questions concerning measurements, experiments, and activities that demonstrate physics and are safe to do at home, require at most one tool or ingredient not readily available, and can be interpreted or analyzed on one sheet of paper with accessible math.
161
votes
19answers
55k views
Cooling a cup of coffee with help of a spoon
During the breakfast with my colleagues, a question popped into my head:
What is the fastest method to cool a cup of coffee, if your only available instrument is a spoon?
A qualitative answer would ...
28
votes
13answers
7k views
Home experiments to derive the speed of light?
Are there any experiments I can do to derive the speed of light with only common household tools?
5
votes
2answers
763 views
Black hole analog experiment?
This question is directed mostly at people giving lectures on black holes, but input by other physicists or students is very much appreciated.
Do you know a good (home)-experiment with a black hole ...
7
votes
1answer
570 views
What are the specific requirements for a do-it-yourself quantum double-slit experiment?
I was shocked to recently learn that the double-slit experiment is not only possible to do with completely ordinary equipment (with photons of course), but it actually looks rather easy. This is from ...
16
votes
3answers
1k views
Why does the sound pitch increase on every consecutive tick at the bottom of a filled cup of coffee?
Since I don't know the proper physical terms for this, I describe it in everyday English. The following has kept me wondering for quite some time and so far I haven't found a reasonable explanation.
...
0
votes
1answer
189 views
Are there good home experiments to get a feel for the behavior of yield-stress liquids?
What common household liquids / foodstuffs show Herschel-Bulkley fluid behavior?
I assume tomato soup to be one, since when sloshing it around lightly on a spoon the visible surface moves as one (as ...
8
votes
3answers
701 views
Is it possible to reproduce Double-slit experiment by myself at home?
I want to reproduce this experiment by myself. What I need for this. What parameters of slits and laser/another light source it needs? Is it possible to make DIY-detector?
11
votes
6answers
1k views
Tried to do the double slit experiment, failed. Why?
I tried, and failed, to do the double-slit experiment. I thought I had a good experiment setup, but obviously I was wrong. Can anyone offer some insight in what I might have done wrong? Most of ...
8
votes
3answers
528 views
How hot is the water in the pot?
Question: How hot is the water in the pot? More precisely speaking, how can I get a temperature of the water as a function of time a priori?
Background & My attempt: Recently I started spend ...
15
votes
2answers
404 views
Why does the note played by a flute not change in this case when the air column is interrupted?
I play the flute as a hobby, and I've noticed that when playing middle D or E flat, one can interrupt the air column by releasing a certain key (which is near the middle of the air column), and yet ...
4
votes
3answers
1k views
Why does hot oil explode when pouring water on it?
I am puzzled to know, What is the reason of hot oil make sound and explode when we pouring water on it?
6
votes
3answers
3k views
Why do lightbulbs continue to glow after the light is turned off?
I've noticed that whenever I turn the lamp off in my room at night, the lightbulb seems to continue to glow for a minute or so after that. It's not bright though; the only way I even notice it is if ...
3
votes
1answer
779 views
Why is the lid of the cookware kept on induction cooker not hot?
Induction cookware cooks food by inducing an electro magnetic field in the ferro-magnetic cookware. Since iron offers a lot of resistance to the current, the current is converted into heat in the ...
1
vote
1answer
104 views
Why does separating plastic from a cough drop create flashes?
I was tearing open individually-wrapped cough drops in the dark, and noticed that when I pulled apart two adhesive-joined pieces of silvery plastic film, small flashes of light were produced. It was ...
