Do physicists still use blackboards or have they switched to whiteboards?

[Monster92]

Just wondering how many people actually have a large white board that they use on a regular basis. Whenever I see a physics doc I always see famous scientists doing equations on blackboards. Blackboards are out dated, correct?

 

[micromass]

Aaah, I love blackboards! Nothing is better to focus your ideas than writing them on a blackboard and explaining them to yourself! (maybe even out loud if nobody is listening).

Sadly, I only have a whiteboard in my office. Somehow, I like that less...

 

[Pengwuino]

I like blackboards as well. They're a lot more expensive if I'm not mistaken.

There's pros and cons to each. I surely wouldn't want a blackboard in my room considering the dust, but at the same time chalk never dries out and you don't have to go out and get ripped off on markers. There's a lot more pros and cons but I'm too lazy to write them out.

 

[micromass]

You do have dustfree chalk nowadays...

Somehow I always performed better in exams on a blackboard than in exams on paper. Not sure why that is...

 

[Pengwuino]

You do have dustfree chalk nowadays...

Somehow I always performed better in exams on a blackboard than in exams on paper. Not sure why that is...

How do you do an exam on a blackboard?

 

[tiny-tim]

fish use penguins

(in exams: only on one side)

 

[rollcast]

I spray painted a wall in the garage with black board paint, used to use it but it gotpainted over last year

 

[jhae2.718]

I love whiteboards.

 

[diazona]

Just wondering how many people actually have a large white board that they use on a regular basis. Whenever I see a physics doc I always see famous scientists doing equations on blackboards. Blackboards are out dated, correct?

I wish A lot of people still like blackboards. I'm not one of them; I much prefer whiteboards. I have a couple in my apartment that I use regularly.

Apparently in the public eye, blackboards are much more associated with academia (specifically: math and hard sciences) than whiteboards are.

 

[micromass]

How do you do an exam on a blackboard?

The prof givves you an exercise that you have to solve on the blackboard while he's staring at what you write...

 

[Pengwuino]

The prof givves you an exercise that you have to solve on the blackboard while he's staring at what you write...

Talk about one on one attention.

 

[Jack21222]

I have a rather small whiteboard at my computer desk, but I often use the whiteboard in the physics lounge at my school. I HATE HATE HATE HATE HATE blackboards, though. If I were forced to use a blackboard on a daily basis, I'd have to buy gloves. I can't stand how chalk feels on my fingers.

 

[DR13]

The prof givves you an exercise that you have to solve on the blackboard while he's staring at what you write...

This isn't for undergrad exams, is it? I know that someone I work with took his quals in grad school like this. What type of exam was it for you?

 

[micromass]

This isn't for undergrad exams, is it? I know that someone I work with took his quals in grad school like this. What type of exam was it for you?

This was at so at most undergrad exams. I took topology, analysis, abstract algebra,... like this. You get used to it in the end...

 

[FrancisZ]

Just wondering how many people actually have a large white board that they use on a regular basis. Whenever I see a physics doc I always see famous scientists doing equations on blackboards. Blackboards are out dated, correct?

By whiteboard do you mean an electronic one--a "Smartboard?" Or a dry erase? I've had all three type: black, white, smart. But I prefer an overhead projector often times. The smartboard is nice for graphing and showing videos that you can write on though.

You do have dustfree chalk nowadays...

Dust free my @$$--it STILL gets everywhere! I don't care what the package says. I buy dust free all of the time, and still always end up wearing it.