Impossible Motion

Created by Kokichi Sugihara of the Meiji Institute for Advanced Study of Mathematical Sciences in Japan. The Impossible Motion Magnet-Like Slopes was the first prize winner at the Best Illusion of the Year Contest 2010.

Extreme Sunbeam

Jem Stansfield of BBC’s Bang Goes The Theory, travels to the Solar Furnace Research Facility in Southern France to see what kind of damage highly concentrated sunlight can do (a lot, apparently).

Seeing Where the Microwaves Are in a Microwave Oven

Microwaves are absorbed by wires creating current in the wires which can drive a neon lamp. I drilled a grid into a piece of plastic and slipped in the bulbs, leaving the wires to hang out like antennas. As the plate turns, the bulbs go into and out of places where the microwave energy is denser, illuminating the bulbs. No, it doesn’t seem to hurt the microwave. You can find out more about how to make this by going to http://kossover.squarespace.com/.

Water Drops at 2000 Frames per Second

From Discovery Channel’s series Time Warp where MIT scientist and teacher Jeff Lieberman and digital-imaging expert Matt Kearney use the latest in high-speed photography to turn never-before-seen wonders into an experience of beauty and learning.

Teaching Content IS Teaching Reading

Professor Daniel Willingham describes why content knowledge is essential to reading with comprehension, and why teaching reading strategies alone is not sufficient that students read with good comprehension.

Professor David Kisailus on Duplicating Nature’s Strengths

Professor David Kisailus, of the Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering in the Bourns College of Engineering, studies materials in nature that can be copied for man-made purposes. A goal of his research is to develop light-weight and tough synthetic materials that could be used for aerospace, automotive, and medical applications. These materials would also be produced at significantly lower processing costs and under environmentally benign conditions.