How Pi Keeps Train Wheels on Track
Happy 3/14! Here's how this mathematical constant keeps train cars from flying off their tracks during turns.
How to Use Your Speedometer to Figure Out Where Your Car Is
You should never drive in a car with no windows. But if you ever do find yourself in one, you can use physics to get your bearings.
What Even Is Friction, Anyway?
You might think of it as the force that slows things down, but you literally couldn't get anywhere without it.
Here’s How You Can ‘See’ Molecules—on a Whole ‘Nother Planet
Scientists picked up signs of phosphene on Venus by using a technique called rotational spectroscopy. It works like this.
The Cool Physics of a Supersonic Baseball
For one thing, let's build a model of air drag and how it affects the ball differently when it's traveling faster and slower than the speed of sound.
‘Mortal Engines’ Trailer: The Physics of Those Giant Driving Cities
You can't see a giant rolling version of London and not calculate the heck out of it.
The Physics of Plastic Sheets … and Their Invisible Force Fields?
Can fast-moving plastic sheets create an invisible wall? Maybe, maybe not. But you can definitely explore the electric effects of plastic on your own.
Calculating the Power Usage of LED vs. Incandescent Christmas Lights
Let's calculate how much energy your LEDs suck up relative to old-school incandescents.
Build a Thermoelectric Generator, Like the Ones That Power Deep Space Missions
Thermoelectric generators with no moving parts are small and reliable—which makes them perfect for spacecraft like Voyager and Cassini.
How to Run Up a Wall—With Physics!
This crazy parkour move, where a guy bounds up between two walls by jumping from one to the other, is based on the momentum principle and friction.