Unmixing Density Column
The bottle used here is from Voss Water: a nice cylinder and the labels come off easily. Amazon has the ingedients:
From Amazon: BUY NOW
acetone, blue glitter, food coloring, Voss Water
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The density column I made for this video is based on blend of two ideas: this "science snack" from the exploratorium: Klutz-Proof Density Column and this ChemED X post: Blog of Prof. Tom Kuntzleman
Also: check out this video by my friend Steve Mould
See my Salt Fractionation post for details.
Unmixing Density Column: three liquids that won’t stay mixed! Acetone (dyed blue) floats on top of the higher density vegetable oil, which in turn floats atop salt water (dyed orange) which is more dense than oil. Acetone usually dissolves in water through hydrogen bonding interactions, but solubility can be altered. In a process called “salting out” a sufficient amount of salt is dissolved such that the water molecules, which are much more attracted to the resulting Na+ and Cl- ions (through ion-dipole bonds), will then ignore the weaker acetone hydrogen bonds. This results in the spontaneous separation of these three liquids no matter how well shaken up.
Kinetic Magnetic Wave Wires
Get this affordable kit here:
From Educational Innovations: BUY NOW Kinetic magnetic Wires Kit
Similar kits available here:
From Amazon: BUY NOW: Kinetic Magnet Wires Kit
Note: this site contains affiliate links for which I may be compensated
Kinetic Magnetic Wave Wires Kit: explore the surprising ways oscillating kinetic energy is exchanged when repulsive magnetic fields allow masses on springs to interact with each other. Here three weighted springs dance in chaotic motion as they trade kinetic energy. This educational coupled oscillator kit comes with wire springs of equal length capped at both ends with magnets of equal mass and equal field strength which can be configured in myriad way by the experimenter on the included metal base.
Magnetic Braking Pendulum
Get a chunk of pure copper here:
From Amazon: BUY NOW: Copper for Magnetic Braking Pendulum
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Magnetic Breaking Pendulum: The moving magnetic field from the swinging magnet produces electric currents in the copper- these currents then produce magnetic fields that oppose the motion of the moving field, a specific application of Faraday’s law of induction called Lenz’s Law. So a moving magnet makes the copper slab briefly into an electromagnet that creates a field that opposes the pendulum’s motion. Note that if the copper slab is pulled away from the hanging magnet, the magnet tries to follow or oppose the motion of the slab as well.
Gravity Drop Challenge
Get this well made demonstration here:
From Etsy: BUY NOW: Gravity Path Demo Puzzle
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Gravity Drop Challenge: starting at the same height, and ending at a same lower height, which path will take the shortest amount of time? The straight line (red marble) or the wavy longer path (blue marble)? The weird thing is that both marbles will have identical speeds at the finish line- yet one gets there quicker. The physics problem of finding the curve of fastest descent is called the brachistochrone problem- from the Greek words brakhistos ‘shortest’ and khronos ‘time’- and it is not a straight line. The fastest curve turns out to be the cycloid- a topic for a future post.
Magnetic Top and Curious Forms
I got this top and moving cutout set in my June Curiosity Box:
Get (or give!) a Curiosity Box subscription here: JOIN NOW: The Curiosity Box
Sometime found on auction: Search NOW: Magnetic Top
Here is a smaller fun version:
From Etsy: BUY NOW: Magnetic Top with Snake
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Magnetic Top & Curious Forms: a favorite kinetic art toy which takes advantage of Newton’s 3rd law and rotational kinetic energy. The magnetized tip of the spin top connects to a smooth metal cutout, but since the top is much more massive, the metal cutout moves creating the curious motion. The Vsauce team @thecuriositybox created this amazing version of the classic “top & snake” physics toy from the 1950s- and the supplied cutouts include a spiral, an abstract form with triangular symmetry, and a snake of course!
Marble Twister
These vintage spring-like marble runs can sometimes be found here:
From eBay: Search NOW: Marble Twister by Anatax
Check out similar physics with this amazing Vortex Coin Bank
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Marble Twister: centripetal acceleration keeps the marble on the rails of the coil in this vortex shaped marble run toy. Not enough velocity to keep it all the way down though so it drops down at a certain point.
Perpetual Dolphin Wheel
Similar vintage 1970s "perpetual" devices often available on eBay
From eBay: BUY NOW Andrews Space Wheel
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Perpetual Dolphin Wheel: another kinetic art desk toy from the 70s- the rotor will stay in motion for weeks, until the hidden 9V battery is depleted. The rotor has a magnet embedded within each dolphin- and an extremely simple and ingenious circuit within the base (comprised of: a coil, a battery, and one transistor), senses the approaching magnets and energizes the coil to gives these magnets a push as the rotor passes through the middle. Similar to the Andrew’s Space Wheel, this device also takes advantage of conservation of energy and angular momentum to sustain the motion.
Mirror Anamorphosis
This image by István Orosz is sometimes available as a puzzle:
From eBay: Search NOW: Anamorphic Puzzles
Another anamophic puzzle availabel here:
From Etsy: BUY NOW: Anamorphic Puzzle with Mirror Cylinder
For those who want to see the math behind this art, here is an initial paper on the topic published in 2000 in the American Journal of Physics: Anamorphic Images by Hunt et al.
Many books are available (with mirror cylinders) from Amazon: Anamorphic Art in Books
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Mirror Anamorphosis: this famous print by artist István Orosz has a hidden anamorphic image revealed by placing a mirrored cylinder over the depiction of the moon in the image. The work visualizes a scene from the book “The Mysterious Island” by the science-fiction author Jules Verne- whose portrait emerges in the reflection on the cylinder.
