Physics & Chemistry/Physics

Build a Cloud Chamber

Science

All around you, and on every surface of the earth, there is radiation pummeling the atoms that make up the matter that we can see and feel. Even as you read this sentence, you are being bombarded by radiation. Pew! Pew! But fear not, it’s completely normal. This background radiation is safe. And though it […]

Did Dark Matter Kill the Dinosaurs?

Picture of the Week: Kelvin-Helmholtz Clouds

The Antenna That Detected the Big Bang

Picture of the Week: Sun Halo, With Sundog Companions

The Problem With Superman, and Other Physics Conundrums

This week, we asked you to submit pop culture physics questions. Now we’ve got some answers, thanks to Rhett Allain, author of the new book Geek Physics and a WIRED.com contributor. Read an excerpt from the book here. Tune in to Science Friday on April 17 to hear Allain chat with Ira about his book. First, let me say […]

Convection Can Be Pretty

Everyone knows the saying “heat rises,” right? Why does heat rise? Let’s use the example of water in a pot. Take a pot full of cold water and place it on a stove. Turn the heat on, and the water near the bottom of the pot gets warmed faster than the water near the top. […]

Ready for Take-Off: Teens Pilot Airplanes in New York City

“Now he has to try to land without hitting the GW Bridge; here comes the GW Bridge in front of him…Straighten out! Straighten out! Don’t hit the GW Bridge! Save the passengers!” That’s what one 9th grader heard as he tried to pilot his passengers to safety aboard US Airways Flight 1549. It was a […]

Snotty Plots: How Do You Graph a Sneeze?

Target Grades:  Grades 6-8 Content Areas: Mathematics Topics: Probability and statistics, epidemiology, measurement, data analysis, histograms. Time required: One 60-minute class period, with possibility to extend CCSS: Math.Content.6.Sp.B.4, Math.Content.6.Sp.B.5, Math.Content.6.Sp.B.5.A, Math.Content.6.Sp.B.5.B, Math.Content.8.Sp.A.1 You and a friend are sitting down to lunch, and all of a sudden…“AAACHOOOO!” One of you sneezes! Your first thought after “bless […]

Squishy Circuits

The Squishy Circuits team developed this activity so that young children (including my own daughters) would have a playful way to explore circuits. Squishy Circuits use two different types of dough as circuit-building materials—one that conducts electricity well, and one that does not. Both doughs are made with readily available ingredients such as flour and […]