Physics

Energy

BACK TO:

NOVA

RESOURCE	GRADE LEVEL	MEDIA TYPE
Airplanes: Designing for Stealth Explore this NOVA interactive activity to see how engineers have modified a military plane's sound, shape, and heat emissions to minimize detection.	6-12	Interactive
Antarctic Ice Movement: Part II Within Antarctic ice sheets are fast-moving streams of ice. This video segment adapted from NOVA hypothesizes about how ice streams are the result of warming at the end of the last ice age.	6-12	Video
Are We Alone? This video segment adapted from NOVA features a variety of scientific perspectives on the age old question, "Are we alone in the universe?" Animations make vivid the improbability that we could intercept a radio wave signaling extra terrestrial intelligence.	6-12	Video
Bee Navigation This video segment from NOVA: "The Mystery of Animal Pathfinders" explores honeybee communication and navigation.	6-8	Video
Birth of a Supernova, Type Ia In this interactive activity from NOVA Online, learn about a type of exploding star — a Type Ia supernova — that is so bright that astronomers can measure the distance to the galaxy in which it resides, and even learn which elements make up the star.	6-12	Interactive
Birth of a Supernova, Type II In this interactive activity from NOVA Online, learn about a type of exploding star — a Type II supernova — that is so large it has a mass 10 times greater than the mass of our Sun.	6-12	Interactive
Booming Sands This video segment, adapted from NOVA scienceNOW, presents basic concepts of physics behind "booming" sand dunes. See how surface tension affects potential and kinetic energy and how it all works together to create sound.	6-12	Video
Climate Change This video segment adapted from NOVA explains the difference between weather and climate and features groundbreaking analysis revealing that Earth's climate has changed much faster than previously believed.	6-12	Video
Deep-Sea Vents and Life's Origins Deep-sea vents are home to life forms that do not rely on the Sun's energy. They depend instead on energy from volcanoes on the ocean floor. This video segment adapted from NOVA hypothesizes that life on Earth may have begun in this extreme environment.	3-12	Video
Earthquakes: The Seismograph This video segment adapted from NOVA uses historical illustrations, photographs, and animations to explain how seismographs work, the difference between P and S waves, and the Richter scale.	6-12	Video
Einstein: How Smart Was He? This essay from the NOVA Web site explores the impact Einstein made on physics and most everything we know about the cosmos.	6-12	Document
Einstein's Special Theory of Relativity What happens when you approach the speed of light? This video segment adapted from NOVA follows one of Albert Einstein's thought experiments and his quest to find the answer.	9-12	Video
The Elements: Forged in Stars The story of how elements from lithium to uranium are created by stars is illustrated through animation and a hands-on periodic table in this video segment adapted from NOVA.	6-12	Video
Energy Flow in the Coral Reef Ecosystem This video segment, adapted from NOVA, describes the energy flow in a coral reef, including its food web.	3-12	Video
Energy Transfer in a Trebuchet On NOVA, a team of carpenters, timber framers, engineers, and historians recreate a medieval throwing machine called a trebuchet. This adapted video segment explores how understanding energy transfer informs their design.	6-12	Video
Evidence for the Big Bang Theory This video segment adapted from NOVA tells the story of two scientists who inadvertently discovered microwave radiation that is now believed to be heat left over from the Big Bang.	9-12	Video
Fireworks! Making Color What gives a fireworks display its brilliant blue, green, and red colors? Learn how pyrotechnicians give fireworks color in this video segment adapted from NOVA.	6-12	Video
From Seed to Flower Watching plants grow is like watching paint dry: It happens so slowly that the changes are imperceptible from one moment to the next -- and yet the end results are dramatic. This video segment shows just how amazing plant development can be by depicting various phases of the process using time-lapse photography. Footage from NOVA: "The Shape of Things."	K-5	Video
Fuel Cells In this video segment adapted from NOVA scienceNOW, hydrogen fuel cell cars promise pollution-free driving, but will we see them anytime soon?	6-12	Video
Global Warming: Beyond Fossil Fuels Martin Hoffert, professor of physics at New York University, discusses global warming and alternative energies in this interview from the NOVA/FRONTLINE Web site.	6-12	Document
Global Warming: Carbon Dioxide and the Greenhouse Effect This video segment adapted from NOVA/FRONTLINE demonstrates the physical property of carbon dioxide that causes the greenhouse effect.	6-12	Video
Global Warming: The Developing World This video segment adapted from NOVA/FRONTLINE looks at the future of global warming as developing nations, including India and China, increase their need for energy.	6-12	Video
