In this activity, alcohol and air are mixed in a large plastic water bottle before being ignited, to simulate the physics principles of...

This animated clip investigates the idea of orbits. It begins with Alice and Bob wondering why the Moon doesn’t fall to the Earth but an apple does. Alice throws an apple hard enough that it goes into orbit around the Earth. This clip could provide a lead in to topics such as gravitational force, acceleration,...

Alice wonders why it’s dark at night. If we are in an infinite Universe, why isn’t the sky full of starlight. Bob suggests that for some reason the light from the very distant stars hasn’t reached us yet. This leads on to the idea that the universe has a beginning and an age. This clip could provide a lead in to...

Work done in this Nuffield 13 - 16 module followed from the S unit called ‘Power’. This D unit provided enough material for eight double periods during a Further Science course and built on the content of the S units for Single Science. The teachers’ guide included six...

The video begins by showing the misconceptions people have about weightlessness in space (space station). It explains how gravity exerts a force on the moon and so would also exert a force on the space station. It then shows that the astronaut is falling along with the space...

This video does not offer an explanation, but asks several people the question and shows their answers.

The Earth spins on its axis, completing a full revolution every day. By why does it do this? One of the most common misconceptions in physics is the belief that constant motion requires a constant force. So many people believe there must be some force in the Earth (e.g. gravity, centrifugal force) that keeps it...

The video explains that as pressure is exerted onto the ice it melts and it is the liquid water, in contact with the ice, that makes it so slippery.

In this classroom resource pupils learn how space debris is generated. It includes two investigations looking at how collisions between objects can lead to further collisions, and how impact causes some materials to fracture into many particles using crisps.

The resource includes pupil worksheets as well as...

This volume contains a readable, condensed, and interpretive account of discussions among physicists from 26 countries from the Conference on Physics in General Education held in Rio de Janeiro in July, 1963. The meeting dealt with physics as part of a liberal education. The serious practical difficulties of...

Planetary scientist, Professor Andrew Coates, explains why scientists look for the evidence of signs of past life on Mars.  He talks about the history of Mars and the current harsh environment on the planet. This video is part of a series of ten which look at the one of the elements of the European Space Agency’s...