and 4 Institute of Botany, Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, Pr ů honice 1, CZ-252 43 Pr ů honice, Czech Republic• Premise of the study : Genome duplication and interspecifi c hybridization are important evolutionary processes that significantly infl uence phenotypic variation, ecological behavior, and reproductive biology of land plants. These processes played a major role in the evolution of the Dryopteris carthusiana complex. This taxonomically intricate group composed of one diploid ( D. expansa ) and two allotetraploid ( D. carthusiana and D. dilatata ) species in Central Europe. Overall phenotypic similarity, great plasticity, and the incidence of interspecifi c hybrids have led to a continuous dispute concerning species circumscription and delimitation.• Methods : We used fl ow cytometry and multivariate morphometrics to assess the level of phenotypic variation and the frequency of hybridization in a representative set covering all recognized species and hybrids.• Key results : Flow cytometric measurements revealed unique genome sizes in all species and hybrids, allowing their easy and reliable identifi cation for subsequent morphometric analyses. Different species often formed mixed populations, providing the opportunity for interspecifi c hybridization. Different frequencies of particular hybrid combinations depended primarily on evolutionary relationships, reproductive biology, and co-occurrence of progenitors.• Conclusions : Our study shows that genome size is a powerful marker for taxonomic decisions about the D. carthusiana complex and that genome size data may help to resolve taxonomic complexities in this important component of the temperate fern fl ora.

Is it possible to reproduce historical experiments in the classroom? The outcome of our project will be presented-We analyzed what kind of historical experiments are described in our textbooks and if students are interested in historical physics experiments. Are historical experiments really important for understanding science?The project was focused on the problem of historical experiments in teaching physics. In the textbooks, some of them are only briefly described. We studied how important it is to teach our students the history of scientific theories and understand that theories must be checked against experimental measurements. Students have to learn scientific methods in order to find out the basic principles of physics, and it can be demonstrated that the (historical) experiment is the right way of how to do it. We tested the possibility to teach and explain some topics in physics through historical experiments mostly designed with modern equipment or simple tools from everyday life. The important factor is the involvement of students themselves into this activity. Keywords: historical experiments, physics teaching, physics textbook IntroductionScience education cannot exist without history. The advancement in science is a never-ending story. According to Teichman (1991), history of science can play various roles in teaching physics:1. The content of knowledge and its development; 2. Ressource of experiments, observations, and analysis; 3. The function of technology; 4. Influence of the society; 5. Historical development and students' problems and misconceptions; 6. Science today and the further development; 7. Science, technology, and society form an integrated system and it is time dependent. History of science in schools is not a favorite topic among students. The inclusion of information about life of famous scientists and explanation of historical notes are ranked very low both on primary and secondary schools. On the other hand, practical activities needed in students' everyday life got the top ranking (Dvořák, 2008).As shown in the research conducted by Dvořák (2008) from the range of thematic units taught in primary schools, the most interesting topics for students were: energy, sound, light, and universe. Conversely, the least interesting were considered thematic units, such as electricity and magnetism, atoms and molecules. From the perspective of using history in teaching physics, the best represented are thematic units: astronomy and astrophysics, optics and thermodynamics. In textbooks, we can find descriptions of series of experiments that demonstrate historical development of these scientific fields and the exploitation of discoveries, inventions, and devices in everyday life.Molecular Physics is considered to be very attractive not only to students, but also sometimes to their teachers, because it seems to be described as too abstract, providing relatively few opportunities to demonstrate the phenomena in school practice. Therefore, it is necessary to pay more attention to this themat...

The main issue of this paper is the discussion around the question "How can we teach and motivate the why-generation learners and the generation Z learners?". The aim of our project was to find out teaching and learning methods that teachers and learners can use in 21st century classroom. Strategies how to engage gen Y and gen Z learners in the learning process should be found. During our research various methods were used: problem based learning, project based learning, team work, inquiry based learning, interdisciplinary approach, experiments -from very simple and low cost experiments to computer based experiments and remote laboratories. It was found out, that generation Y so as gen Z learners can be motivated by various instructional methods based on their own activity. Their own doing seemed to be more important for them than learning itself. It is necessary to use educational materials including charts, graphic presentations, cartoons. Also it was found out that a very useful tool for our students can be the mind mapping. Mind maps and concept maps are not common during students instruction at secondary and high schools in the Czech republic. We prepared a set of concept maps on the basis of high school physics textbooks, from mechanics, molecular physics, via electricity and magnetism to optics, and nuclear physics. In this paper the outcomes of our project will be presented so as some examples of interdisciplinary modules that have been prepared -"real-world" physics modules with everyday life problems that can be integrated into the high school curriculum physics (physics in the kitchen, crime scene investigation, environmental physics), non-traditional experiments, properties of non-Newtonian liquids (experiments with dilatant fluids, oobleck, the suspension of starch, the Weissenberg effect, Barus effect, the Kaye effect), modern physics -nanotechnology (cooperation with the Regional Centre of Advanced Technologies and Materials -a faculty establishment) . The findings of this project are incorporated into the subject "Didactics of Physics" in the undergraduate physics teacher study programme at the Faculty of Science.

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