Gravity and Forces
| RESOURCE | GRADE LEVEL | MEDIA TYPE |
|---|---|---|
Aerodynamics: What Causes Lift?How does an airplane stay aloft when upside down? This media-rich essay from the NOVA Web site offers an explanation based on Newton's third law of motion. |
6-12 |
Interactive |
Air Bag DesignUsing automobile crash test footage, this video segment adapted from NOVA shows some of the challenges in designing the air bag. |
3-12 |
Video |
Anatomy of a FireworkThere's more to a fireworks display than meets the eye. This interactive activity from the NOVA Web site looks at the technology behind each burst of light. |
6-12 |
Interactive |
Antarctica: A Challenging Work DayWhat happens when the ground under your feet is ice and it's moving? This video segment adapted from NOVA features some of the dangers faced by scientists conducting research in Antarctica. |
3-12 |
Video |
Antarctic Ice Movement: Part IThis video segment adapted from NOVA explains why ice sheets move. To find out how fast they move, scientists carve a tunnel through a glacier. |
6-12 |
Video |
Astronauts in Hard HatsThis media-rich series of interviews from the NOVA Web site explores the unique challenges faced by astronauts doing construction work in outer space. |
6-12 |
Document |
Astronauts Speak: Gene CernanIn this audio resource from NOVA, astronaut Gene Cernan recounts his harrowing experience during America's first attempt to do work in outer space. |
3-12 |
Audio |
Avalanche TownThe impact of natural disasters is made vivid in this video segment adapted from NOVA. A small town in Iceland, prepared for recurrent avalanches, is devastated when one takes a new and damaging path. |
6-12 |
Video |
Birth of a Supernova, Type IaIn 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 IIIn 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 |
Build a BridgeSurvey potential bridge sites, research bridge design, and select the right bridge for the right location in this interactive activity from the NOVA Web site. |
6-12 |
Interactive |
Buoyancy BasicsThis illustrated demonstration from the NOVA Web site explains the concepts of buoyancy and density by showing what happens when different kinds of wood blocks are dropped in water. |
3-8 |
Document |
Buoyancy Brainteasers: Balloon-in-Car PuzzlerThis interactive brainteaser from the NOVA Web site challenges you to explain the behavior of a helium-filled balloon in a moving car. |
3-8 |
Interactive |
Buoyancy Brainteasers: Boat-in-Pool PuzzlerThis interactive brainteaser from the NOVA Web site challenges you to figure out what happens to the water level when a rock is resting in a boat and when it is submerged in water. |
3-8 |
Interactive |
Buoyancy Brainteasers: Buoyancy QuestionThis interactive brainteaser from the NOVA Web site challenges you to figure out what causes an object to sink. |
3-8 |
Interactive |
Centripetal Force: Pulling Cs and GsIn this interactive activity from NOVA, discover how centripetal force can affect you when riding in a car or flying at high speeds in a fighter jet. |
3-8 |
Interactive |
Construct an AqueductThink like an engineer and build an aqueduct in this interactive activity from the NOVA Web site. |
3-12 |
Interactive |
Deep-Sea Vents and Life's OriginsDeep-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 |
Demolition WomanFind out how controlled explosions are used to demolish multi-story buildings in this interview from the NOVA Web site. |
6-12 |
Document |
Earthquakes: Los AngelesIn this video segment adapted from NOVA, animations are used to show how the hills around Los Angeles were formed by earthquakes at small thrust faults that extend outward from the larger San Andreas fault. |
6-12 |
Video |
Earthquakes: The Prehistoric RecordIn this video segment adapted from NOVA, a geologist digs a trench along the San Andreas Fault to reveal three thousand years of earthquake history. Information from the layers of sediment may help geologists to predict earthquakes. |
3-12 |
Video |
Einstein: A Timeline of His LifeThis illustrated timeline from the NOVA Web site follows Albert Einstein's life, including 1905, his "Miracle Year," during which he developed his Special Theory of Relativity and the equation, E=mc2. |
6-12 |
Document |
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 Thoughts on the EtherDo light waves travel through the ether like waves on a lake travel through water? In this video segment adapted from NOVA, a young Albert Einstein grapples with this question while examining the speed of light. |
6-12 |
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 |
Extreme Temperatures on the MoonIn this video segment adapted from Interactive NOVA, astronaut John Young experiences extreme temperatures on the Moon that are a result of the Moon's low gravity and lack of atmosphere. |
3-12 |
Video |
Fastest Glacier In this video segment adapted from NOVA scienceNOW, scientists in western Greenland explain how a glacier there is shrinking and moving faster due to increased melting.
