Re: direct vs. indirect forces

[Brian McInnes <bmcinnes@PNC.COM.AU>]

John Denker wrote
> Real physicists speak of a force between "A" and "B" mediated by "C" all
> the time.  You might as well get used to it.
John, I have been a "real" physicist for more than 40 years and I am
well used to the way we speak and the corners we cut because of
unstated assumptions that we are usually aware of.  I am also a
practitioner of physics education research and know of the problems
students have because of careless statements and careless use of
models.
I think that in a forum for physics educators we should be bearing in
mind how to make our teaching as clear and non-confusing as possible.
Brian McInnes