physics.ed-ph papers | Gist.Science

Multidimensional Profiles of Critical Thinking in Physics Labs: Latent Structure, Instructional Change, and Connections to Physics Identity

Using latent profile analysis on a large multi-institutional dataset, this study reveals that physics lab critical thinking consists of two distinct multidimensional profiles with significant instructional shifts, and identifies belonging as the primary upstream predictor of both these performance profiles and students' affective development, including recognition, self-efficacy, and agency.

Marcus Kubsch, Natasha G. Holmes, Antti Lehtinen2026-04-14🔬 physics

Instructor Framing and Incentives Shape Physics Students' Engagement and Learning Gains from an Inquiry-Based Electrostatics Tutorial on the Method of Images

This study demonstrates that an inquiry-based tutorial on the method of images effectively improves physics students' learning gains and problem-solving skills, while also revealing that instructor framing significantly influences student engagement and performance.

Jaya Shivangani Kashyap, Robert P. Devaty, Chandralekha Singh2026-04-13🔬 physics

Unseen Astronomy

This paper outlines the transformative potential of multimodal astronomy by reflecting on the "Unseen Astronomy" session at the 2025 UK National Astronomy Meeting, which highlighted novel projects using non-visual methods for education, communication, and research while emphasizing community building and broader impact.

Dr James W. Trayford2026-04-13🔭 astro-ph

Experimental Skills for Undergraduate Career Preparation in Quantum Information Science and Engineering

This study identifies and categorizes the specific experimental skills required for bachelor's-level positions in the quantum information science industry through interviews with professionals, offering educators concrete learning goals to better align undergraduate curricula with career needs.

Shams El-Adawy, A. R. Piña, Benjamin M. Zwickl, H. J. Lewandowski2026-04-13🔬 physics

Developing an AI Course for Synthetic Chemistry Students

This paper presents AI4CHEM, an accessible, web-based introductory course designed to equip synthetic chemistry students with no prior programming experience with essential data science and AI skills through chemistry-specific examples and hands-on projects.

Zhiling Zheng2026-04-10🔬 cond-mat.mtrl-sci

Daily and Weekly Periodicity in Large Language Model Performance and Its Implications for Research

This paper challenges the assumption of time invariance in large language model performance by demonstrating through a longitudinal study of GPT-4o that its output quality exhibits significant daily and weekly periodic variability, accounting for approximately 20% of total variance.

Paul Tschisgale, Peter Wulff2026-04-09📊 stat

Training on Data Analysis Reproducibility via Containerization with Apptainer

This paper presents training materials and resources developed by the HEP Software Foundation to equip physicists with Apptainer containerization skills, thereby enhancing the reproducibility, portability, and collaboration of High Energy and Nuclear Physics analyses.

Roy Cruz Candelaria, Wouter Deconinck, Aman Desai, Guillermo Fidalgo Rodríguez, Michel Hernandez Villanueva, Kilian Lieret, Valeriia Lukashenko, Sudhir Malik, Marco Mambelli, Tetiana Mazurets, Alexander Moreno Briceño, Andres Rios-Tascon, Richa Sharma2026-04-09🔬 physics

The Quantum Education Ecosystem: A Review of Global Initiatives, Methods, and Challenges

This paper analyzes the fragmented global quantum education ecosystem by synthesizing initiatives and pedagogical strategies, identifying critical challenges like inequitable access and non-standardized curricula, and proposing a unified, non-linear framework to enhance workforce preparedness and quantum literacy.

Sara Ayman Metwalli, Aryan Iliat, Steven Thomas, Suresh Nair, Zizwe A. Chase, Russell R. Ceballos2026-04-09🔬 physics

The Wonderful World of Binary Stars

This paper summarizes the research outcomes from a group of students at the 2026 ESO La Silla Observing School who utilized HARPS and EFOSC2 to investigate binary stars, achieving key findings such as confirming tidal alignment in HD 115264, analyzing blue straggler stars to verify cluster membership and pulsation characteristics, and proving the binary nature of a planetary nebula's central star.

Andrea Barone, Henri M. J. Boffin, Beatrice Caccherano, Simona Di Stefano, Akhila Divakaran, Alexandra S. Murphy, María José Rain, Elyar Sedaghati, Paul V. Steimle2026-04-09🔭 astro-ph

Quantum Port: Gamification of quantum teleportation for public engagement

This paper proposes "Quantum Port," a card game that gamifies the diagrammatic rules of quantum teleportation derived from categorical quantum mechanics to make complex quantum concepts more accessible and engaging for the general public.

Pak Shen Choong, Aqilah Rasat, Afiqa Nik Aimi, Nurisya Mohd Shah2026-04-08🔬 physics

Teaching Astronomy with Large Language Models

This paper presents a study on integrating the domain-specific AI tool AstroTutor and general-purpose LLMs into final-year undergraduate astronomy education, demonstrating that structured guidance and transparency requirements foster student AI literacy, improve assessment quality through consistent LLM grading, and shift student behavior from passive reliance to critical, strategic tool usage.