|
6-12 |
Video |
Free-Falling and "Weightlessness"Discover the difference between free-falling and weightlessness in this interactive activity from the NOVA Web site. |
6-12 |
Interactive |
Galileo: His ExperimentsThis interactive activity from the NOVA Web site samples Galileo's experiments with falling objects, projectiles, inclined planes, and pendulums. |
6-12 |
Interactive |
Galileo: His Place in ScienceEinstein called Galileo the "father of modern physics." This media-rich essay from the NOVA Web site looks at Galileo's quest to understand the mathematics of motion. |
6-12 |
Document |
Galileo on the MoonWatch Apollo 15 astronaut David Scott perform Galileo's falling objects experiment on the Moon in this video segment from NASA. |
3-12 |
Video |
Galileo's Big MistakeScientists don't always get it right. This video segment adapted from NOVA looks at Galileo's failed theory for the motion of the tides. |
6-12 |
Video |
Galileo's Inclined PlaneHow did Galileo figure out the mathematics of falling bodies? This video segment adapted from NOVA examines Galileo's work on motion. |
6-12 |
Video |
Galileo's Thought ExperimentHow can Earth move through space without our feeling its motion? This video segment adapted from NOVA answers this question by dramatizing one of Galileo's thought experiments. |
6-12 |
Video |
Galileo: Timeline of His LifeThis illustrated timeline from the NOVA Web site turns back the clock to the late 1500's to relive the dramatic life of one of the world's most renowned scientists. |
6-12 |
Document |
Getting Airborne and Wing DesignWhat makes an airplane fly? Discover the connection between Newton's third law of motion and flight in this interactive activity from the NOVA Web site. |
6-12 |
Interactive |
The Grand Canyon: Ancient MountainsThis video segment adapted from NOVA features the twisted and melted forms of the Grand Canyon's oldest rocks, the 1.7-billion-year-old Vishnu Schist. |
6-12 |
Video |
The Grand Canyon: How It FormedThis video segment adapted from NOVA uses animation to present the theory of how the Grand Canyon was formed and features rare footage of a phenomenon known as debris flow. |
3-12 |
Video |
Gravity and the Expanding UniverseThis 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 |
Gravity at Earth's CenterIn this video segment from NOVA scienceNOW, learn about the effects of gravity as astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson falls through a virtual hole through Earth's center. |
6-12 |
Video |
History of the UniverseThis 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 Avalanches Form?In this video segment adapted from NOVA, dramatic footage of avalanches and animations of ice crystals illustrate how a layer of weakly-bonded snow can contribute to a devastating avalanche. |
6-12 |
Video |
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 Do You Get to the Moon?This video, adapted from NOVA, showcases the competing engineering plans designed for landing a person on the Moon for the first time. |
6-12 |
Video |
Island of Stability In this video segment adapted from NOVA scienceNOW, follow scientists in their quest to understand how stable elements are made and how to create the elusive element 114.
