Eric Carlson
Royal High School
WA

Science 101: Why Don't All Rolling Objects Reach the Bottom of an Incline at the Same Time?

Thu, Aug 23, 2012 1:07 AM
Good introduction to moment of inertia

Almost everyone is familiar with inertia and that objects resist changes to motion, but I think the idea of 'moment of inertia' eludes many. This is unfortunate, because many important objects in our life spin, and you can't understand spinning motion without understanding the moment of inertia. The full story of what a moment of inertia is and how to assign one to an object is worth exploring for those who wish to go deeper. It would also be worthwhile to find some objects of differing mass to roll that result in a tie. In any case, I encourage any one who lacks insight into the nature of spinning motion to start with this article.

Science 101: How does a scientific theory become a scientific law?

Thu, Mar 22, 2012 3:36 PM
For those who wondered

This is a delightful little article that explains words that are tossed around a lot in science class, but unfortunately are not very well understood by many people. This article is great starting point for anyone who is confused about the difference between law, theory, and hypothesis.

Cells and Chemical Reactions

Tue, Mar 13, 2012 6:40 PM
At last, one for the biochemists

At first I thought this SciPack was going to be largely redundant with other SciPacks that discuss cell growth and functions, and at one level it is, because there is nothing fundamental in it that isn't addressed somewhere else. That said, this SciPack goes into much more chemical detail as to the "how's" of energy generation and consumption, giving specific details as to the chemicals and mechanisms involved, as well as the energy balance sheet (what you put into the system and what you get out). This SciPack is the place where biology meets chemistry, so if you are ever interested in knowing the mechanisms of cellular function (instead of just glossing over it and saying "that's just how it is"), this is the SciPack that will take you there. Alternatively, as a chemist, it's your chance to see chemistry played out on its most exciting stage: life.