Zhang, Y. (2011, June), Mapping the Forest of Data in Thermodynamics  Paper presented at 2011 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition, Vancouver, BC. 10.18260/1-2--18322

\bibitem{asee_peer_18322}
  Zhang, Y. (2011, June), \emph{Mapping the Forest of Data in Thermodynamics}
  Paper presented at 2011 ASEE Annual Conference \& Exposition, Vancouver, BC.
  10.18260/1-2--18322

Yumin Zhang.  "Mapping the Forest of Data in Thermodynamics".  2011 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition, Vancouver, BC, 2011, June.  ASEE Conferences, 2011.  https://peer.asee.org/18322 Internet.  07 Jan, 2025

\bibitem{asee_peer_18322}
  Yumin Zhang.
  "Mapping the Forest of Data in Thermodynamics".
  \emph{2011 ASEE Annual Conference \& Exposition, Vancouver, BC, 2011, June}.
  ASEE Conferences, 2011.
  https://peer.asee.org/18322 Internet.  07 Jan, 2025

@INPROCEEDINGS{asee_peer_18322
author = "Yumin Zhang"
title = "Mapping the Forest of Data in Thermodynamics"
booktitle = "2011 ASEE Annual Conference \& Exposition"
year = "2011"
month = "June"
address = "Vancouver, BC"
publisher = "ASEE Conferences"
note = {https://peer.asee.org/18322}
number = {10.18260/1-2--18322}
}

TY  - CPAPER
AB  -                    Mapping the Forest of Data in ThermodynamicsThermodynamics is a challenging course for most students, who are used to solving problems byengaging analytical equations. However, the most powerful tool in engineering thermodynamicsis the eighty pages of data tables and diagrams in the appendix of a textbook. Therefore, manystudents are at a loss when dealing with so much information and are unable to fully utilize it tosolve problems. In order to help students learning this course, a new approach is needed. Oneway to do so is to reveal the macroscopic structure of the data, which can serve as a guide to thestaggering wealth of information.Although this data cannot be derived from calculations of simple analytical equations, they areactually well organized. The key concepts here are the state and its properties, and an analogy isa person with his/her possessions. In other words, the properties are organized around the state.In general, the state can be determined by two properties, and then all the other properties can befigured out from the state.Thermodynamics problems often involve some processes, i.e. transition of states, usually withone property unchanged, such as isochoric, isobaric and isothermal processes. Therefore, if theinitial state is specified, the final state can be determined with an additional property. With thefirst law of thermodynamics, heat exchange and work can be calculated easily. For example, inan isochoric process, the amount of heat exchange can be figured out from the difference ininternal energy.The author taught this course two years ago in a conventional way, and he found that the studentshad a hard time in learning it. Now he is teaching it again with this new approach, theimprovement can be revealed by comparing the identical final exams.
AU  - Yumin Zhang
CY  - Vancouver, BC
DA  - 2011/06/26
PB  - ASEE Conferences
TI  - Mapping the Forest of Data in Thermodynamics
UR  - https://peer.asee.org/18322
DO  - 10.18260/1-2--18322
ER  -