Learning and understanding physics requires more than studying physics texts. It requires doing physics. Doing research is a key opportunity for students to connect physical principles with their everyday experience. A powerful way to introduce students to research and technique is through subjects in which they might find interest. Presented is…

Lots of engineering thinking can be involved in crushing things. As an example, engineers spend a great deal of time designing crush-proof packaging for delicate equipment and packing materials for items that must be stored or shipped. This article presents an activity wherein students can begin to appreciate the technology behind the engineering.…

Create a light and sound show to entertain friends. Design an improved safety device for a car. Develop a 2-3 minute voice-over for a sports clip explaining the physics involved in the sport. Modify the design of a roller coaster to meet the needs of a specific group of riders. Design an appliance package for a family limited by the power and…

Presents a general classification of charged particles, their electrical properties, and their industrial applications. (GS)

Provides some perspectives on the explosive growth in microscience to show some of the interrelations among science, engineering, and technology. (HM)

Shows that upon incorporating an irreversible step into an otherwise reversible Carnot Cyclic process there results a diminution of thermodynamic efficiency and a simultaneous augmentation of the entropy of the universe. (Author/HM)

Reviews the earthquake phenomenon and its possible relation to ionospheric disturbances. Discusses the basic physical principles involved and the methods upon which instrumentation is being developed for possible use in a tsunami disaster warning system. (GA)

An effective demonstration of the phase relationships in a series RLC circuit, resonance and Q, is made possible by multiplexing four signals onto a single channel, thereby converting a single-channel scope to four channels. (Author/GA)

Describes the activities of the National Submicron Facility which was established at Cornell University in Ithaca, New York to serve as an information resource for the nation's research community in microstructure science and engineering. (HM)

Explains the principle behind a novel wind-driven water craft and shows that the basic laws of mass, energy and momentum conservation apply to it. An expression for calculating the final speed of the craft is given (GA)

The purpose of the Nuclear Power Plant Modules, NPP-1, is to determine the total cost of electricity from a nuclear power plant in terms of all the components contributing to cost. The plan of analysis is in five parts: (1) general formulation of the cost equation; (2) capital cost and fixed charges thereon; (3) operational cost for labor,…

This research news article on microelectronics discusses the scientific challenge the integrated circuit industry will have in the next decade, for designing the complicated microcircuits made possible by advancing miniaturization technology. (HM)

The nine Reactor Statics Modules are designed to introduce students to the use of numerical methods and digital computers for calculation of neutron flux distributions in space and energy which are needed to calculate criticality, power distribution, and fuel burn-up for both slow neutron and fast neutron fission reactors. The diffusion…