Global Warming: The Hydrogen Car Is the hydrogen car the answer to global warming? This video segment adapted from NOVA/FRONTLINE looks at the pros and cons of this developing technology.	3-12	Video
Global Warming: The Physics of the Greenhouse Effect This video segment adapted from NOVA/FRONTLINE examines the greenhouse effect, its role in keeping Earth habitable, and the industrial changes that have led to an increase in the planet's average temperature.	6-12	Video
The Grand Canyon: Conservation and Development This video segment adapted from NOVA explores the effects of the Glen Canyon Dam on the beaches, wildlife, and vegetation of the Colorado River.	3-12	Video
Gravity and the Expanding Universe This video segment, adapted from NOVA, traces the evolving history of theories about gravity and a force that may oppose it, along with our understanding of the impact of both of these forces on our expanding universe.	6-12	Video
History of the Universe This interactive timeline from the NOVA Web site recaps the theoretical origin and formation of the universe, and forecasts its eventual fate.	6-12	Interactive
How Big Is the Universe? In this media-rich essay from the NOVA Web site, astronomer Brent Tully of the University of Hawaiʻi walks you through the latest scientific theories about the size of the universe.	6-12	Document
How Do Tornadoes Form? In this video segment adapted from NOVA, scientists use computer simulations to explore the question of how supercell thunderstorms produce tornadoes.	6-12	Video
How the Body Responds to Exercise In this video segment adapted from NOVA, follow novice runners as they train for a marathon, and discover how quickly the body responds to regular aerobic exercise.	6-12	Video
Hurricanes: New Tools for Predicting This video segment adapted from NOVA scienceNOW features new advances in predicting the intensity of hurricanes.	6-12	Video
Illuminating Photosynthesis This interactive feature from the NOVA: "Methuselah Tree" Web site details the process of photosynthesis and its role in the oxygen/carbon dioxide cycle.	3-12	Interactive
Imaging with Radar This interactive activity from NOVA features synthetic aperture radar (SAR), which uses radio waves to create high-quality images. Examine SAR images of Washington, D.C., and learn about this technology's unique advantages.	6-12	Interactive
Ingredients for Life: Water This video segment adapted from NOVA goes on a whimsical journey in search of life forms thriving in extreme conditions on Earth and in outer space. Animations show ice on Jupiter's moon, Europa, and signs that water once existed on Mars.	3-12	Video
Inside a Solar Cell This interactive activity adapted from NOVA Online features animations that illustrate the components of a typical photovoltaic cell and how it converts solar energy into electricity.	9-12	Interactive
Intertidal Zone This video segment from NOVA: "The Sea Behind the Dunes" explores the community of organisms that exists in the New England tidal marsh.	9-12	Video
Lightning! This video segment adapted from NOVA explains the mysterious force of lightning.	3-12	Video
Lightning Hunters Find out how scientists and engineers use rockets to attract lightning in this video segment adapted from NOVA.	3-12	Video
The Light Stuff This interactive activity from the NOVA Web site asks which items in your home can slow down the speed of light.	6-12	Interactive
New Ways to Catch Rays This interactive resource adapted from NOVA Online explores eight of the latest technological developments designed to harness the energy of the Sun.	9-12	Interactive
On Fire Learn about the chemical reactions that take place when things burn in this interactive activity from the NOVA Web site.	6-12	Interactive
The Origin of the Elements This video segment adapted from NOVA explains the origin of the elements and how scientists use unique element profiles to identify supernova types.	6-12	Video
Photosynthesis This video segment from Interactive NOVA: "Earth" looks at photosynthesis, the chemical process plants use to make their own food.	3-12	Video
Pilotless Flight: Timeline of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles Explore this NOVA interactive timeline and discover the many technological innovations in the history of unmanned flight, from hot-air balloons to miniature flying robots.	6-12	Interactive
Quarks: Inside the Atom This video segment adapted from NOVA shows how the particle accelerator helped physicists find parts of the atom even smaller than protons and neutrons.	6-12	Video
The Reproductive Role of Flowers In this video segment adapted from NOVA, learn about the critical role of flowers in seed plant reproductive biology.	6-12	Video
Robofly Featuring slow-motion footage of insects in flight, this video adapted from NOVA explores the engineering challenge of designing a robotic aerial vehicle that flies like a bug.	6-12	Video
