Geometric Optics - Virutal Optics Laboratory

Geometric Optics is an educational software package that introduces advanced high school or introductory college-level, ray-based optics physics using interactive JavaTM applets.

With a simple, straightforward and easy-to-use Web-based interface, Geometric Optics teaches complex concepts quickly and thoroughly. Offering demonstrations that can be manipulated by the user, along with detailed HTML explanations of the physics concepts illustrated, Geometric Optics provides an active learning experience that has been peer-reviewed for excellence.

Created by physics experts and tested for accuracy, compatibility and ease of use, Geometric Optics provides a modern, flexible educational program that compliments traditional teaching methods.

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Features and Benefits

Features	Benefits
Simple & Easy-to-Use Interface	Teaches complex concepts quickly and thoroughly. Simple, targeted focus on individual concepts, offering single topics in digestible bites. Organized into separate pages, each with a short description of a physics concept and a Concept Demo. Familiar HTML page browser format. Windows or Macintosh platforms make it a versatile package for any classroom. Ideal for high school and introductory level-college students.
Java Applet Structure Interactive Demos	Provides an interactive learning experience to introductory geometric optics, including: Point and extended source shadows. Refraction and reflection scenarios. Dispersion, prisms, rays and lenses. Refracting telescope. Spherical and chromatic lens aberrations. Mirrors and pinhole cameras.
Created by Physics Experts Peer-Reviewed for Excellency	Offers an authentic, accurate educational program that compliments traditional teaching methods. Includes detailed documentation for users and instructors. Tested for accuracy, compatibility and ease of use.
Web-Based Software Program.	Flexible; can be accessed locally or through the Internet. Automatically run in a Web-browser. Can be restricted to specific addresses or password holders. Lets instructors teach in a traditional or non-traditional environment.

Technical Details

The Geometric Optics material is organized into individual pages, each with a short description of a physics concept and a Concept Demo. The Concept Demo is a small interactive Java application that demonstrates the relevant physics. The Concept Demo allows the student to vary some of the parameters in the model or the model itself to better understand each concept.

There are five sections:

• Straight Ray Optics
• Refraction
• Dispersion
• Lenses
• Mirrors

Each section has several Concept Demo pages to illustrate the physics. The screenshot below is an example of the Concept Demo page on Dispersion in a Raindrop.

After a text description of the physics of a rainbow, the student can then go beyond the typical textbook explanation and experiment with how light interacts with a sample raindrop. With the Concept Demo, the user can move a beam of white light and see the resulting dispersed colors that can, in the right conditions, make a rainbow. With accurate simulations that include all the advanced concepts, the user can dig deeper and learn a variety of subtleties. In this case, for example, the more advanced student might examine how a secondary rainbow differs from the primary rainbow, or that most of the intensity is lost out the back of the raindrop.

System Requirements

Windows
Any PC computer with a 486 or higher CPU (Pentium recommended) and with:

• Microsoft Windows 95 or later
• Netscape Communicator 4.5 or Internet Explorer 4.0 or later
• Hard disk with 1.5 MB free space
• 8 MB of RAM (16 MB recommended)

Macintosh
Any Macintosh computer with a PowerPC processor and with:

• Mac OS 8.1 or later
• 64MB RAM
• Mac Runtime Java (MRJ) 2.12 or later can be downloaded free
• Internet Explorer 4.0x or later (Netscape not supported) can be downloaded free
• Free disk space required:

• 1MB for Geometric Optics
• 13MB for Mac Runtime Java 2.2
• 12MB for Internet Explorer 5

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