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Industrial R&D Activity

Activity Description:

Students give oral presentation on truly modern (post 1960) technologies developed in industry, focusing specifically on the legal, patent, industrial competition aspects of development, rather than the physics.

Level: Any

Relevant Phys21 Area(s):
Communication Skills, Workplace Skills

Learning Objectives:

  • Students see how many technologies have been developed through industrial R&D
  • Students appreciate the role of serendipity in discovery
  • Students are aware that industrial research leads to real scientific discovery, in addition to cool technologies
  • Students learn how to give a 5-10 minute oral presentation, to an audience from diverse backgrounds (i.e. faculty and peers)

Duration:
Home prep followed by in-classroom presentation (120 minutes/5-10 min per student)

Target Audience:
Sophomore physics majors

Suggested context for implementation:
You could invite students to suggest their own technologies, provided they are focused on applications or apparatus.