Sagan on Time Travel Astronomer Carl Sagan discusses the possibility of time travel in this audio-enhanced interview from the NOVAWeb site.	9-12	Document
Shape of Things: Trees This video segment from NOVA: "The Shape of Things" describes the pervasiveness of branching systems, which are found in all multicellular organisms.	6-8	Video
Smart Power Grid This video segment adapted from NOVA scienceNOW provides an overview of the existing United States power grid, and envisions a "smart" power grid that would prevent problems, such as blackouts, and reduce energy waste and pollution.	6-12	Video
Snapshot of U.S. Energy Use This video segment adapted from NOVA/FRONTLINE looks at American energy consumption and the resulting production of greenhouse gases.	3-12	Video
Solar Magnetism This video segment adapted from NOVA describes how the Sun's magnetism can have an effect here on Earth, from dramatic auroras to a mini-Ice Age in the 1600s.	6-12	Video
Solar Paint Your Roof In this video segment adapted from NOVA, see how nanotechnology might be used to create a new, cheaper way to produce solar electricity for the home.	6-12	Video
Solar Panels for Your Home In this video segment adapted from NOVA, take a look inside a solar panel to see how it works, and hear firsthand about the benefits from homeowners who are using this technology.	6-12	Video
Sound Waves Underwater: Experiment with Sonar This animation from the NOVA Web site describes how sonar uses sound waves to "see" underwater.	6-12	Document
Sound Waves Underwater: The Loch Ness Monster This video segment, adapted from NOVA follows a team of enthusiasts and scientists who attempt to find a trace of the Loch Ness monster by scouring the lake with sonar.	6-12	Video
Sound Waves Underwater: True or False This interactive quiz from the NOVA Web site features an array of interesting facts about the nature of sound underwater.	3-12	Interactive
Sources of Radiation This interactive activity from the NOVA Web site explores sources of radiation, both harmful and beneficial, natural and manmade.	6-12	Interactive
Speed of Light: How Fast Is That? How fast is 300,000 kilometers per second? This text from the NOVA Web site offers a few real-world comparisons for the speed of light.	6-12	Interactive
Steam Machine Explore NOVA Online's interactive steam engine and discover how this machine can convert heat to mechanical energy.	3-12	Interactive
Stellar Velocity: The Doppler Effect This interactive activity from the NOVA Web site illustrates the Doppler effect and shows how it applies to measuring the direction and speed of stellar objects.	6-12	Interactive
String Theory: A New Picture of Gravity This video segment from NOVA describes the general theory of relativity and the theory of electromagnetism.	6-12	Video
String Theory: A Sense of Scale This interactive activity from the NOVA Web site puts the infinitesimally small world of string theory into perspective.	6-12	Interactive
String Theory: A Strange New World This video segment from NOVA chronicles Einstein's quest to unify the forces of electromagnetism and gravity.	6-12	Video
String Theory: A Theory of Everything? This video segment from NOVA introduces the basic ideas behind string theory and looks at the quest for unification.	9-12	Video
String Theory: A Theory of Everything Essay In this essay from the NOVA Web site, string theorist Brian Greene introduces the basic ideas behind string theory and how it might help us better understand the universe.	9-12	Document
String Theory: Elementary Particles This illustrated essay from the NOVA Web site looks at the fundamental forces and particles that make up all matter.	6-12	Document
String Theory: Gravity - The Odd Man Out This video segment from NOVA describes the discovery in the 1930s of two forces in addition to electromagnetism: the strong nuclear force and the weak nuclear force.	9-12	Video
String Theory: Newton's Embarrassing Secret This video segment from NOVA chronicles Newton's theory of gravity and Einstein's discovery that contradicted it.	6-12	Video
Tour the Electromagnetic Spectrum Take NOVA's interactive tour of the electromagnetic spectrum and find out why your eyes are like antennae for a narrow band of electromagnetic radiation.	6-12	Interactive
What Causes the Gulf Stream? This video segment adapted from NOVA visualizes how Earth's rotation and uneven heating from the Sun cause prevailing winds and influence ocean surface currents. An animation and infrared satellite image illustrate the shape and direction of the Gulf Stream System in the Atlantic Ocean.	6-12	Video
Your Carbon Diet Find out how much energy you use and some ways to conserve in this interactive activity from the NOVA/FRONTLINE Web site.	3-12	Interactive
Your Carbon Diet In this interactive activity from the NOVA/FRONTLINE Web site, you can click on various items in a typical New England house to find out how much energy each uses and some ways to reduce energy consumption in your home.	6-12	Interactive