This video shows how cards with different shaped holes circle, square, triangle), held to the sun, produce circular points of light, because what is seen is the image of the sun (this is how a pinhole camera works).

This collection of five booklets about post-16 physics was published by the Institute of Physics post-16 Initiative during 1999-2000. Much of the content remains relevant.

Though the booklets were primarily designed to promote debate and ideas about the way forward for physics education in schools and...

Alkaseltzer rockets
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These materials look at three possible projects that relate to the bicycle used by an athlete in a triathlon: * Communications project - students gather information and give advice about which bike is suitable for a range of users. * Practical project - students undertake practical experiments to investigate the...

In this project students research theme park rides and design and build a model of the pirate ship ride, concentrating on how to support the swinging parts.  Another vital component is the support that holds the gondola and the counterweight. ...

How do the lights and sound at a nightclub coordinate together? The lights appear to flash in time to the beat, and change colour with the pattern of the sound. How is the signal from a sound source such as a CD player or DJ deck converted into a pattern of lights? In this project,...

In this independent research project students investigate the properties of materials, electric circuits and electronic devices in order to design, build and test a device to measure the steadiness of someone’s hand ...

Students investigate how well different sun creams and sun blocks protect against UV radiation from the sun and research:

• Information about the electromagnetic spectrum and radiation from the sun.
• Why UV radiation is damaging to...

In this SimPhysics game, the challenge for players is to help a family stay warm through the worst winter on record. SimEnergy 1 simulates the factors involved in insulating a building and makes it more fun to learn the physics by taking an enquiry approach. Each round poses a different challenge for students to...

Like ‘The Sims’, in this SimPhysics game students look after a family and keep their home supplied with electricity. In the game scenario the government has set a carbon dioxide quota for each household, so limiting their contribution to climate change. The player has to invest in renewable sources of electricity...

These interactive games from the Institute of Physics support the teaching of energy and space to students aged 13 to 16. The games are designed to help students to engage with the physics they need to use to solve problems and win the games. Each game is accompanied with teacher guidance notes.

The four...

In this SimPhysics game, players get the opportunity to manipulate sound, style a rock band and work on their recordings.

Players are presented with some wrinkles in the recorded sound that they have to iron out. On...

SimSpace is a SimPhysics game-based learning resource where players take on the role of space scientists, scouting the skies for Near Earth Objects (NEOs) that may pose a risk to life on Earth.

The premise is that...