and instead add short, targeted modern inserts that connect directly to the classical topics we already teach.

Here are the biggest gaps that students encounter immediately in life and in industry:

✅ Semiconductors & devices (diodes, LEDs, solar cells, transistors) — the physics of how electronics truly work
✅ Power electronics & electrification (chargers, inverters, EV powertrains, grid issues) — the “electricity of civilization”
✅ Wireless/RF basics (antennas, propagation, interference, noise/SNR) — why Wi-Fi works… and why it fails
✅ Photonics & lasers (sources, detectors, fiber optics) — the backbone of telecom, imaging, and sensing
✅ Sensors everywhere (MEMS, inertial sensing, calibration, drift, noise, sampling) — turning the world into data
✅ Medical physics as systems (CT/MRI/ultrasound tradeoffs: resolution, dose, time, safety)
✅ Quantum technologies (lite but real) — qubits as fragile systems, decoherence, sensing, and what “quantum advantage” really means
✅ Physics of computation/AI — heat, energy limits, and why data centers are becoming an infrastructure story

The best part: these don’t require a new course. Many can be taught as 20–40 minute inserts exactly where they belong (after Gauss’s law → MOS/ESD; after EM waves → antennas & link budget; after optics → lasers & fiber; after energy/thermo → computing heat & efficiency).

If you teach General Physics: Which one “modern insert” would you add first—and where in the syllabus would you place it?

https://docs.google.com/document/d/e/2PACX-1vT8f3XYMUm9eA7LHPmvUtG5tNOxoKkKQ9tJEHMZTSYKMYAWlf07k5X_2bFBvnZhGqhoddt930ZQFkBj/pub

Physics Survey/Quiz Part 1. Formulate physics problems suitable for a general college-level Physics I course based on algebra, in which two different parameters, a and b, of different physical types, but describing the same object, process, or phenomenon, are given. The solutions to your problems should be the followin...

Invitation to Participate in the Survey: Algebra-Based General Physics 1: Physical Contextualization of Mathematical Formulas

Dear student, educator, scientist, or engeneer,

I would like to invite you to participate in a study that aims to explore the connection between mathematical formulas and their physical context in the course of Algebra-Based General Physics 1: Kinematics, Mechanics, Mechanical Waves, Thermodynamics. This test-survey will focus on understanding how students and specialists conceptualize and interpret mathematical expressions in physical terms.

Your insights will contribute to enhancing teaching strategies and bridging the gap between abstract mathematical operations and physical phenomena. This initiative is an essential step in fostering a deeper understanding of physics concepts through a more intuitive approach to learning.

The test-survey can be accessed through the following link:
https://forms.gle/Wb1NpJmndyWMzfyN7

Your participation is highly valued. Your responses will remain confidential and will be used solely for educational purposes.

Thank you for your time and support in helping improve our approach to teaching physics.

Best regards,
Vasiliy Znamenskiy
Ph.D. in Physics and Math Sciences
[email protected]

Algebra-Based General Physics 1: Physical Contextualization of Mathematical Formulas Kinematic s, Mechanics, Mechanical Waves, Thermodynamics

Instantaneous velocity: when limits lose their meaning

The textbook definition of instantaneous velocity as a time derivative—the limit of Δr/Δt as Δt → 0—is plainly non-physical if taken literally. A derivative assumes smooth trajectories, whereas in the real world, as we shrink the scale without bound, we run into the granularity of matter (voids between atoms, collisions, etc.). In gases, if we mindlessly drive Δr and Δt to zero, instead of a meaningful “flow velocity” we just see the chaotic thermal speed of molecules. In computer modeling the situation is similar due to discrete time in numerical schemes and the discreteness of numbers in machine arithmetic.

So how should we define instantaneous velocity in a way that has a literal physical meaning?

Question to colleagues:
How do you formulate “instantaneous velocity” in your courses to avoid the literal but non-physical Δt→0? What windows/“plateau” criteria do you use? Examples from your lab or numerical work are very welcome!

🎓 119 Formulas for Algebra-Based General Physics I (FREE)

I’m sharing a concise, classroom-ready Physics I formula sheet—perfect for students, tutors, and instructors who want clean algebraic solution forms (no integrals or summations). Covers all the essentials in SI units.

