Giant Newton's Cradle
This industrial grade museum quality device available here:
From Etsy: BUY NOW: Giant Newton's Cradle
Regular sized Newton's cradles availabe here:
From Amazon: BUY NOW: Newton's Cradle
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Newton's Cradle: industrial model made with galvanized aircraft cable, aircraft aluminum for the frame, and 1.5 inch one-half pound nickel plated chrome steel spheres. (0.23 kg and 3.8cm in diameter each) The classic demonstration that shows the curious behavior due to conservation of both momentum and kinetic energy. Swipe to see comparison to standard version.
Chil Balance Sculpture
This elegant design comes ready to assemble in your choice of four colors:
From Etsy: BUY NOW: Chil Balance Bird
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Chil Balance Sculpture: the mass and orientation of the wings creates a center of mass below this sleek bird's beak- making a system that will rotate and oscillate about a stable equilibrium. No magnets! An elegant sculpture by artist Bin Xu of BinDesign that comes ready to assemble complete with stand,
Rheoscopic Planet
Avalable in five colors! Get one here:
From Mr. Sci (Science Factory): Rheoscopic Planet
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Rheoscopic Planet: this example of fluid flow kinetic art uses rheoscopic fluid encased in flexible bubble of plastic to reveal the intricate motion of turbulence. A suspension of tiny flat mica crystals tend to align themselves at the boundaries where the fluid is moving comparatively faster or slower, making the typically invisible flow patterns visible. Another unique science toy from @mrscisciencefactory
Pocket Scintillator Kinetic Art
Logan sometimes has items for sale here:
From Etsy: BUY NOW: PocketScintillators
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Pocket Scintillator Card: three sheets of seemingly random arrays of translucent colored pixels produce words and images when stacked- shift the stack of sheets and a second images appears! Innovative kinetic optical art by inventor, artist, software developer Logan Kerby @thanksplease who kindly sent me these cards encoded with @physicsfun themes.
Rolling Marble Sculpture
Similar innovative rolling ball sculptures available here:
From Etsy: BUY NOW: Marble Machine
From Etsy: BUY NOW: 3D Printed Marble Runs
See more (miniture) marble runs here: Marble Run Fun
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Rolling Marble Sculpture: marbles perform gymnastics as potential energy of gravity is converted to kinetic energy. An elegantly designed auger conveyor, an Archimedes' Screw, brings the marbles back to the top (powered by an AA battery and a small motor). Conservation of angular momentum produces a simulation of decaying orbits as the marbles whirl down the the main funnel shaped feature.
Tapered Mirrors Kaleidoscope
Get a similar and affordable tapered kaleidocsope here:
From Amazon: BUY NOW: Pyramidion Kaleidosphere
For the enthusiast- some of the best on the market:
From Etsy: BUY NOW: Fine Art Kaleidoscopes
Note: this site contains affiliate links for which I may be compensated
Tapered Mirrors Kaleidoscope: the design of this teleidoscope uses three mirrors to create an image of a geodesic sphere. A blue laser pointer reveals some of the complexity of the repeated reflections. Three mirrors in an equilateral triangle configuration will produce a plane of tiled triangles, but if they are tapered the repeated reflections curve to infinity creating the sphere. I found this interesting teleidoscope on eBay a year or so ago- artist unknown. Invented by the famous Scottish physicist Sir David Brewster (1781-1868), the kaleidoscope is an ultimate physics toy and entire field of artistic endeavor.
Vintage VFD Tube Clock
Fully assembeld high quality clocks available here:
From Etsy: BUY NOW: VFD Tube Clock
Note: this site contains affiliate links for which I may be compensated
Vintage VFD Tube Clock: before seven segment LEDs there were Vacuum Fluorescent Display tubes in which zinc oxide coatings emit green light when bombarded by electrons under high vacuum. A phosphor coated anode segment only illuminates if it and the grid (seen in close up) are both energized at positive potential. This clock features an eight digit IV-18 display tube manufactured in the 1990s and cofigured to power up via a USB cable - old tech meets modern electronics in an elegant acrylic case.
Hybrid Kaleidoscope
High quality kaleidocsopes available here:
From Etsy: BUY NOW: Fine Art Kaleidoscopes
@physicsfun features a wide vatiety of kaleidoscopes (click to explore)
Note: this site contains affiliate links for which I may be compensated
Hybrid Kaleidoscope: the beautiful symmetry of multiple reflections in a unique design- part teleidoscope (image from spherical lens) and part kaleidoscope (image from colorful objects in viewing cell). Invented by the famous Scottish physicist Sir David Brewster (1781-1868), the kaleidoscope is an ultimate physics toy and entire field of artistic endeavor. This vintage find is labeled “C. Bennett Scopes for AKAG 1984”.
Earth Mass Black Hole
Precision machined tungsten alloy spheres avaulable here:
From STEMCell Science: BUY NOW: Tungsten Black Hole Replica
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Earth Mass Black Hole: this sphere of tungsten alloy has a diameter of 17.7mm, a precision representation of the size of the event horizon of a black hole with a mass equal to that of the Earth! If the entire mass of the earth could somehow be compressed to the size of this sphere, it would indeed collapse to a black hole with an event horizon defined by a Schwarzschild radius of 8.87mm. For comparison a black hole with the mass of the sun would be 6km across. This black hole replica is made of one of the densest materials available, a tungsten alloy with ?=18.5 g/cm³ which produces a strange sensation when you hold it, with a weight of twice that of a ball bearing of equal size.
