Earth
Let’s learn about humanmade seismic waves
Concerts and football games shake the ground. Other events, such as eclipses, can lead to a seismic hush.
MS-PS4-2
Develop and use a model to describe that waves are reflected, absorbed, or transmitted through various materials.
More Stories in MS-PS4-2
- Animals
Some sea stars channel light like fiber-optic cables
The tiny cone-shaped structures in arms of chocolate-chip sea stars also triple their skeleton’s strength.
- Animals
Analyze This: How sea slugs get their flashy colors
Crystals beneath the skin of nudibranchs, also called sea slugs, allow the creatures to make an array of intense hues with just one material.
- Humans
Some people use echolocation to get around. Here’s how it works
As expert echolocators make multiple clicking sounds, their brains process the echoes to help them perceive their surroundings.
- Physics
Thunderstorms can make trees twinkle with an electric glow
The tiny, storm-driven electric zaps dance and jump around pine needles and other leaves. Videos have just captured that subtle flickering in forests.
- Life
Scientists Say: Biophoton
All living things glow with this mysterious light. But scientists need ultra-sensitive tools to detect it.
- Physics
Physics explains why sneakers squeak on the basketball court
We’re hearing a shoe’s sole wrinkling in bursts that repeat thousands of times each second.
- Physics
Could a Star Wars lightsaber work?
The main problem with real-world lightsabers is that they would pass through each other. This means no intergalactic duels between Jedis and Siths.
- Space
Scientists Say: Bolide
It starts as a flash. Then comes the sonic boom. The boldest meteors often go out with a bang.
- Physics
Could a person ever wield lightning as a weapon?
From the shocking powers of electric eels to laser-guided lightning, aiming electricity is more real than it sounds.