🔗 Open the sheet:
https://docs.google.com/document/d/e/2PACX-1vSMveGyJsXRFRkqyGYixYRG-vAycznYgxPs6wfYyeAhE9zIcQlVd1coVXFn80FREFdqq7YD8R9iRHqv/pub

What’s inside:
• Kinematics & projectiles: average/relative velocity, time of flight, range, max height
• Forces & energy: friction, inclines, work–energy, springs, pendulum basics
• Momentum & collisions: impulse, conservation, elastic vs. inelastic outcomes
• Rotation (algebra-based): angular kinematics, common moments of inertia, rolling
• Fluids & thermo: hydrostatics, buoyancy, continuity, Bernoulli, PV = nRT, heat/phase change
• Waves & oscillations: frequency, wavelength, wave speed, simple harmonic motion
• Quick “end-of-problem” expressions: stopping distance, loop-the-loop, etc.
• Constants and handy models (e.g., damped motion amplitude: A(t) = A₀ exp(−b t / (2m)))

If this helps you or your students, please share!

119 Formulas for Algebra-Based General Physics Ⅰ 4. v = v₀ + a t 5. Δx = v₀ t + ½ a t² 6. v² = v₀² + 2 a Δx 7. Average speed (uniform a, straight line): v̄ = (v₀ + v)/2

🚀 Just published!
👉 https://docs.google.com/document/d/e/2PACX-1vSs_PHn-e0S5tOkyz0p0qcvyMH7XJmRXLIvZ78YwbqAAzzzwGqVa0FBLZfm6elIG7G_2jXmCrWYHtMN/pub

I’d love your feedback—what stands out, what’s missing, and how you might use it. Re-shares appreciated!

Algebra-Based General Physics 1 Formula Set https://docs.google.com/document/d/12znxPMGG2LHnT5rKoGlrc7dG6L4NFHoSlgt7o-zmf_Y/edit?usp=sharing https://docs.google.com/document/d/e/2PACX-1vSs_PHn-e0S5tOkyz0p0qcvyMH7XJmRXLIvZ78YwbqAAzzzwGqVa0FBLZfm6elIG7G_2jXmCrWYHtMN/pub

Problem. A boat is drifting in still water and gradually slowing down due to a drag force proportional to its speed. At times t₁ and t₂, measured from the start of drifting, the boat’s speeds are v₁ and v₂, respectively. What is its speed at the moment exactly halfway between t₁ and t₂?

Try testing your intuition. Consider the following problems. First, try answering the questions without writing anything down, and then test yourself by writing out the formulas.
1) An object starts moving from the origin and moves along the x-axis with a constant, non-zero velocity. At times t₁ and t₂ (measured from the origin), its coordinates are x₁ and x₂, respectively. For which type of mean (arithmetic, geometric, harmonic, root mean square) is the following expression true:
x(mean(t₁, t₂)) = mean(x₁, x₂)?
The mean over time must be the same as the type of mean over coordinates.

2) An object starts moving and moves along the x-axis from a non-zero coordinate x with a constant, non-zero velocity. At times t₁ and t₂ (measured from the origin), its coordinates are x₁ and x₂, respectively. For which type of mean value (arithmetic, geometric, harmonic, root mean square) is the following expression valid:
x(mean(t₁, t₂)) = mean(x₁, x₂)?
The type of time mean must be the same as the type of coordinate mean.

3) A body starts moving from the origin and moves along the x-axis with constant, nonzero acceleration. At times t₁ and t₂ (measured from the origin), its coordinates are x₁ and x₂, respectively. For which type of mean value (arithmetic, geometric, harmonic, root mean square) is the expression valid:
x(mean(t₁, t₂)) = mean(x₁, x₂)?
The time-average type must be the same as the coordinate-average type.

https://docs.google.com/document/d/e/2PACX-1vTA7QWx6pYETiqse2YTqxBdP6kPC3SLL4fAysQd2B8xtJL25DZBL4WiJLNY3rS0axnRAd-9t4qzEM5f/pub

R12 Equivalent Resistance Reduction Steps Because white node 1 is connected by ideal wire to the adjacent black node (and likewise for white node 2), they share the same potential. We can delete the white nodes and their leads and solve the problem by finding the voltage between the two black nodes.

Please write critical comments about the following article manuscript:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1lkmAqFfMDv9sCVyvXMfYWK-XlfotKr7Q0m-YA_VK0GA/edit?usp=sharing

https://docs.google.com/document/d/e/2PACX-1vT5N3T4XMoGvk-c9C2JsuK8R5IeDAvKLrhUMMLZNjEGQsRyG0y3JMo9cW1z7hcM1Pr936i0MEL3pv4G/pub

Educational Exercise:
Physical Interpretation of Binary Algebraic Operations on Two Variables

Educational Exercise: Physical Interpretation of Binary Algebraic Operations on Two Variables binary algebraic operations; physical interpretation; physics education; mathematical expressions; problem solving; cognitive development; physical intuition; teaching methods; mathematics–physics connection