Span 1 Kinetic Sculpture
Learn more about Mark's work and see videos of the complete Span series here:
StoodilyDoodleyO: Visit Now: Span Series Kinetic Art
pan 1: extreme viscosity sculpture by Mark Welsh @markiedoodle - featuring a heavy steel ball that descends through a very viscous fluid while a bubble of air ascends. It takes two hours and 15 minutes for the ball to move to the bottom- shown here in time lapse at more than 100x speed. Note the strange phenomena that occurs when the ball collides with the bubble. Span 1 is part of the artist’s exploration of how technology has impacted our collective attention span. Borosilicate glass, Silicone(fluid), Flame anodized chrome, and Steel the cylinder is 40cm tall.
Magnetic Levitation Keychain DragonBall Z
These vintage toys often available here:
From eBay: Search NOW: Magnetic Keychains
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Magnetic Levitation Keychain: Piccolo levitates in defiance of gravity via the repulsive force of hidden magnets (with the constraint of the acrylic cylinder to keep him upright). Fun physics to create the DragonBall Z superpowers in this vintage Funimation toy.
Sunlit Perspective Lamp
Get one here (a few models to choose from):
From Amazon: BUY NOW: Backlit Perspective 1 Lamp
From Amazon: BUY NOW: Backlit Perspective 2 Lamp
From Amazon: BUY NOW: Backlit Perspective 3 Lamp
\Note: this site contains affiliate links for which I may be compensated
Sunlit Perspective Lamp: when lit from behind this flat ink line-drawing jumps into 3D via perspective shading of sunlight and some color lithophane type images placed behind the sketched windows. A fun take on the power of geometric perspective to suggest three dimensions from two.
Impossible Bottle with Corkscrew
Contact Davide to obtain one of his amazing sculptures:
Get his new book here: BUY NOW: Impossibilia Book
Click here to see other items in my collection of Impossible Objects
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Impossible Bottle with Corkscrew: this beautiful work of art by @dp.fumagalli was created with clever engineering and expert craftwork. I love everything about this sculpture- from the inverted corkscrew theme to the shape of the bottle- and the artist’s delightful logo (an optical illusion- swipe for details). The puzzle aspect is to consider how the bottle was produced (I personally have some theories- but I do not know the secrets of this artist). I can tell you with high certainty that the bottle was never cut or altered in anyway, and everything in the bottle, somehow, went through its narrow neck. With special thanks to Davide Fumagalli (aka the Impossible Maker) for this wonderful addition to my collection.
Impossible Dovetail
Inexpensive versions of this "impossible box" like that in the video avaiable here:
From Amazon: BUY NOW: Impossible Box Puzzle
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Impossible Dovetail: this impossible object is pretty common, but it is a classic, and included in my collection. If one assumes a regular dovetail joint then this construction would indeed seem impossible without cutting and gluing, but what one sees from the sides makes for misleading assumptions as this box opens easily. Swipe for reveal once you’ve thought about about possible constructions.
Impossible Fold
Contact Davide to obtain one of his amazing sculptures:
Get his new book here: BUY NOW: Impossibilia Book
Click here to see other items in my collection of Impossible Objects
Note: this site contains affiliate links for which I may be compensated
Impossible Fold: one more work of art by @dp.fumagalli. This standard card was cut (but not cut apart) and somehow folded back on itself. The puzzle aspect is to consider how the fold was produced (I personally have some theories- but I do not know the secrets of this artist). With thanks to Davide Fumagalli (aka the Impossible Maker) for this addition to my collection.
Impossible Links Pendant
Get this unique pendant here:
From PUZZLAB: BUY NOW: Tri-Wooden Pendant
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Impossible Links: three rings, each made of an exotic hardwood, are interlinked and encircled by a fourth solid wood ring in this curious and expertly crafted necklace pendant. The puzzle aspect is to consider how the pendant was produced (I do not know the secrets of this artist) and my close examination with a magnifying glass could not discern any seams or glue joints.
Sprial Oil Drop Timer
Get one here:
From Amazon: BUY NOW: Oil Drop Timers
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Spiral Oil Drop Timer: when this drop timer achieves its steady state the drops form with amazing regularity in terms of both the size of the drop and the spacing between drops. The physics of immiscible liquids, surface tension, viscosity, and gravity combine to produce these interesting patterns.
Deja Vu II: Kinetic Art
The work of artist/craftsmen William Le is avaliable here:
From Amazon: BUY NOW: Deja Vu II Kinetic Art
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See this other amazing device from this creator: Impossible Marble Machine
Deja Vu II: astonishing spring powered kinetic art. Crafted from wood this device has two disks, each with a pattern of curved spokes that can rotate at different rates and direction to produce interesting illusions of motion via moiré interference effects. A ribbon spring drives an ingenious mechanism that uses ratchets (and the rotational momentum of the disks) to create the various visual modes- a half rotation of the disks will result in 20+ minutes of motion. With a full loading of the spring hours of motion will ensue. Another amazing creation by artist and designer William Le.
Spiral Ball Launcher
Get this 3D print here (with 7 segments and 2 sprial balls):
From Nikolatoy: BUY NOW: Spriral Ball Launcher Kit
Or print it yourself:
From Makerworld.com: Download NOW: Stackable Impossible Passthrough print files
Spiral Ball Launcher: spring potential energy converts to kinetic and gravitational potential energy in this fun 3D print. A variation on the spiral “impossible passthrough” fidget toys, the ball exits the stack of rifled guides with stabilizing spin along the vertical direction. The interesting behavior stems from the connection between translational motion and rotational motion and the precision manufacturing allowed by the 3D printing process. Another amazing creation by RJ Design.