Addressing Misconceptions Related to Mass–Matter Conservation and Bond Energetics with a Modified Gauss Accelerator

We describe a demonstration to confront misconceptions associated with mass–matter conservation and bond energetics. This demonstration is based on the Gauss Accelerator and is accompanied by hands-on manipulatives. The demonstration exemplifies mass–matter conservation, bond breaking, and bond making using a chemical-analogue system: a neodymium magnet (M) with two ferromagnetic steel balls (S) attached in an M–S–S (“reactant”) configuration resting on an aluminum track. A third steel ball rolled toward the free side results in the high-energy expulsion of the terminal steel ball and a final S–M–S (“product”) configuration. Discussion of differential “bond” energies (MS–S vs S–M) and observation of the number and type of each “atom” present prepares the audience for the demonstration. In a repeated-measures pre–post design, students (N = 9) performed significantly better (t(8) = 7.234, p < 0.05, d = 2.41) on a conceptual-knowledge assessment of their understanding of mass–matter conservation and bond ene...