physicsfun @PhysicsfunE

Ambiguous Object Illusion Mug: circle or a square? It’s all a matter of perspective and viewing angle. The complex shape allows for both to be perceived and is based on the work of mathematician Kokichi Sugihara of Meiji University in Japan, the inventor… ift.tt/3dtFqTI

Calling Dr. Manhattan: floating rings illusion device inspired by the recent Watchmen series. Two attached rings appear to roll in an impossible way around an orb, featured in a number of scenes on top of blue interplanetary phone booths in the new Watch… ift.tt/33JCKwK

Kinetic Sandscape: the phenomenon of spontaneous stratification is a striking feature of this sand motion desk toy. Typically pouring stuff together results in further mixing, yet here, when the sand mixture descends through a gap in the air bubbles, the… ift.tt/2QELleQ

Holoscopes: polyhedra of mirrors (dodecahedron and cube) with the interior viewed from one corner and illuminated by light entering from glass spheres placed at all of the other vertices. A type of kaleidoscope based on mirrored polyhedra by artist Gary … ift.tt/33D7Oht

Homopolar Motor: one of my favorites- a minimalist electric motor- battery, wire, and magnet. This type of motor does not need a commutator- the polarity of the electromagnetic coil does not need to reverse. The challenge with this design is balancing th… ift.tt/2Uq5vKL

Drinking Bird Heat Engine: this classic physics toy came in my @TheCuriosityBox which provided this orange species of the bird complete with dapper top hat emblazoned with the Vsauce logo. Cooling by evaporation at the head leads to lower pressure in the… ift.tt/3dkz4FZ

Vortex Marble: glass art intersects with the physics of optics in this lampwork art form invented by Kevin O’Grady circa 1994- and this marble bears his signature mark on the back. The clear glass face on these marbles acts as a convex lens giving the il… ift.tt/2J2gl46

Fluorescent Green Ooze Tube with UV Laser: stunning visual effects from a 405 nm laser pointer interacting with the viscous polyisobutene fluid in this ooze tube timer toy. The fluorescent dye converts the UV laser light to visible green light as the flu… ift.tt/2TYfeZv

Circularly Polarized Reflecting Scarab: the iridescent jewel scarabs like this one (Chrysina Gloriosa) have a very rare property: they reflect only circularly polarized light! When viewed through a filter that allows only left CP light the metallic green… ift.tt/2vY10yR

Sphere and other Orbiforms: pi day special post- volumes of constant width made from solid brass. These shapes have constant diameter no matter their orientation and will roll like spheres between two planes- note how the acrylic plate stays parallel to … ift.tt/3d1WxLU

Solar Sculpture: the paths of 5000 magnetic field lines etched into optical quality glass map the complex flow of plasma in the Sun’s outermost atmosphere replicating how the solar corona appeared on Oct 21, 2000. This sculpture is based on a sophisticat… ift.tt/33ewE7g

Self Propelled Homopolar Motor: cylindrical neodymium magnets supply the static magnetic field for this motor and become the wheels of a very simple vehicle with an AA battery as the energy source. As soon as both ends of the copper wire make contact, an… ift.tt/2IFoIm5

Hidden Mechanism of Fluorescent Bulbs @exploratorium: only half of this bulb is covered with the typical internal white phosphor coating- revealing the electron emitting cathode and eerie blue glow of an excited mercury vapor at low pressure. Energetic e… ift.tt/2xwg3jF

Corona Discharge Trajectories: the ejected electron stream propels the end of a thin wire connected to a miniature Tesla coil. The corona discharge creates a glowing plasma at the end of the wire, but also imparts momenta that pushes the wire’s end into … ift.tt/2TUwUUQ

Designer Kaleidoscope: the beautiful symmetry of multiple reflections. Tiny glass beads and a collection of shiny objects provide the viewing material in this side-lit precision kaleidoscope by Carol Verde-Paretti. Invented by the famous Scottish physic… ift.tt/2VZNllg

Am-241 in Wilson Cloud Chamber: the typically invisible ionization tracks of alpha particles emitted from a radioactive source are revealed in this miniature expansion type cloud chamber. When an americium nuclei disintegrates it ejects a high speed chun… ift.tt/3avrDd0

Lenticular Art: geometry in relief and perspective combine to allow the blending of two images. Such dual image paintings go back to at least the 1600’s but this nice geometrical design is by Bob Bechdolt produced in the 1980s. ➡️ Follow the link in my p… ift.tt/2TKWFa2

Mini Wind Turbine: self-contained miniature horizontal axis wind turbine generates enough power to light three LEDs. A small turbine blade is attached to the rotor of a tiny generator that powers the LEDs. Conversion of energy- wind kinetic energy to rot… ift.tt/3cvdBd4

Chaotic Coupled Rotors: kinetic energy is passed back and forth chaotically due to magnets mounted on the the ends of the spines that repel. This toy was marketed under the name Magnetron and sold in the Natural Wonders shops in the 1990s-sometimes avail… ift.tt/3ati4eB

The Milky Way in a Sphere: the distribution of stars in our home galaxy, laser etched into a crystal sphere, according to the most recent telescopic surveys and mappings- including the stars in the Sagittarius Dwarf Galaxy (a small galaxy that is simulta… ift.tt/39nhteq