Introduction
I am writing a
first-of-its-kind science textbook to help college students get in touch with
their "inner scientist".
This book will
strongly influence a serious and much-needed shift in how college-level science
courses for non-science majors are taught. Instead of teaching basic facts, we
need courses to focus on improving students’ scientific process skills, their
attitudes toward science, and their understanding of the nature of science.
Such courses represent our last chance to help our future leaders and fellow
citizens understand the process of science and better appreciate the scientific
endeavor.
The right textbook is
needed to get this movement going! We need to give everyone the opportunity to connect with
their inner scientist!
The idea for this book
project came out of a class that I have been teaching at McDaniel College for
several years now, The Nature of Science. Back in 2010 my
colleague, Dr. Karen Cummings, and I were awarded a grant by the National
Science Foundation to develop in-class materials for non-science majors in
which the highest priorities would be to improve students’ scientific process
skills, their attitudes toward science, and their understanding of the nature
of science, which is collectively referred to as student’s scientific literacy.
We are now quite confident that all of these materials are appropriate and
stimulating for the intended population of students. Despite the
effectiveness of these materials, I have discovered that, without a textbook,
instructors at other colleges and universities find it difficult to commit to
offering a course devoted purely to improving students’ scientific literacy.
So, I am now beginning to undertake the major project of authoring the first
textbook of its kind to serve courses in scientific literacy. Such a textbook
will provide the missing critical link to the spread of this type of course to
other institutions.
One more thing: If I reach my
funding goal, besides writing the book, at the end of the campaign I will also let my students completely
(and permanently) paint my car with their own science-related
images, cartoons, graphics, whatever!
Details about me
First, I’ve been a
college physics professor for over fifteen years and have dedicated myself to
researching and teaching all undergraduate students about science. I have
authored a dozen peer-reviewed articles specifically addressing science and
non-science majors’ attitudes and beliefs about the nature of science and
scientific reasoning and papers related to characterizing students’ conceptual
understanding of fundamental physical phenomena. Also, I have delivered over
forty presentations at national meetings of educators on improving science
education. Finally, I am currently finishing-up with Dr. Karen Cummings writing
a second edition of a research-inspired, introductory, calculus-based
textbook, Understanding Physics, that is under contract with a
major publisher, Wiley. I was also a contributing author to the first edition
of RealTime Physics: Module 3, also published by Wiley.
I have taught the
following courses at Rensselear Polytechnic Institute, University of Oregon,
and McDaniel College:
Courses for non-science majors
- The Nature of Science
- General Physics (algebra-based)
- The Science of Sound, Music, and Hearing
- Light and Color
- Astronomy
- Earth Science
- Tropical Marine Biology
- Natural History of the American Southwest
- The Science of Energy
Courses for Science Majors
- Introductory Physics (both calculus-based and
trigonometry-based)
- Mathematical Methods for Physics
- Intermediate Mechanics
- Electromagnetic Theory
- Thermodynamics and Statistical Mechanics
- Quantum Mechanics
- Scientific Writing and Presentation
Other
- The Art of Juggling
- Backpacking along the Appalachian Trail
- Backpacking the American Southwest
Why I need the funding
You may be wondering, “If this is
such a great idea for a book, why not have a publishing house support its
development and creation?” I tried that. This is an experimental topic, so the
traditional lines of support are unavailable. For now, at least, I am on my
own, which is why I need your support, so I can devote myself to this
book. If my project is funded, I will completely give over the next year
of my life to writing this book.
I have selected a funding option
that does not let me collect a dime until my funding goal is reached. This is
all or nothing!
What's in it for you?
I have bunch of perks lined up! Some
of the highlights include: donating over $25 will get you a hand-signed post
card that on the front will have a picture of my student-painted,
science-themed car; donating over $50 will get you
an acknowledgement in the book; giving over $500 will mean
that you and I will personally arrange for me to speak to a group of
students, friends, community members, whomever, about science and the
scientific endeavor; and giving over $2,000 means that you will share the
dedication of the book!
Goals for the book project
When the book is
complete it will be somewhere on the order of 100,000 to 150,000 words and
divided into thirteen chapters (see below). Each chapter will cover the
relevant material and have examples and questions for students to work on as
they progress through the reading. At the end of each chapter there will be
mini-projects for students to work on by themselves or in groups and deeper
discussion questions. I will also write a complementary teacher’s guide to help
instructors navigate the materials and provide activities and suggestions for
class time. Everywhere, I will stress that course time associated with the
textbook should be spent having the students working on projects and developing
ideas among themselves, not having the instructor lecture to them. Class time
should be the time when the students cement the ideas they have read in the
textbook, not hear the textbook again.
Here is a tentative
table of contents for the book:
- Introduction
- What does it mean to do science?
- The sociology of science
- Measurement and means
- Experimental design
- Creativity and intuition
- Estimation
- Scaling
- Probability and statistics
- Correlation and causation
- Science in the media
- Theoretical and computation science
- Science in society
I plan to write the
book in a very conversational tone. It has been my experience that students
greatly prefer that style of writing and it seems to come naturally to me. You
can click here to see an
example of my writing on the form of an essay that will serve as the basis of
the chapter on estimation.
Risks and Challenges
As I said above, If my
project is funded, I will devote the next year of my life to writing this book.
As such, I will not suffer from any distractions or unexpected, work-related
commitments. In a year, if I am not completely done, then when I return to work
my schedule is flexible enough that I can finish what might be left on the book
in addition to my teaching duties.
Since this is a
first-of-its-kind book, there are no overly constraining expectations regarding
what to include and exclude. If, for example, I find that a particular topic
bogs down the process of writing, I have no external pressures preventing me
from removing that topic to keep the greater project on schedule.
If you can't donate, ...
... I can still use
your help! Below you will see links to visit my NatureOfScienceGuy page on Facebook, NatureofScience on Twitter, and my
website Nature-of-Science Guy. Also, just telling your friends about this project will certainly help, too. Thanks!