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Physics Experiments
 
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It may appear that many of the following experiments have been completed. However, in most cases, only a small part of the total potential has been explored. If interested in any of these projects, or if you wish to submit more of your own, go to the Registration Page.

Crash barrier construction. In January 2002, there was a report by a mainline physics laboratory concerned with the energy absorbing characteristics of nothing more simple than a crumpled wad of paper. Amazingly, the lab report touched on no practical applications! For a minimum amount of time and cost, you could invent something that could save lives!

Wind tunnel construction. Several students are building wind-tunnels for the testing of this and the previous projects. The host of this site, N.A.S.A., is the world leader in mega-windtunnel design. This is hardly an experimental project: it is merely the construction of a tool for other projects. However, a great amount of science will be learned in the construction and testing of the tunnel. An number of factors MUST be addressed: how to have laminar flow, how to measure wind speed, how to measure air-pressure at point locations, and how to measure overall lift.

Making very small airplanes that fly. Planes less than about 7 cm wingspan have relatively little lift due to commensurately excessive turbulence. Several students have applied the principles used by small birds to increase the lift sufficient for flying at sealevel. They need to know how these craft will fly at high altitudes. Thus collaborators living at high altitudes would be welcome to join in the action.

Measurement of Velocity. While the initial stages of this might make a good classroom exercise, there are aspects that can be extended into research fields. While the class can easily determine in their limited time-slots how fast they can run, or ride bicycles, it is harder to determine how fast a ball is thrown, or an arrow shot, or a bullet from a gun goes. Or, in the other direction, how fast an ant walks its wandering way, or a snail moves, or the plant grows, or how fast one's fingernails grow, or how fast plate tectonics is.

Computer Science

IMPROVING YOUR EDUCATIONAL BACKGROUND. Virology ought to be taken by every computer scientist for several reasons. Viruses are the embodiment of applied info tech as they are similar to a newly purchased bit of software on a disk or other substrate and in a box. And the viruses must be able to cope with host defenses. And, of course, the hosts throw up many defenses against them. As you can see, both we hosts and the viruses are still here on earth. Over the past three billion years of evolution, lots of tricks have been tried by both hosts and viruses regarding the information flow. Interestingly, computer science is barely into the zygote stage with regard to dealing with many of these strategies. You and I are carrying around many viruses in us and in our chromosomes. Some might be ticking timebombs, others might have had their timers removed and their residual genes might someday be used to our own species benefit in another evolutionary step. What do computer scientists know about interferon and restriction endonucleases? Are there lessons to be learned and copied from nature? Probably - very probably!