Animals
Physics explains how snakes climb and stand without limbs
Tree snakes can raise their body into the air without falling over. They keep their balance by bending their bodies close to their base.
HS-PS2-1
Analyze data to support the claim that Newton's second law of motion describes the mathematical relationship among the net force on a macroscopic object, its mass, and its acceleration.
More Stories in HS-PS2-1
- Physics
Precise tee placement can improve golf driving, teen finds
A homemade golf-ball-driving machine helped this middle-school engineer improve his own game.
- Chemistry
Scientists finally know why ice is so slippery
It’s not because ice heats up and then partially melts. Rather, ice changes at the molecular level — a process scientists have finally modeled.
- Materials Science
Spooky! Grooved surface sends ice sailing — no outside push needed
Boulders that have mysteriously moved across Death Valley’s landscape inspired the work. The new surface can slingshot ice in a chosen direction.
- Physics
Scientists Say: Lift
An airplane wing’s unique shape creates air pressure differences that result in this gravity-defying force.
- Physics
Wiggling robots reveal the physics of how Hula-Hoops stay up
Newbies should swing their Hula-Hoops fast and in line with their bodies, the new findings suggest.
- Tech
Bird-inspired airplane wings could boost flight performance
Rows of flaps inspired by a bird wings’ feathers improve airfoil performance to boost lift and reduce drag.
- Tech
Did builders of Egypt’s first pyramid use a water-powered elevator?
A controversial study suggests that ancient people might have used one to hoist the stones used to assemble into King Djoser’s pyramid.
- Physics
Aerodynamics involved in shooting hoops can make vehicles greener
Some ships host tall spinning cylinders that act like sails. Roughing the cylinders’ surface will greatly boost fuel efficiency, teen scientists find.
- Physics
Forests could help detect ‘ghost particles’ from space
If trees could act as natural antennas, one physicist proposes that they just might pick up signals of hard-to-spot ultra-high energy neutrinos.
