Author Archives: Dr. Joel Bryan

In the video clip, you see the Super Springy stretched out a distance of 24 feet. By adjusting the frequency of the waves, the wavelength may be manipulated so that different numbers of loops can be formed.  As with all standing waves, the length of one loop is one-half wavelength. You can find the wavelength (λ) of the standing wave by dividing its total length by the number of loops to get the length of one loop, and then doubling it.

In 1820, Danish physicist/chemist Hans Christian Ørsted noticed that when current from his Voltaic pile was switched on and off, a compass needle placed near the wire deflected from true magnetic north. Within a few months of careful study, he deduced that a magnetic field circles a current-bearing wire.

Watch this cool video and it almost seems like this balloon’s actions are counter-intuitive to everything we know about motion and inertia. Let Professor Joel Bryan from Ball State University explain what is really going on.

Whether we realize it or not, all velocity/speed measurements are made relative to some other object. When your car's speedometer reads 55 mph, the assumption is that the change in position of the car compared to the stationary ground is 55 miles every hour. However, not all velocity/speed measurements are made relative to a stationary object. The Constant Velocity cars allow students to experimentally investigate relative speeds as the cars with different speeds move in the same and in opposite directions.