Zoetrope
Get a similar affordable Zoetrope from these sources:
From Etsy: BUY NOW: Zoetrope
From Amazon: BUY NOW: Zoetrope
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Zoetrope: the physics and psychophysics of motion animation- still images flashed in rapid succession produces the illusion of motion through persistence of vision. The slits are crucial to creating the illusion by blacking out the visual stimulus for a short duration- without these pauses only a blur is perceived. When the image flash rate is above the flicker fusion frequency (approximately 16Hz) we perceive fluid motion- the basis for all movies and TV.
Nixie Tubes and Clock
The Nixie Tube Clock in the video is of amazing craftsmanship- real hardwood with brass accents and solid construction. Get one from this excellent shop:
From Etsy: BUY NOW: Nixie Tube Clocks
Note: this site contains affiliate links for which I may be compensated
Nixie Tube: long before there were 7 segment LED displays there was the Nixie- cold cathode tubes with a wire mesh and 10 cathodes shaped in the form of numerals 0-9 that illuminate through neon glow discharge. The “Numeric Indicator eXperimental 1” or NIX 1 was introduced in 1955 by Burroughs Corporation and manufactured until the 1990s. This clock uses modern electronics to power Russian versions called the ИH-19A where the numbers are stacked so the front symbols obscure each lighted cathode minimally: from back to front 1320984756.
Steinmetz Bicylinder
3D printed versions available here along with many other amazing geometrical objects:
From Etsy: BUY NOW: Steinmetz Bicylinder
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Steinmetz Bicylinder: intersect two cylinders at right angles and the remaining confined space is the bicylinder- shown here machined from stainless steel. The bicylinder casts a circular shadow along two orientations, and a square shadow perpendicular to those. In addition the curve created along where the two cylinders meet is an ellipse- as seen with the object spinning along the intersection axis. Fun fact: the area and volume of this object are known to be A=16r^2 and V=16r^3/3. Thanks to Zac Eichelberger of Math Meets Machine for sending me one of his creations.
JSC-MARS-1 Martian Soil Simulant
Currently avaiable simulated martian regolith:
MMS-2 Mars Regolith Simulant developed by the Exolith Lab at University of Central Florida
From STEMcell Science: BUY NOW: Martian Soil Simulant Sample
Note: this site contains affiliate links for which I may be compensated
JSC MARS-1 Martian Soil Simulent: what the rust colored dirt of the Red Planet would look like up close! Produced by NASA for engineering studies of future human activities on Mars, this simulated regolith closely approximates the chemical, mineral, and grain size distribution based on data from the Viking and Pathfinder landers.
JSC 1 Lunar Soil Simulant
Currently avaiable simulated lunar regolith:
LMS-1 Lunar Mare Simulant developed by the Exolith Lab at University of Central Florida
From StemCell Science: BUY NOW: Lunar Soil Simulant Sample
Note: this site contains affiliate links for which I may be compensated
In the video: JSC-1 Lunar Soil Simulant- if you could scoop up a handful of the surface of the Moon, this is how it would look. Produced by NASA for engineering studies of future human activities on the Moon, the simulated regolith closely approximates the chemical, mineral, and grain size distribution found in actual lunar samples from the Apollo missions. Sourced from slightly porphyritic basalt ash sampled from craters near Flagstaff AZ and then processed. The LMS-1 Lunar Mare Simulant developed by the Exolith Lab is the latetest and most up to date version.
Thermochromic Safety Sticker
These stickers transition back and forth and can be used on many surfaces. Get some here:
From Etsy: BUY NOW: Thermochromic Saftey Sticker
Note: this site contains affiliate links for which I may be compensated
Thermochromic Safety Sticker: the liquid crystal ester dye in this reusable sticker is calibrated to change color when the surface temperature exceeds 50°C (122°F)- that at which prolonged contact (more than 0.5s) will burn skin. Here the safety sticker is attached to a slab of aluminum and heated with a simple candle- it took about 3.5 minutes for the heat to distribute and bring the aluminum to the threshold temperature. When the surface cools the sticker again appears blank and can transition over and over again
Nixie Tube Clock V2
The Nixie Tube Clock in the video is of amazing craftsmanship- real hardwood with brass accents and solid construction. Get one from this excellent shop:
From Etsy: BUY NOW: Nixie Tube Clocks
Note: this site contains affiliate links for which I may be compensated
Nixie Tube Clock V2: long before there were 7 segment LED displays there was the Nixie- cold cathode tubes with a wire mesh and 10 cathodes shaped in the form of numerals 0-9 that illuminate through neon glow discharge. The “Numeric Indicator eXperimental 1” or NIX 1 was introduced in 1955 by Burroughs Corporation and manufactured until the 1990s. This clock uses modern electronics to power Russian versions called the ИH-12A where the numbers are stacked so the front symbols obscure each lighted cathode minimally: from back to front 162750483.
Dudeney's Dissection 3D Print
Get this set here!
From Etsy: BUY NOW: Dudeney's Dissection 3D Print
Note: this site contains affiliate links for which I may be compensated
Dudeney's Dissection: an equilateral triangle canbe cut (dissected) into four pieces that will then assemble into a square. This 3D printed version comes as a puzzle- fit the pieces in each of two containers- a square and a triangle, which also makes it clear the two supplied shapes are of equal area. Fun fact: It is not known if a similar three piece dissection is possible. Also called Haberdasher's problem and described in 1907 by Henry Dudeney it is the only 4 piece solution known.
Beaded Kaleidocycle
Get similar beadwork geometric art here:
From Etsy: BUY NOW: Beadwork Kaleidocycle
Note: this site contains affiliate links for which I may be compensated
Beaded Kaleidocycle: based on a geometry of six linked tetrahedra with hinged connections that allow the ring to be rotated through its center. Intricate beadwork meets math in this kinetic artwork by Erin Peña.