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"Psi equals craziness": Upper-division physics students’ conceptions of Greek letters
Symbolic representation is a cornerstone of mathematics and science. While much research has explored student understanding of various mathematical symbols, there is very little known about the way students conceptualize the use of Greek letters in scientific notation. In this work, we share excerpts from interviews with upper-division physics students, which illuminate their experience with Greek symbol use. The students reported frequently mistaking pairs of similar-looking Greek and Latin letters. They also felt that their texts and instructors had not sufficiently introduced novel Greek letters or explained what they represented in the equations. The students also disliked how often a single Greek letter would be used in multiple contexts – or that different texts and instructors would not follow the same convention for which letter to use in a single context. These observations suggest that educators should devote additional time to introducing and discussing Greek letters in scientific contexts.
Physics Education Research Conference 2025
Part of the PER Conference series Washington, DC: August 6-7, 2025 Pages 35-40
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Record Link
<a href="https://www.per-central.org/items/detail.cfm?ID=17114">Arnell, J, R. Munir, H. Swanson, and J. Edwards. ""Psi equals craziness": Upper-division physics students’ conceptions of Greek letters." Paper presented at the Physics Education Research Conference 2025, Washington, DC, August 6-7, 2025.</a>
AIP Format
J. Arnell, R. Munir, H. Swanson, and J. Edwards, , presented at the Physics Education Research Conference 2025, Washington, DC, 2025, WWW Document, (https://www.compadre.org/Repository/document/ServeFile.cfm?ID=17114&DocID=6042).
AJP/PRST-PER
J. Arnell, R. Munir, H. Swanson, and J. Edwards, "Psi equals craziness": Upper-division physics students’ conceptions of Greek letters, presented at the Physics Education Research Conference 2025, Washington, DC, 2025, <https://www.compadre.org/Repository/document/ServeFile.cfm?ID=17114&DocID=6042>.
APA Format
Arnell, J., Munir, R., Swanson, H., & Edwards, J. (2025, August 6-7). "Psi equals craziness": Upper-division physics students’ conceptions of Greek letters. Paper presented at Physics Education Research Conference 2025, Washington, DC. Retrieved February 11, 2026, from https://www.compadre.org/Repository/document/ServeFile.cfm?ID=17114&DocID=6042
Chicago Format
Arnell, J, R. Munir, H. Swanson, and J. Edwards. ""Psi equals craziness": Upper-division physics students’ conceptions of Greek letters." Paper presented at the Physics Education Research Conference 2025, Washington, DC, August 6-7, 2025. https://www.compadre.org/Repository/document/ServeFile.cfm?ID=17114&DocID=6042 (accessed 11 February 2026).
MLA Format
Arnell, Jared, Rida Munir, Hillary Swanson, and John Edwards. ""Psi equals craziness": Upper-division physics students’ conceptions of Greek letters." Physics Education Research Conference 2025. Washington, DC: 2025. 35-40 of PER Conference. 11 Feb. 2026 <https://www.compadre.org/Repository/document/ServeFile.cfm?ID=17114&DocID=6042>.
BibTeX Export Format
@inproceedings{
Author = "Jared Arnell and Rida Munir and Hillary Swanson and John Edwards",
Title = {"Psi equals craziness": Upper-division physics students’ conceptions of Greek letters},
BookTitle = {Physics Education Research Conference 2025},
Pages = {35-40},
Address = {Washington, DC},
Series = {PER Conference},
Month = {August 6-7},
Year = {2025}
}
Refer Export Format
%A Jared Arnell %A Rida Munir %A Hillary Swanson %A John Edwards %T "Psi equals craziness": Upper-division physics students' conceptions of Greek letters %S PER Conference %D August 6-7 2025 %P 35-40 %C Washington, DC %U https://www.compadre.org/Repository/document/ServeFile.cfm?ID=17114&DocID=6042 %O Physics Education Research Conference 2025 %O August 6-7 %O application/pdf
EndNote Export Format
%0 Conference Proceedings %A Arnell, Jared %A Munir, Rida %A Swanson, Hillary %A Edwards, John %D August 6-7 2025 %T "Psi equals craziness": Upper-division physics students' conceptions of Greek letters %B Physics Education Research Conference 2025 %C Washington, DC %P 35-40 %S PER Conference %8 August 6-7 %U https://www.compadre.org/Repository/document/ServeFile.cfm?ID=17114&DocID=6042 Disclaimer: ComPADRE offers citation styles as a guide only. We cannot offer interpretations about citations as this is an automated procedure. Please refer to the style manuals in the Citation Source Information area for clarifications.
Citation Source Information
The AIP Style presented is based on information from the AIP Style Manual. The AJP/PRST-PER presented is based on the AIP Style with the addition of journal article titles and conference proceeding article titles. The APA Style presented is based on information from APA Style.org: Electronic References. The Chicago Style presented is based on information from Examples of Chicago-Style Documentation. The MLA Style presented is based on information from the MLA FAQ. "Psi equals craziness": Upper-division physics students’ conceptions of Greek letters:Know of another related resource? Login to relate this resource to it. |
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