|
9-12 |
Video |
Jupiter: Earth's ShieldJupiter's immense gravity protects Earth from asteroids. In this video segment adapted from NOVA, scientists searching for signs of life in the universe identify solar systems with Jupiter-like planets that may be shielding smaller nearby Earth-like planets from comets and asteroids. |
6-12 |
Video |
The Leaning Tower: Where It Stands TodayWill the Leaning Tower of Pisa give way to gravity? In this interview from the NOVA Web site, engineer John Burland relates the difficult job of saving the tower. |
6-12 |
Document |
Lever an ObeliskInvestigate the mechanical advantage of the lever in this interactive activity from the NOVA Web site. |
6-12 |
Interactive |
Levers: Raising the Moai on Easter IslandIn this video segment adapted from NOVA, a team of archaeologists and engineers explores different uses of the lever by recreating the engineering feats of the ancient Easter Island peoples. |
3-12 |
Video |
Lift and DragIn this interactive activity from NOVA, learn about the aerodynamic forces of lift and drag and how critical they are to the operation of all sorts of devices. |
6-12 |
Interactive |
More on Galileo's Big MistakeEven great scientists make mistakes! This illustrated essay from the NOVA Web site looks at Galileo's theory of the tides, which, while well thought out, was wrong. |
6-12 |
Document |
A Nanotube Space ElevatorIn this video adapted from NOVA scienceNOW, find out about the discovery of a new building material, the carbon nanotube, whose physical properties could theoretically enable the creation of a 22,000-mile elevator to space. |
6-12 |
Video |
Newton's Third Law: Action–ReactionIn this lesson designed to enhance literacy skills, an early astronaut's experiences teach students that Newton's third law of motion—for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction—applies both on Earth and in outer space. |
7-12 |
Self-paced Lesson |
Newton's Third Law of Motion: Astronauts in Outer SpaceIn this video segment adapted from NOVA, NASA learns hard lessons from the first American attempt to do work while "walking" in space. The video also explores Newton's third law of motion. |
3-12 |
Video |
The Origin of the ElementsThis 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 |
The Origin of the MoonThis video segment adapted from NOVA follows the Apollo 15 astronauts as they collect samples of ancient rock from the Moon's crust, whose discovery helps lead to a radical new theory about the Moon's origin. |
6-12 |
Video |
Physics of Arches
In this interactive activity from NOVA, try your hand at constructing a stone arch and learn about the physics that affect the arch.
|
7-12 |
Interactive |
Raising an Obelisk: An Engineering PuzzleThis video segment adapted from NOVA follows two teams as they each test a different engineering design in an effort to explain how ancient Egyptians raised a giant stone obelisk. |
3-12 |
Video |
Relativity and the CosmosThis illustrated essay from the NOVA Web site introduces the basic concepts of Einstein's General Theory of Relativity and what we know about cosmology as a result. |
6-12 |
Document |
Sagan on Time TravelAstronomer Carl Sagan discusses the possibility of time travel in this audio-enhanced interview from the NOVAWeb site. |
9-12 |
Document |
Smart BridgesIn this video segment adapted from NOVA scienceNOW, learn about engineering innovations that could help detect a bridge's structural weaknesses before they become dangerous. |
6-12 |
Video |
Solar MagnetismThis 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 |
Sound Waves Underwater: True or FalseThis interactive quiz from the NOVA Web site features an array of interesting facts about the nature of sound underwater. |
3-12 |
Interactive |
String Theory: A New Picture of GravityThis video segment from NOVA describes the general theory of relativity and the theory of electromagnetism. |
6-12 |
Video |
String Theory: A Sense of ScaleThis 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 WorldThis 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 EssayIn 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 ParticlesThis 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 OutThis 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 SecretThis video segment from NOVA chronicles Newton's theory of gravity and Einstein's discovery that contradicted it. |
6-12 |
Video |
String Theory: Science or Philosophy?This video segment from NOVA discusses the challenge of proving the scientific validity of string theory, in question because strings may be too small to ever be seen or detected, and therefore tested. |
9-12 |
Video |
String Theory: Strings to the RescueThis video segment from NOVA discusses the challenge of unifying the force of gravity and the forces described by quantum mechanics into a single theory of unification. |
9-12 |
Video |
String Theory: The Quantum CaféThis video segment from NOVA relates the rise of subatomic physics in the 1920s and the development of the radical theory of quantum mechanics. |
9-12 |
Video |
The Structure of MetalIn this interactive activity from the NOVA Web site, animations explain different aspects of the properties of metal. |
6-12 |
Interactive |
Tidal CuriositiesThis illustrated essay from the NOVA Web site answers questions about irregularities in the tides. |
6-12 |
Document |
To Survive at High VelocityThis video segment adapted from NOVA looks at speed, velocity, and centripetal force on the racetrack. |
6-12 |
Video |
Traveling Through TimeThis video excerpt from NOVA’s "The Fabric of the Cosmos: The Illusion of Time" explains gravity’s pull on time, and how time travel may be possible in the future. However, this kind of time travel might not be exactly like Hollywood’s depiction. |
9-12 |
Video |
Trying to Breathe on Mount EverestIn this video segment adapted from NOVA, climbers attempting to reach Mount Everest's summit must contend with the low levels of oxygen at high altitudes. |
6-12 |
Video |
What Is a Planet? This video segment, adapted from NOVA scienceNOW, presents the ongoing debate over the definition of a planet, including the status of Pluto.
|
3-12 |
Video |
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