Extensions of the supersymmetric standard model to SU(2IL XU(l),xn XU(l)B-L and to SU(2), X SU( 2In XU( 1 with Higgs triplets are considered. Calculations of all possible contributions to the anomalous magnetic moment of the muon are made and the resulting constraints on the masses of supersymmetric partners are examined in detail.

Students can have great difficulty reading scientific texts and trying to cope with the professor in the classroom. Part of the reason for students' difficulties is that for a student taking a science gateway course the language, ontology and epistemology of science are akin to a foreign culture. There is thus an analogy between such a student and an anthropologist spending time among a native group in some remote part of the globe. This brings us naturally to the subject of hermeneutics. It is through language that we attempt to understand an alien culture. The hermeneutical circle involves the interplay between our construct of the unfamiliar with our own outlook that deepens with each pass. It can be argued that for novice students to acquire a full understanding of scientific texts, they also need to pursue a recurrent construction of their comprehension of scientific concepts. In this paper it is shown how an activity, reflective-writing, can enhance students' understanding of concepts in their textbook by getting students to approach text in the manner of a hermeneutical circle. This is illustrated using studies made at three postsecondary institutions.

We report on an experiment comparing examinations of concepts using slightly modified peer instruction (MPI) interventions with a conceptual conflict strategy based on collaborative groups (CG). Four interventions were utilized in two sections of an introductory physics course for science students. Both instructors and strategies were alternated in the two classes so that instructor dependence could be factored out and so that each class could serve as both an experimental and a control group. The gain on the Force Concept Inventory (FCI) used as a pre-and post-test is essentially the same in both classes. The instructors were experienced in use of MPI, but this was the first time that these instructors had used a collaborative group activity in their classes and only used it for the two interventions in each class described in this paper. CG appears to be more effective as a teaching method than PI. It also should be noted that the effectiveness of both teaching methods seems to be instructor independent as long as the instructors followed the same protocol.PACS Nos: 01.40Fk, 01.40.gb, 01.40.-d Résumé : Nous présentons les résultats d'une expérience comparant l'examen des concepts en utilisant des interventions légèrement modifiées d'instruction par des pairs (MPI) avec une stratégie de conflit conceptuel basée sur des groupes collaboratifs (CG). Nous avons utilisé quatre interventions dans deux sections d'un cours d'introduction à la physique destiné aux étudiants en sciences. Nous avons alterné les enseignants et les stratégies entre les deux classes de façon à éliminer la dépendance sur l'enseignant et que chacune puisse servir à la fois comme cobaye et comme groupe de contrôle. L'amélio-ration dans le test FCI avant et après le test est essentiellement la même dans les deux classes. Les enseignants étaient familiers avec MPI, mais c'était la première fois qu'ils utilisaient des activités de groupes collaboratifs dans leurs classes et ne l'ont utilisé que pour les deux interventions décrites ici. CG semble être une méthode d'enseignement plus efficace que PI. O doit aussi noter que l'efficacité des deux méthodes semble indépendante de l'enseignant, à condition de suivre le même protocole.[Traduit par la Rédaction]

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This paper is centered on getting students to understand the nature of science (NOS) by considering historical material in relation to modern philosophers of science. This paper incorporates the methodology of contrasting cases in the calculus-based introductory physics course on optics and modern physics. Students study one philosopher all semester as a group project and report regularly on how their philosopher would view the subject matter of the course. Almost all of the students were able to argue successfully on the final examination about all three philosophers. Students become aware that the same textual material can be viewed in a variety of ways. The answers that students give about the NOS have become clearer at the end of the course.

This study was based on the hypothesis that students' epistemological beliefs could become more expertlike with a combination of appropriate instructional activities: (i) preclass reading with metacognitive reflection, and (ii) in-class active learning that produces cognitive dissonance. This hypothesis was tested through a five-year study involving close to 1000 students at two institutions, in four physics courses. Using an experimental design, data from student interviews, writing product assessments, and the Discipline-Focused Epistemological Beliefs Questionnaire (DFEBQ) we demonstrate that the beliefs of novice science learners became more expertlike on 2 of the 4 DFEBQ factors. We conclude that a combination of an activity that gets students to examine textual material metacognitively (Reflective Writing) with one or more types of in-class active learning interventions can promote positive change in students' epistemological beliefs.