Yuan-Sen Ting, Teaghan O'Briain2026-04-08🔬 physics

Developing and Evaluating a Large Language Model-Based Automated Feedback System Grounded in Evidence-Centered Design for Supporting Physics Problem Solving

This study presents an Evidence-Centered Design-based LLM feedback system for physics problem solving evaluated in the German Physics Olympiad, which, despite being perceived as useful and accurate by students, was found to contain undetected errors in 20% of cases, highlighting the risks of uncritical reliance on such AI tools.

Holger Maus, Paul Tschisgale, Fabian Kieser, Stefan Petersen, Peter Wulff2026-04-08🔬 physics

The Physics of Gudeg: Learning the Mechanics and Thermal Properties Using Collaborative Project based Activities for the High School Physics

This paper presents a collaborative project-based learning strategy for high school physics that utilizes the traditional Indonesian food Gudeg to teach concepts such as density, Young's modulus, torque, boiling mechanisms, and heat transfer through the analysis of its preparation process.

Bayu Setiaji, Pramudya Wahyu Pradana, Febrina Siska Widyaningtyas, Purwoko Haryadi Santoso, Yusman Wiyatmo, Heru Kuswanto2026-04-07🔬 physics

A Unified and Economical Approach to Teaching Higher Secondary Electricity Experiments

This paper presents the Indigenous Metre Bridge, a low-cost, homemade apparatus constructed from readily available components like mobile chargers and nichrome wire, which effectively democratizes higher secondary electricity education by overcoming resource limitations and reducing student anxiety toward complex laboratory instruments.

Sanjoy Kumar Pal, Papun Mondal, Pradipta Panchadhyayee, Anirban Samanta, Subhash Chandra Samanta2026-04-07🔬 physics

Co-Authoring with AI: How I Wrote a Physics Paper About AI, Using AI

This paper uses a case study of a physics manuscript co-authored with AI to argue that while Large Language Models can handle structural and syntactic tasks, human authors must remain the ultimate "Principal Investigators" responsible for logical rigor and integrity, necessitating the mandatory publication of full AI interaction transcripts to ensure accountability.

Yi Zhou2026-04-07🔬 physics

What does it mean to think like a physicist? Insights from physics graduate students

This interview-based study reveals that while physics graduate students define "thinking like a physicist" as the unique integration of physical and mathematical concepts, their development of this skill is often hindered by the rapid, math-heavy pace of core courses but effectively fostered by elective courses and research experiences.

Apekshya Ghimire, Chandralekha Singh2026-04-06🔬 physics

Kinematics in Context: The Record Jump of Huaso and Larraguibel as a Teaching Resource for Physics

This paper proposes using the 1949 world-record high jump by Captain Alberto Larraguibel and his horse Huaso as an interdisciplinary teaching resource that combines kinematic analysis with biomechanics and veterinary medicine to enhance physics education through authentic, real-world contexts.

Mauricio Echiburu, José L. Marcos, René Ríos, Robinson Moreno Martínez2026-04-03🔬 physics

TUNA: A streamlined quantum chemistry program for atoms and diatomics

TUNA is an open-source, streamlined quantum chemistry program designed specifically for atoms and diatomic molecules that unifies a broad range of electronic structure methods under a single principle of numerical differentiation to provide a transparent platform for teaching, benchmarking, and method development.

Harry Brough2026-04-03🔬 physics

Rusty Flying Robots: Learning a Full Robotics Stack with Real-Time Operation on an STM32 Microcontroller in a 9 ECTS MS Course

This paper presents a novel 9 ECTS master's course where students learn a complete robotics stack by implementing nonlinear control and state estimation algorithms in Rust on both PC simulations and resource-constrained STM32 microcontrollers, emphasizing the avoidance of black-box software to achieve real-time flight.

Wolfgang Hoenig, Christoph Scherer, Khaled Wahba2026-04-02🔬 physics

Motivation and design of a yotta-eV $\tau^+\tau^-$ collider

The paper advocates for a bold, long-term shift in particle physics research toward the development of a yotta-eV scale tau-lepton collider located in the Oort cloud, arguing that despite requiring Kardashev Level-I or II civilization capabilities, this approach should become the community's primary focus for precision Higgs studies and new particle discovery.

Matt Bellis, Matthew Carberg, Chester Gould, Jackson Ingenito, Fasiha Khaliq, Emely Kintzel, Shane Kirschmann, Neha Matta, Sophia Pavia, Emmett Pearl, Payton Ramsdill, Grace Scherer, Cullen Wright2026-04-02⚛️ hep-ph

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