Will you be the first to watch the new video about Magdeburg Hemispheres?? demos.smu.ca/demos/fluid-...
Magdeburg Hemispheres
An extensive collection of physics demonstrations and videos for use in the classroom and at home!
demos.smu.ca
M.J. Dunlavy
@mdunlavyca.bsky.social
He/Him. Always looking for ways to show the wonders of physics and the universe. Audio, Video, Disco. All views and opinions are my own. Location: Halifax, probably in the lab https://demos.smu.ca
Q: What's the best thing to use as an example of something that weighs 80lbs? A big dog (german shepherd)? 10yr old kid? Asking for a friend...
Partially-eclipsed sun as seen inside the partially-air conditioned Atrium at SMU
This is amazing. And as I sign of good faith, I won't do it to the person who reposted it for me to learn about. But everyone else...
Adam P Knave@adampknave.com · last wk.THEY DID IT! If you refresh the web, or update your bsky app, you can now TURN OFF REPORTS per user! Look, on web here it is! Just go to their profile, and click the three dots where you can find everything else for them and whammo!
I have a ticket with a pretty decent seat for The Odyssey in 70mmIMAX this weekend (Sun 11am showing)... that I am cancelling. If any locals want it, DM me and I'll let you know when I hit the refund button.
An underrated aspect of the prism-rainbow refraction effect is that since the transparent prism bends all of the light, it leaves a shadow as if it is opaque.
For no particular reason: here's an explanation for why the sun looks red when there's a lot of particles in the atmosphere. demos.smu.ca/demos/astron...
Why Are Sunsets Red?
Why are sunsets red?
demos.smu.ca
It's been 8yrs but I'd like to get a limited series podcast going again. I found the research folder for Earth's Mixtape and sadly it'll take that much work again. Speaking of: Like NASA history? Like thinking about talking to aliens? Well then... podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/e...
Earth's Mixtape
Education Podcast · A fun journey through the Voyager Golden Record, Earth's mixtape to the stars!
podcasts.apple.com
I thought I was proud of this mushroom-spinach risotto *before* putting it on the table...
If you are on the SMU campus and have something you'd like photographed in infra-red, send me a DM within the next hour.
M.J. Dunlavy@mdunlavyca.bsky.social · 2mo agoHere's what is looks like from the inside in infra-red. It can be hard to see, but the upper floors (at the top) are much hotter than the lower floors (bottom of pic) 2/3
So we have in the Atrium a glassed three story stairwell that acts as a type of greenhouse column. On a hot day like today, the temperature difference from top to bottom is noticeable! 1/3
After far too long, the "Search" function on the site has been fixed! Now teachers and students can search for the demos they are looking for as if this site was made in the 21st century. demos.smu.ca
New Poll: 1) Complicated questions about public policy have answers that can only be expressed with nuance and context. 🔲 Agree 🔲 Disagree
If you're interested in spotting Venus blip out of view then come back, position yourself IN A SHADOW of a solid object, like a building without windows (not trees!) so you CANNOT accidentally look at the sun. I beg!! Do NOT accidentally look at the sun with a telescope or binocs!!!
Just spent a good amount of time to make sure the antiquated programs I use to produce lab manuals continue to work on a modern computer for a few more years. All of which to say: good luck to my successor!
Full description now up on the site: demos.smu.ca/demos/modern... #iTeachPhysics
Quantum Indeterminacy Demonstration
An extensive collection of physics demonstrations and videos for use in the classroom and at home!
demos.smu.ca
M.J. Dunlavy@mdunlavyca.bsky.social · 2mo agoNew video! Using a Hoberman switch-pitch ball (easily available from many fine toy stores) to demonstrate Quantum Indeterminacy in the classroom! #iTeachPhysics youtu.be/rim-hknwDO0
New video! Using a Hoberman switch-pitch ball (easily available from many fine toy stores) to demonstrate Quantum Indeterminacy in the classroom! #iTeachPhysics youtu.be/rim-hknwDO0
How to Model Quantum Indeterminacy in the Classroom
YouTube video by SMUPhysics
youtu.be
When I moved to Canada as a what-would-be-described now a media-obsessed kid, this was the Canadian show that made the biggest impression on me. And that impression was that Canadian shows were bad.
CaffieneKitty @caffienekitty.bsky.social · 3mo agoIt's done. Gonna sit with it for a night and then release it tomorrow after checking it again with unbleary eyes.
M.J. Dunlavy@mdunlavyca.bsky.social · 3mo agoDo this long enough, and you can hear feedback from the future while you are editing. (and yes, I can also hear your typo comments)
Do this long enough, and you can hear feedback from the future while you are editing. (and yes, I can also hear your typo comments)
M.J. Dunlavy@mdunlavyca.bsky.social · 3mo agoOk. Doing a full video of this.
The issue with filming at 1000fps (with my camera, at any rate) is the lo-res pixelation. Throwing lots of light at it helps, of course. But in this case, I think it works as an effect for the "indeterminate" state.
Was green. Then orange? A nice way to demonstrate superposition of states and how measurement (catching) collapses them. #iTeachPhysics
Sorry, I grabbed it because it is in a 4-pack with three others films I wanted.
M.J. Dunlavy@mdunlavyca.bsky.social · 3mo agoFor anyone on the SMU campus, the "Free Shelf" in the English Department currently has a pretty spiffy-looking DVD of "Singin' in the Rain" (a legit best-ever movie candidate).