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Opening the Windows Era
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John W. Moore
University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI 53706-1396 |
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This issue is out of print. |
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In my last editorial (Volume IVA, Number 2) I bade a fond farewell to the Apple II, the computer that has been used for instruction in chemistry longer than any other. In this editorial it is my pleasure to welcome you to the Windows era. David Whisnant and James McCormick have taken a program originally written for the Apple II and updated it completely to a new version that takes advantage of all the modern features of Windows. The result is so different from the original as to seem a completely new program, although the fundamental premise upon which it is formulated remains the same. That premise is that the scientific method is best taught by having students apply scientific thought processes to real or simulated data. Lake Study does this by putting a student in the position of a scientist with the fish and wildlife service who faces the problem of determining why fish are dying in a pond that is destined to become a hatchery. Doing so demands that data be collected by sampling the lake, that a variety of instrumental and wet chemical methods be used to determine concentrations of substances that might be causing the problem, that this information be compared with library data relating concentrations to toxicity of various pollutants, perhaps that colleagues be consulted for helpful suggestions, and that a conclusion be drawn regarding the cause of the problem. But there is one more point: science is not that simple, and different students will reach different conclusions depending on exactly what data they collect and which colleagues they consult. This aspect is designed into the Lake Study program to generate discussion among the students and to produce controversy that can only be resolved by doing additional simulated experiments. These can be done in a laboratory setting where students can expose fish in tanks to various doses of substances that might be causing the problem. The results of these experiments are definitive, and consensus can be achieved regarding the offending substance. Not only will students who complete the Lake Study simulation have a more accurate view of how a scientist would go about studying a pollution problem, they will also be better prepared to understand how different scientists can reach different conclusions based upon the same set of data and consequently may become involved in public controversies. Most who used the original Apple II version felt that Lake Study provided an excellent, hands-on minds-on introduction to the scientific method; I am certain you will find this new Windows version even more effective. What does Windows bring to this program? It allows an interface with the student that is far easier to use, it permits greater realism, and it makes the programmer's work easier relative to the results achieved. In most cases the mouse is used to point to a desired operation and a click selects it. Digitized photographs of real boats, lakes, colleagues, and scientific instruments are available instead of computer-graphic drawings. Animation can be used to show the principles of operation of the instruments that detect metal ions and pesticides in the lake. The simulation has become much more realistic and will hold students' interest even better than the original. Moreover, programming tools (like Visual Basic or ToolBook) are available to allow development of this much richer environment in the same or less time than was required for the earlier, much less sophisticated version. There is a down side. More powerful hardware is needed to run the program in its new form. Windows cannot be run on a computer without a hard disk, and even though Lake Study for Windows could be run from a floppy disk in a pinch, it makes no sense to do so. At least an 80286 (and preferably an 80386 or 80486) processor and higher quality graphics are required as well, and so the overall cost of the necessary hardware, though not higher in real dollars than an Apple II of 1980, is higher relative to the cost of the least powerful current computers. This just serves to emphasize the incredible strides forward that have been made in microprocessor and computer design and fabrication since the Apple II was in its heyday a decade ago. These developments allow us and our students to have even better and more powerful tools for learning and discovering chemistry than ever before, while not paying a higher price. The very real advantages of the Windows environment, and the advent of a significant number of submitted Windows programs, have led JCE: Software to institute a Windows series, beginning in 1993. The new Series D for Windows will replace Series A for Apple II at the end of 1992. In the meantime we will publish some Windows programs like Lake Study) this year. Rest assured that the regular Series B for IBM PC and PS/2 computers will continue to appear, in addition to the new Windows series. We are receiving more IBM Submissions than any other kind, and we will continue to supply you with excellent, peer-reviewed software for your IBMs, regardless of whether or not you are running Windows. If you are developing software for Windows using ToolBook, Visual Basic, or some other language, of if you are a user of Windows software, and you have ideas about the directions JCE: Software's Windows efforts should take, please write and tell me. As with any new development, your opinions are valuable and will reach receptive ears. I look forward to hearing from you. |
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Last Updated: April 26, 2001 Created: December 3, 1996 |
Created by: J. L. Holmes Comments to: jceonline@chem.wisc.edu |
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| © 1997 Division of Chemical Education, Inc., American Chemical Society. All rights reserved. | |