Alessandro Volta created the first battery. His ‘voltaic pile’ used alternating silver and zinc discs separated by cloth soaked in salt water. We can easily reproduce this landmark invention and create a small current!
Subjects: Physics
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Water Bottle Rocket
Why do rockets propelled by air pressure work better with water inside, and how much water works best?
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Polarized Light
Passing light through a polarizing filter gives it intriguing properties that are exploited all around us, particularly in the LCD screens we see on our laptops and other electronic devices.
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Storing an Electric Charge
Capacitors are used to store an electric charge for quick release. They are common components of electronic devices, but they need to be treated carefully, because they can release a considerable jolt of electricity!
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Lenz’s Law
We know that copper and aluminum are not typically attracted to permanent magnets, but unexpected things happen when the magnet is in motion!
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Make a Comet
It’s simple and fun to make your own dirty snowball and, in the process, learn what comet are composed of and how they move through space!
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Measuring the Speed of Light With a Microwave
The electromagnetic waves in a microwave travel at the speed of light. Figuring out their wavelength will give us a tasty approximation of the speed of light!
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Understanding Centrifugal Force
A rotating system requires two forces – a forward force and a force in towards the centre. If you didn’t have the force in toward the center, then we wouldn’t have a curved path. So why do seem to feel this force pulling things outward?
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Falling to Earth Due to Gravity
The ‘monkey gun’ demonstration is a striking example of gravity at work, illustrating how all objects fall at the same rate, even if they’re not falling straight down.