0.6 Phy1030: scale factors, ratios, and proportions

Table of contents

• Preface
  • General
  • Prerequisites
  • Viewing tip
    • Figures
    • Listings
  • Supplemental material
• General background information
• Discussion
  • Scale factors
  • Ratios
  • Proportions
• Run the scripts
• Resources
• Miscellaneous

Preface

General

This module is part of a collection of modules designed to make physics concepts accessible to blind students.

If you opened this page in the context of the book, a Table of Contents for the book (or collection) should be available above and to the left of thisparagraph. Otherwise, click here to open the book at the beginning.

This book is intended to supplement but not to replace the textbook in an introductory high school or college physics course.

This module provides a brief tutorial on scale factors, ratios, and proportions that is designed to be accessible to blind students.

Prerequisites

In addition to an Internet connection and a browser, you will need the following tools (as a minimum) to work through the exercises in these modules:

• A graph board for plotting graphs and vector diagrams ( (External Link) ).
• A protractor for measuring angles ( (External Link) ).
• An audio screen reader that is compatible with your operating system, such as the NonVisual Desktop Access program (NVDA), which is freelyavailable at (External Link) .
• A refreshable Braille display capable of providing a line by line tactile output of information displayed on the computer monitor ( (External Link) ).
• A device to create Braille labels. Will be used to label graphs constructed on the graph board.
• The ability to create tactile graphics as described here .

The minimum prerequisites for understanding the material in these modules include:

• A good understanding of algebra.
• An understanding of the use of a graph board for plotting graphs and vector diagrams ( (External Link) ).
• An understanding of the use of a protractor for measuring angles ( (External Link) ).
• A basic understanding of the use of sine, cosine, and tangent from trigonometry ( (External Link) ).
• An introductory understanding of JavaScript programming ( (External Link) and (External Link) ).
• An understanding of all of the material covered in the earlier modules in this collection.
• An understanding of the creation and use of tactile graphics as described here .

Viewing tip

I recommend that you open another copy of this document in a separate browser window and use the following links to easily find and view the figuresand listings while you are reading about them.

Figures

• Figure 1 . Screen output for Listing #1.
• Figure 2 . Screen output for Listing #2.
• Figure 3 . Screen output for Listing #3.

Listings

• Listing 1 . Exercise on scale factors
• Listing 2 . Circumference is proportional to radius.
• Listing 3 . Area is proportional to radius squared.

Supplemental material

I recommend that you also study the other lessons in my extensive collection of online programming tutorials. You will find a consolidated index at www.DickBaldwin.com .