Using classical physics to calculate the energy of electrons in Bohr model. Solving for energy of ground state and more generally for level n. Created by Jay

Students design and build devices to protect and accurately deliver dropped eggs. The devices and their contents represent care packages that must be safely delivered to people in a disaster area with no road access. Similar to engineering design teams, students design their devices using a number of requirements and constraints such as limited supplies and time. The activity emphasizes the change from potential energy to kinetic energy of the devices and their contents and the energy transfer that occurs on impact. Students enjoy this competitive challenge as they attain a deeper understanding of mechanical energy concepts.

Students examine an image produced by a cabinet x-ray system to determine if it is a quality bone mineral density image. They write in their journals about what they need to know to be able to make this judgment. Students learn about what bone mineral density is, how a BMD image can be obtained, and how it is related to the x-ray field. Students examine the process used to obtain a BMD image and how this process is related to mathematics, primarily through logarithmic functions. They study the relationship between logarithms and exponents, the properties of logarithms, common and natural logarithms, solving exponential equations and Beer's law.

This video segment, adapted from NOVA scienceNOW, presents basic concepts of physics behind booming sand dunes. See how surface tension affects potential and kinetic energy and how it all works together to create sound.

Botany generally refers to the study of plants, but other organisms are often included in the field such as photosynthetic bacteria, fungi, algae, and slime molds. Plants are multicellular organisms with complex, eukaryotic cells that contain cell walls, chloroplasts, and other cell structures that are absent in animal cells. They can be studied at many levels, ranging from the molecules that comprise them to cells and tissues to organs (flowers, leaves, roots, etc.) to organ systems (shoot system and roots systems). Each structure in the plant body is adapted to optimize its function, whether it be photosynthesis, support, nutrient absorption, transportation, or reproduction. Plant physiology explores the chemistry and physics of these functions, including how they respond to the environment, coordinate responses using hormones, gather energy and nutrients, and change throughout their life cycles. Plant ecology examines even larger scales, including plant populations and their roles in communities and ecosystems. Humans rely on plants for food, fiber, and medicines, and to provide clean air, erosion control, and other services. Unfortunately, human activities resulting in habitat loss, climate change, and pollution threaten plant biodiversity, but current and future conservation efforts slow the loss of biodiversity.

Here’s a new “spin” on an old toy. In this modern adaptation of a classic toy—the spool racer—a plastic water bottle is propelled by energy stored in a wound-up rubber band.

Students examine how different balls react when colliding with different surfaces, giving plenty of opportunity for them to see the difference between elastic and inelastic collisions, learn how to calculate momentum, and understand the principle of conservation of momentum.

In this activity, students examine how different balls react when colliding with different surfaces. Also, they will have plenty of opportunity to learn how to calculate momentum and understand the principle of conservation of momentum.

David shows how to use conservation of momentum for a situation where two objects bounce off of each other. Created by David SantoPietro.

Adjust the initial velocity of a third atom as it hits two bonded atoms and track the changes in energy during this interaction.

Students learn a simple technique for quantifying the amount of photosynthesis that occurs in a given period of time, using a common water plant (Elodea). They can use this technique to compare the amounts of photosynthesis that occur under conditions of low and high light levels. Before they begin the experiment, however, students must come up with a well-worded hypothesis to be tested. After running the experiment, students pool their data to get a large sample size, determine the measures of central tendency of the class data, and then graph and interpret the results.

The course is concerned with the concept of structural stability. This concept is applied to discrete and continuous basic structural elements (beams, frames, plates and shells). The fundamental concepts are introduced on the basis of the governing differential equations. The course includes the following topics:

*Equations of motion, nonlinear equilibrium equations, stationary potential energy criterion.
*Stability analysis for the basic structural elements.
*Design methods for stability of basic structural elements.

This unit will teach students about “Carbon and Ecosystems.” They will begin by analyzing the four spheres: biosphere, hydrosphere, atmosphere, geosphere and how they are interconnected. They will understand that one system cannot exist without the other in order to maintain proper functioning within our planet. The students will learn about the various types of ecosystems that exist and how living organisms depend on other living and non-living organisms for survival. This being said, students will examine how the spheres interact and how changes in one, affects another. Students will understand that ecosystems are fueled by the energy from the sun and cycles from which they are powered.

It will focus on what the carbon cycle is and its’ influence in our lives. Carbon is essential for all life on Earth and is also in our atmosphere. It regulates the Earth’s temperature and provides an essential source of the energy to fuel our economy. The carbon cycle describes how carbon moves throughout the Earth’s spheres. By gaining a deeper understanding of how carbon moves, we can better regulate our daily decisions to help sustain our future.

Every musical instrument is different, but they all have one thing common: they convert energy from motion into sound by causing a part of the instrument to vibrate. These vibrations cause waves in the air that, when sensed by our ears, are interpreted as sound. Sound waves travel at different speeds depending on the source of the vibrations. The faster a sound wave moves, the higher the pitch of the sound.

Students create their own anemometers instruments for measuring wind speed. They see how an anemometer measures wind speed by taking measurements at various school locations. They also learn about different types of anemometers, real-world applications, and how wind speed information helps engineers decide where to place wind turbines.

Build an atom out of protons, neutrons, and electrons, and see how the element, charge, and mass change. Then play a game to test your ideas!

Construct and measure the energy efficiency and solar heat gain of a cardboard model house. Use a light bulb heater to imitate a real furnace and a temperature sensor to monitor and regulate the internal temperature of the house. Use a bright bulb in a gooseneck lamp to model sunlight at different times of the year, and test the effectiveness of windows for passive solar heating.

Students build their own small-scale model roller coasters using pipe insulation and marbles, and then analyze them using physics principles learned in the associated lesson. They examine conversions between kinetic and potential energy and frictional effects to design roller coasters that are completely driven by gravity. A class competition using different marbles types to represent different passenger loads determines the most innovative and successful roller coasters.

In this video segment adapted from ZOOM, the cast shows how the 34 steps in their Rube Goldberg invention use everything from gravity to carbon dioxide gas in order to accomplish one simple task: pouring a glass of milk.

In this video segment from ZOOM, Jillian explains how her simple machine uses marbles, levers, flowing sand, and a spinning wheel to water a plant.