Rotational Dynamics (centripetal forces and rotating reference frames)

Tennis Ball on a String

[M | t | —]
Whirl it around and then let go.

Loop-the-loop

[M | t+ | ★★★]
A toy car rolling down a loop-the-loop track demonstrates the minimum height it must start at to successfully negotiate the loop. Can also be performed with small pendulum

[In-Depth Description]

Barrel of Fun

[L | t+ | ★★]
Turntable model of amusement park ride to investigate angular velocities necessary to keep objects pinned to wall.

[In-Depth Description]

Bucket of Water

[M | t | ★★]
A bucket, partially filled with water, is swung in a vertical circle at arms length without spilling a drop.

[In-Depth Description]

Olive-Wineglass Puzzler

[S/M | t+ | —]
The trick is to pick up an olive with an inverted wineglass and transfer it to another.

[In-Depth Description]

Motor Driven Turntable

[L | t+ | —]
A row of weights, aligned on the radius of the turntable, come flying off as rate of rotation is increased.

[In-Depth Description]

Centripetal Force Puzzler

[S/M | t | —]
Tethered, floating balls move radially inward on rotating turntable, contrary to intuition; also done with candle flame.

[In-Depth Description]

Coriolis Force

[XL | t+ | ★★★]
Students try to throw a volley ball to each other or into a basket while sitting on a rotating platform; lots of fun

[In-Depth Description]

Foucault Pendulum Model

[M | t++ | ★★]
A "working model" of a Foucault pendulum to show how its oscillations appear to change due to the rotation of "Earth" below it.

[In-Depth Description]

Foucault Pendulum

[L | t+++ | ★★]
Plane of pendulum oscillation appears to change due to rotation of Earth.

[In-Depth Description]

Contact Us

Mailing Address: Lecture Demonstration Services, Science Center, Rm B-08A, 1 Oxford Street, Cambridge, MA 02138
Campus Location: Science Center B-08A | Tel: (617) 495-5824 | Email: scidemos-at-fas.harvard.edu