Los Gatos physics teacher, Dan Burns, alerted the AP Physics EDG of another xkcd comic. It's brilliant (in the British sense of the word.) I for one frequently enjoy xkcd; Randall Munroe's humor really resonates with me.
XKCD Turn Signals
Showing posts with label resonance. Show all posts
Showing posts with label resonance. Show all posts
Thursday, June 02, 2011
Sunday, January 30, 2011
PTSOS2: Heat Waves in Sacramento
Despite the chilly tule fog, a group of physics teachers gathered to discuss the pedagogy of heat and waves at Rio Americano High School yesterday. It was PTSOS2: Give Physics a Whirl.
We ran through kinetic theory, temperature, specific heat, and heat transfer in the morning. Demonstrations were demonstrated, with presentation tips aplenty. Corresponding presos were presented (with my usual admonitions about how bad PowerPoints can be). Lab activities from the Conceptual Physics Lab Manual: Activities · Experiments · Demonstrations · Tech Labs were discussed and summarized.
Specifics included conductometers, radiometers, radiators, Miracle Thaws, and many others. We can never resist the Leidenfrost effect. (A full episode of Jearl Walker's Kinetic Karnival is devoted to this topic.) That led us to busting the paranormal explanation of firewalking.
One highlight was Steve Keith's Rubens' Tube.
During lunch, we were treated to a surprise visit from the Physics Go Girls (Morgan and Riley), who brought treats. With their chartreuse db-T's, they could have been seen from outer space.
Their customized carbohydrate comestibles were enjoyed by participants and workshop leaders alike.
After lunch, we launched into mechanical waves and sound. We discussed the connection of vibrations to waves (without getting bogged down into the robust details of simple harmonic motion). We delved into the Bell Labs wave machine, a Doppler rocket, PhET sims, WavePort, and others. I really like WavePort for creating and analyzing sounds.
A roommful of Talkie Tapes was too silly to not take a video of.
The fact that some users often mishear the word "fun" led us on a tangent of audio pareidolia. Our visit to Jeff Milner's Backmasking website resulted in laughter (wincing, cringing) of varying degrees of propriety.
Steve piped some heavy gas (the eco-friendly freon replacement) through a song flute (recorder) so we could hear the difference that makes. Much like the Mythbusters Fun with Gas clip.
We ended the day with the real make-n-take: Steve Keith's newest and improved-est version of the ever-popular String Thing. (Here's the Exploratorium's version.)
I couldn't resist slowing the finished product down with my compact FH-100.
It was a great day! More photos can be found at my Flickr site.
PTSOS is sponsored by the NCNAAPT and made possible by a grant from the Karl L. Brown Memorial Scholarship fund.
We ran through kinetic theory, temperature, specific heat, and heat transfer in the morning. Demonstrations were demonstrated, with presentation tips aplenty. Corresponding presos were presented (with my usual admonitions about how bad PowerPoints can be). Lab activities from the Conceptual Physics Lab Manual: Activities · Experiments · Demonstrations · Tech Labs were discussed and summarized.
Specifics included conductometers, radiometers, radiators, Miracle Thaws, and many others. We can never resist the Leidenfrost effect. (A full episode of Jearl Walker's Kinetic Karnival is devoted to this topic.) That led us to busting the paranormal explanation of firewalking.
One highlight was Steve Keith's Rubens' Tube.
During lunch, we were treated to a surprise visit from the Physics Go Girls (Morgan and Riley), who brought treats. With their chartreuse db-T's, they could have been seen from outer space.
Their customized carbohydrate comestibles were enjoyed by participants and workshop leaders alike.
After lunch, we launched into mechanical waves and sound. We discussed the connection of vibrations to waves (without getting bogged down into the robust details of simple harmonic motion). We delved into the Bell Labs wave machine, a Doppler rocket, PhET sims, WavePort, and others. I really like WavePort for creating and analyzing sounds.
A roommful of Talkie Tapes was too silly to not take a video of.
The fact that some users often mishear the word "fun" led us on a tangent of audio pareidolia. Our visit to Jeff Milner's Backmasking website resulted in laughter (wincing, cringing) of varying degrees of propriety.
Steve piped some heavy gas (the eco-friendly freon replacement) through a song flute (recorder) so we could hear the difference that makes. Much like the Mythbusters Fun with Gas clip.
We ended the day with the real make-n-take: Steve Keith's newest and improved-est version of the ever-popular String Thing. (Here's the Exploratorium's version.)
I couldn't resist slowing the finished product down with my compact FH-100.
It was a great day! More photos can be found at my Flickr site.
PTSOS is sponsored by the NCNAAPT and made possible by a grant from the Karl L. Brown Memorial Scholarship fund.
Tuesday, October 12, 2010
Squirrel vs. Slinky
The squirrel is a simple creature motivated by two all-consuming drives. One of those drives is to eat. So if there's tasty bird food accessible from atop a pole, you climb the pole and get the tasty bird food.
The human male is a slightly more complex creature. His brain has lobes, and his hands have opposable thumbs. His drives include those of the squirrel, but he also hopes to demonstrate mastery over his domain. If the bird feeder he put in his yard is being attacked by a squirrel, he aims to thwart the squirrel to better serve the birds.
So the man engineers an elegant means to "squirrel-proof" his bird feeder using a simple Slinky. Higher thinking skills vs. basic instinct. Who will win? Watch to find out.
The human male is a slightly more complex creature. His brain has lobes, and his hands have opposable thumbs. His drives include those of the squirrel, but he also hopes to demonstrate mastery over his domain. If the bird feeder he put in his yard is being attacked by a squirrel, he aims to thwart the squirrel to better serve the birds.
So the man engineers an elegant means to "squirrel-proof" his bird feeder using a simple Slinky. Higher thinking skills vs. basic instinct. Who will win? Watch to find out.
Sunday, August 29, 2010
Volgograd: the new Tacoma Narrows
If you're not signed up for Arbor Scientific's CoolStuff newsletter, you might have missed this.
The newly-opened Volgograd Bridge in southern Russia is experiencing a "resonance malfunction."
This is 70 years after the original Tacoma Narrows Bridge fell. Like Obi-Wan Kenobi, though, the demise of the Tacoma Narrows Bridge made it more powerful than anyone could have possibly imagined. Its oscillations of doom revolutionized bridge design and made it the most famous bridge in physics lore.
Russian authorities closed the bridge amid the resonant rippling, but reopened it days later following a safety inspection.
Still though, if you feel you were cheated by time out of a thrill ride on "Galloping Gertie," you might want to book travel to Russia. And you might want to do it soon. The original Tacoma Narrows Bridge carried traffic for four months.
The newly-opened Volgograd Bridge in southern Russia is experiencing a "resonance malfunction."
This is 70 years after the original Tacoma Narrows Bridge fell. Like Obi-Wan Kenobi, though, the demise of the Tacoma Narrows Bridge made it more powerful than anyone could have possibly imagined. Its oscillations of doom revolutionized bridge design and made it the most famous bridge in physics lore.
Russian authorities closed the bridge amid the resonant rippling, but reopened it days later following a safety inspection.
Still though, if you feel you were cheated by time out of a thrill ride on "Galloping Gertie," you might want to book travel to Russia. And you might want to do it soon. The original Tacoma Narrows Bridge carried traffic for four months.
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