Category: Uncategorized

Coil

Posted on by Brian Garthwaite
Coil of enameled magnet wire in a plastic and steel frame.
Wire: durable. Adhesive tape: less durable.

Large and heavy coils of enamel-clad copper wire, which allow for tight, dense windings, are useful for demonstrating induced currents caused by a changing magnetic field. Students can spin magnets on a rubber band to produce enough electrical energy to light an LED. Not much, sure, but it’s still borderline magical.

Note that these hold up for a long time. Acquired in April of 1966 – just shy of six decades ago – and it’s still in regular use.

That $115.00 price marked on there? $1,171.89 in today’s dollars. Do you think we’ve recouped our investment?

Van de Graaff

Posted on by Brian Garthwaite
Shocking!

The spring semester PHYS 212 course starts with electrostatics, and what could be more entertaining than a Van de Graaff generator? A whirring rubber belt on two different rollers – one acrylic, the other covered in dense wool – builds up an electric charge on the anodized aluminum dome. The air positively crackles, and the discharge arcs look pretty great in a dark room.

Plus, it makes your skin feel all weird if you get close but not too close.

Knife Switch

Posted on by Brian Garthwaite
Mechanical knife switch and circuit-building lab components.
Chonky!

When learning about the laws of Ohm and Kirchhoff, it helps to have some hands-on experimentation, wiring together batteries and resistors and tiny little incandescent bulbs. Try it, see what happens, measure your voltage and current. Simple enough, yet more satisfying and memorable than just drawing squiggles on paper.

Plus, you get to open and close the switch like a tiny Frederick Frankenstein! Just try to resist the urge to shout out “My Creation Lives!” too loudly.

Compasses

Posted on by Brian Garthwaite
Pile of many, many small magnetic compasses.
Red might be north.

‘Tis the season for toy kits once more, full of little odds and ends to explore the basic principles of physics. Among them, the humble magnetic compass.

Works with the Earth’s magnetic field, permanent magnets (included in the kit), and even a homemade electromagnet (included in the kit, some assembly required).

Adorably tiny and not ideal for navigation. Please don’t entrust your wilderness survival to these.

Department Mascot

Posted on by Brian Garthwaite
Broken drinking bird head, mounted as a trophy.
Always in season.

The drinking bird, our unofficial department mascot. Even when one takes a tumble – and when it comes to glass bird versus floor, the floor always wins – there’s a great deal of respect for our top-hatted friends.

Sketch of a drinking bird on display above office sign.
Wanted!

Kind of surprised someone hasn’t made up T-shirts yet, to be honest.

Welcome back, spring semester!