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Description
Record: 945
Variable Star Astronomy, formerly published as Hands-On Astrophysics, was developed for anyone who is interested in astronomy and in learning more about the behaviors and properties of stars.

Record: 968
Simple but clear and effective optical bench applet for lenses and mirrors, both convex and concave. It shows real and virtual images as you set or drag and drop the lens or object.

Record: 1077
"Light in a Mirrored Ball" If light were introduced into a perfect hollow spherical ball that was lined with a perfect reflective surface would there be light inside that ball for as long as the ball existed? [mp3 Audio file] Quirks & Quarks December 23 2000 Good STSE student research.
Record: 1078
Light traveling faster than...itself? [mp3 Audio file] Quirks & Quarks September 16 2000 Good STSE student research
Record: 1079
If you think nothing can travel faster than the speed of light perhaps you'd better ... [mp3 Audio file] Quirks & Quarks October 05 2002 Good STSE student research.
Record: 1080
"Old Blue Eyes" Why do our dogs' eyes look light blue in photographs when human eyes appear red? [mp3 Audio file] Question of the Week Quirks & Quarks April 20 2002 Good STSE student research "
Record: 1091
"Visible Light"If the sun emits all different types of electromagnetic radiation why have our eyes evolved to see only visible light? [mp3 Audio file] Question of the Week: Quirks & Quarks December 23 2000 Good STSE student research. "
Record: 1103
Colour and Light. Why on a bright afternoons you look notice reds while at dusk you notice greens more? Quirks & Quarks Question March 2 1996 Search for date on page for question and then click on "answer".
Record: 1108
Bending Light Backwards [mp3 Audio file] - Researchers made light bend through a prism in the opposite direction from normal light. The trick is a new kind of material with special properties. This material has the potential to be used to build near perfect lenses. Quirks & Quarks April 14 2001 Audio File Good STSE student research
Record: 1109
Need to search CBC site (http://www.cbc.ca/quirks/archives/00-01/jun0201.htm to locate file - shows as dead link but the MP3 is still available. Blind Mice. Our standard model of the eye is rods and cones collecting light sending signals through the retina to the brain is too simple Quirks & Quarks June 2 2001 Audio File Good STSE student research

Record: 1110
How do insect eyes accommodate different light levels? Question of the Week Quirks & Quarks Question of the week October 21 2000 [mp3 Audio file] Good STSE student research.
Record: 1178
Billiards and Physics. This java applet shows you how to use the law of reflection (for optics) in playing pool. A ball bouncing off the bank of a pool table behaves like a light ray reflecting off a mirror. There are two colored balls; red and blue. Set up an initial velocity for the red ball and let the red ball knock the blue one into one of the six pockets. Click LEFT mouse button within the red ball and drag the mouse to set the initial velocity for the red ball. Click the RIGHT mouse button to change the initial position for the red ball.

Record: 1249
"Space Station / Moon Movie - It's NOT what you think! Sky watchers on Earth can see red squashed moons if the moon is close enough to the horizon. The effect is much stronger in orbit because of the double passage of light through the "atmospheric lens" Click on the [a giant lens] link for a good explanation of the flatten shape of the moon or sun when they are close to the horizon"

Record: 1253
This site has now been moved to http://www.atoptics.co.uk/ Identified as a deadlink until it can be changed in the VL. Atmospheric Optics This site explains a host of visual spectacles - rainbows halos glories coronas and many more. Some can be seen almost every day or so some are once in a lifetime sights.
Record: 1255
A Power Point Presentation showing how to find the angle of deviation of light passing through a 60 degree prism. Good for student research, however requires knowledge of trigonometry and Snell's Law.

Record: 1301
Fish Eye View of the World This contains a BLM students can use with a knowledge of Total Internal Reflection and how light is refracted as it passes from water to air to show how light from above and below the waters surface enters a fish's eye. Interesting applet embedded to show how a fish sees the world.

Record: 1312
VISUALIZING THE ELECTROMAGNETIC SPECTRUM A nice introductory demonstration. It requires collecting a fair amount of equipment the first time.

Record: 1316
Bending Light /Atmospheric Mirages. Shine a laser pointer into an aquarium filled with a variable sugar solution. It bends (refracts) toward the bottom, then "bounces" off the bottom to demonstrate total internal reflection at the bottom of the aquarium. You can use this demo as an introduction to Atmospheric (superior) Mirages.

Record: 1364
Disappearing Finger. This is a simple demonstration of refraction in the human eye with almost no preparation. It can be done anywhere.
Record: 1380
Hot Dog! The Particleboard of Meat Use a metal mesh satellite dish covered in plastic mirror pieces to cook hotdogs using the sun. You're sure to gather the interest of kids regardless of their age with this solar cooker. First published in the Crucible Nov.2004

Record: 1381
DICK & I HIDE MARYS HAT A Student Activity/Lab to review image characteristics in a converging lens using a test tube filled with water or a glass or plastic rod. The graphic can also be used to review image inversion in plane mirrors

Record: 1393
A large plastic diffraction grating can be easily attached to an overhead projector to project the visible spectrum of the lamp. Beakers with indicator dyes can be placed on the projector stage to show changes in the spectrum as the dyes change colour. Good for relating colour theory to absorption and transmission media. Also good for introducing the invisible parts of the EM spectrum (i.e.IR&UV)

Record: 1402
An optics lab with blackline master for students to measure the focal length of a diverging lens. Students who conduct experiments with diverging lenses can get very frustrated; images of objects are virtual which cannot be projected onto a screen and their position is very hard to determine experimentally. This lab show a clear way to do it.
Record: 1429
Getting Connected: Arbor Scientific's CoolStuff Archives. The Free Download!Double-Slit Diffraction with just a Laser Pointer and a Laser Printer, Each of your students can generate their own double-slit patterns. Many other student activities and demos concerning Making Your Own Rainbow, Blue Skies, Red Sunsets,and Aurora Borealis are easy to find.

Record: 1487
Bubble, Bubble, Toil and Trouble Bubbles are intrinsically interesting objects that attract the attention of old and young alike. I offer here but a few descriptions of demonstrations and activities. There are a great many more available. You’ll find some suggested resources at the end of this article. INFLATE THE GRASSHOPPER, DECORATE THE PIG: USING YOUR CREATIVITY IN THE PHYSICS CLASSROOM First published in the Crucible Nov. 2007
Record: 1564
Simulation shows how Neon and other gas discharge tubes emit light. The energy levels for each colour transition is shown. A "spectrometer" shows the various lines accumulating as photons are emitted.

Record: 1574
A Flash sim that shows image size and position changes when position or properties of a lens are changed ... refractive index, curvature, diameter are variable. Rays are optional. Object may be changed and moved. There are excellent "Teaching Ideas/Tips for Teachers" including good, download-able examples of Concept questions