Interactive Computer Simulations for Standing Waves IRINA RADINSCHI, 1 VLADUT FRATIMAN, 2 VASILICA CIOCAN, 3 MARIUS-MIHAI CAZACU 1 1 Department of Physics, “Gheorghe Asachi” Technical University, Iasi 700050, Romania 2 “Mihai David” Middle School, Negresti 735200, Romania 3 Department of Building Services, Faculty of Civil Engineering and Building Services, “Gheorghe Asachi” Technical University, Iasi 700050, Romania Received 8 September 2016; accepted 15 February 2017 ABSTRACT: Interactive computer simulations and learning environments like virtual laboratories come out as an excellent alternative to conventional physics laboratories. Two of the physics laboratories from the second semester within the Faculty of Civil Engineering and Building Services of “Gheorghe Asachi” Technical University are focused on the study of standing waves. Standing waves are very important in the field of Civil Engineering because the structural integrity of buildings can be affected by standing waves and the mechanical resonance phenomenon. A good understanding of the properties of standing waves will make the properly constructed structures withstand various risk factors. Some improperly constructed structures could damage or breakdown even in the presence of vibrations or strong winds. This paper presents the computer simulations developed for the study of the standing waves on a vibrating string and the propagation of electromagnetic standing waves in a Lecher system. For both simulations, the canvas element, part of HTML5 standard, is used to draw the graphics animations. Also, many control components and some external JavaScript libraries are used to perform the virtual applications. Further, these computer simulations are posted on the virtual physics laboratory web-site and thus, students are able to engage in more productive self or group activities. ß 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Comput Appl Eng Educ; View this article online at wileyonlinelibrary.com/journal/cae; DOI 10.1002/cae.21818 Keywords: computer simulations; HTML5; JavaScript; standing waves; Civil Engineering and Building Services INTRODUCTION The main purpose of the curricula at the Faculty of Civil Engineering and Building Services is to train generations of students to acquire an understanding of the fundamentals of science and engineering for developing solutions to various Civil Engineering and Building Services problems, and increase their learning, computing and work in multidisciplinary teams skills. Our academic staff starts from the premise that engineers rely on life sciences and modern computational tools to guide their activities. Among modern engineering tools, computer simulations offer challenging opportunities for our students. Computer simulations have shown success over the past several years, being used ever more as alternative teaching-learning tools. Interactive computer simulations yield the dynamic and visual representations of physical phenomena and allow students to interact with a simplified version of a scientific process or system which is built upon a mathematical model. Working with computer simulations enables the engineering students to develop a better understanding of Physics and its applications in Civil Engineering and Building Services. In recent years, many teachers approached various computa- tional instruments for improving the teaching-learning process [1–5]. When students work in the physics laboratory, they act in a controlled environment and use lab equipment to enter information sequentially for each experimental work. The aim of each physics laboratory is to collect and interpret experimental data and plot graphs whenever necessary, which is the traditional experimental way of working in the physics laboratory. An efficient alternative to the traditional experimental work are computer simulations. As a result of Correspondence to M.-M. Cazacu (marius.cazacu@tuiasi.ro). © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. 1