THE LABLESS LAB: POLYMER MATERIALS

A VERY LARGE NUMBER OF SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING COURSES TAUGHT IN COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES TODAY DO NOT INVOLVE LABORATORIES. ALTHOUGH GOOD INSTRUCTORS INCORPORATE CLASS DEMONSTRATIONS, HANDS-ON HOMEWORK, AND VARIOUS TEACHING AIDS INCLUDING COMPUTER SIMULATIONS, THE FACT IS THAT STUDENTS IN SUCH COURSES OFTEN ACCEPT KEY CONCEPTS AND EXPERIMENTAL RESULTS WITHOUT DISCOVERING THEM FOR THEMSELVES. THE ONLY PARTIAL SOLUTION TO THIS PROBLEM HAS BEEN INCREASING USE OF CLASSROOM DEMONSTRATIONS AND COMPUTER SIMULATIONS. RESEARCHERS ARE DEVELOPING A COMPLETELY SELF-CONTAINED POLYMER MATERIALS LABORATORY WHICH, ALTHOUGH PACKAGED LIKE A TEXTBOOK, WILL CONTAIN WITHIN IT ALL OF THE MATERIALS, EQUIPMENT, AND INFORMATION NEEDED TO DISCOVER AND EXPERIENCE KEY CONCEPTS RELATED TO POLYMER MATERIALS. THEY EXPECT THAT SUCH A LABLESS LAB BOOK WILL BE WIDELY ADOPTED AS A SUPPLEMENT TO THE MORE CONVENTIONAL POLYMER SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING TEXTBOOKS, PARTICULARLY IN THOSE COURSES WHICH DO NOT HAVE A LABORATORY SECTION OR COMPONENT. RESEARCHERS EXPECT EVENTUALLY TO EXPAND THIS APPROACH TO A WIDE VARIETY OF SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING COURSES. IT IS APPROPRIATE TO BEGIN WITH POLYMER MATERIALS, HOWEVER, BECAUSE POLYMERIC MATERIALS ARE SO READILY AVAILABLE FOR A WIDE VARIETY OF APPLICATIONS AND BECAUSE THEY EXHIBIT A RANGE OF PHENOMENA WHICH ARE VERY EASY TO OBSERVE, EXPERIENCE, AND DISCOVER.