Items for Teacher Tips

[arouinfar]

For #13

• Heating/cooling logic for items in contact - Thermal objects cool very slowly when stacked #115
• Pre-loading for energy chunks - Implement preloadEnergyChunks methods #137
• Blocks have the same volume, but not the same mass, which is why brick heats up ~20% faster. (Iron block ~240% more massive, with a specific heat ~50% smaller than brick).
• Thermometer bounds - Thermometer doesn't respond near top or bottom of beaker #185
• Nature of energy chunk model - Behavior of fan on low energy rate transfer #179 (comment)

From the legacy tips (to be reworded, as necessary):

• The goals are to help students develop qualitative “energy stories” with generalized vocabulary. The sim is not designed to be used as a comprehensive tool for learning about all forms of energy.
• Energy is represented in discrete amounts and the number of chunks is proportional to amount of energy. The chunks are large enough to provide concept building, but represent a wide range, so quantitative analysis is not appropriate.
• The air energy is not shown because the chunks represent too large of a value to be realistic, however, when it makes sense for energy to go into or out of the air, chunks are shown.
• The heat bucket will add or remove thermal energy. However, constraints were designed based on student interviews:
• Showing water freezing is too complex for this sim, so energy flowing into the tool stops near the freezing point of water. This can be explained to students by saying that the cooling mechanism is ice, so it can’t cool things past the freezing point of water.
• When the water is at boiling temperature, you can still add thermal energy and steam is shown.
  The energy going into the water is not enough to significantly change the volume of the water. In
  other words, the water will never ‘boil off’.
• Energy conversion efficiency in NOT modeled.

I'll edit this comment as I think of/encounter issues which will need to be documented in the Tips. Marking as status:on-hold until this sim gets closer to publication.

[arouinfar]

Since we're nearing the Jan 31 deadline, I'll remove status:on-hold.

[arouinfar]

Tips have been created and uploaded, closing.