Datamouse project

The Datamouse project was started by the paper Stopwatch provides low-cost training by Alessio Ganci and Salvatore Ganci, which was published in Physics Education in March 2009. This was such a brilliant and simple idea that the Institute of Physics Teachers Network decided to put together a workshop showing other teachers how to make inexpensive computer mice into timing gates. Other valuable teaching ideas and resources were discovered in the process of researching and developing the workshop, and we shall try to place as many as possible on this page.

During the process we have been helped by many organizations, including National Physical Laboratories and Los Alamos Nuclear Laboratories, which are all trying to bring students a better experience in their physics education.

More information

Stopwatch provides low-cost training
Alessio Ganci et al 2009 Phys. Educ. 44 119-120
Download the article as a PDF (511 KB)

You can download free software to measure the time between clicks on your mouse or, as described in the article, turn a mouse into optical light gates.

A simple, low-cost, data-logging pendulum built from a computer mouse
Vadas Gintautas et al 2009 Phys. Educ. 44 488-491   
View the abstract or download the article as a PDF (381 KB)

You can download free data-logging software that records the motion of the pendulum.

Datamouse in your lab

A Datamouse project page has been set up where you can upload pictures and documents describing the work you’ve done in your own lab with students. Some of your results will also be posted here.