Topics

• Gravitational Force
• Circular Motion
• Astronomy

Description

Move the sun, earth, moon and space station to see how it affects their gravitational forces and orbital paths. Visualize the sizes and distances between different heavenly bodies, and turn off gravity to see what would happen without it!

Sample Learning Goals

• Describe the relationship between the Sun, Earth, Moon and space station, including orbits and positions
• Describe the size and distance between the Sun, Earth, Moon and space station
• Explain how gravity controls the motion of our solar system
• Identify the variables that affect the strength of gravity
• Predict how motion would change if gravity was stronger or weaker

• Kinematics
• Air Resistance
• Parabolic Curve
• Vectors
• Drag Force
• Projectile Motion

Description

Blast a car out of a cannon, and challenge yourself to hit a target! Learn about projectile motion by firing various objects. Set parameters such as angle, initial speed, and mass. Explore vector representations, and add air resistance to investigate the factors that influence drag.

Sample Learning Goals

• Determine how each parameter (initial height, initial angle, initial speed, mass, diameter, and altitude) affects the trajectory of an object, with and without air resistance.
• Predict how varying the initial conditions will affect a projectile’s path, and provide an explanation for the prediction.
• Estimate where an object will land, given its initial conditions.
• Determine that the x and y motion of a projectile are independent.
• Investigate the variables that affect the drag force.
• Describe the the effect that the drag force has on the velocity and acceleration.
• Discuss projectile motion using common vocabulary (such as: launch angle, initial speed, initial height, range, time).

• Kinematics
• Air Resistance
• Parabolic Curve
• Vectors
• Drag Force
• Projectile Motion

Description

Blast a car out of a cannon, and challenge yourself to hit a target! Learn about projectile motion by firing various objects. Set parameters such as angle, initial speed, and mass. Explore vector representations, and add air resistance to investigate the factors that influence drag.

Sample Learning Goals

• Determine how each parameter (initial height, initial angle, initial speed, mass, diameter, and altitude) affects the trajectory of an object, with and without air resistance.
• Predict how varying the initial conditions will affect a projectile’s path, and provide an explanation for the prediction.
• Estimate where an object will land, given its initial conditions.
• Determine that the x and y motion of a projectile are independent.
• Investigate the variables that affect the drag force.
• Describe the the effect that the drag force has on the velocity and acceleration.
• Discuss projectile motion using common vocabulary (such as: launch angle, initial speed, initial height, range, time).

Topics

• Friction
• Thermodynamics
• Heat

Description

Move the Chemistry book and observe what happens. Note that the interactive elements in this sim have simple description that can be accessed using a screen reader.

Sample Learning Goals

• Describe a model for friction a molecular level.
• Describe matter in terms of molecular motion. The description should include: diagrams to support the description, how the temperature affects the image, what are the differences and similarities between solid, liquid and gas particle motion; how the size and speed of gas molecules relate to everyday objects.

• Kinematics
• Air Resistance
• Parabolic Curve
• Vectors
• Drag Force
• Projectile Motion

Description

Blast a car out of a cannon, and challenge yourself to hit a target! Learn about projectile motion by firing various objects. Set parameters such as angle, initial speed, and mass. Explore vector representations, and add air resistance to investigate the factors that influence drag.

Sample Learning Goals

• Determine how each parameter (initial height, initial angle, initial speed, mass, diameter, and altitude) affects the trajectory of an object, with and without air resistance.
• Predict how varying the initial conditions will affect a projectile’s path, and provide an explanation for the prediction.
• Estimate where an object will land, given its initial conditions.
• Determine that the x and y motion of a projectile are independent.
• Investigate the variables that affect the drag force.
• Describe the the effect that the drag force has on the velocity and acceleration.
• Discuss projectile motion using common vocabulary (such as: launch angle, initial speed, initial height, range, time).

Topics

• Conservation of Energy
• Kinetic Energy
• Potential Energy
• Thermal Energy
• Energy
• Friction

Description

Learn about conservation of energy with a skater gal! Explore different tracks and view the kinetic energy, potential energy and friction as she moves. Build your own tracks, ramps, and jumps for the skater.

Sample Learning Goals

• Explain the Conservation of Mechanical Energy concept using kinetic energy (KE) and gravitational potential energy (PE).
• Describe how the Energy Bar and Pie Charts relate to position and speed.
• Explain how changing the Skater Mass affects energy.
• Explain how changing the Track Friction affects energy.
• Predict position or estimate speed from Energy Bar and Pie Charts.
• Calculate speed or height at one position from information about a different position.
• Calculate KE and PE at one position from information about a different position.
• Design a skate park using the concepts of mechanical energy and energy conservation.

Topics

• Buoyancy
• Density

Description

When will objects float and when will they sink? Learn how buoyancy works with blocks. Arrows show the applied forces, and you can modify the properties of the blocks and the fluid.

Sample Learning Goals

• Predict whether an object will sink or float when placed in a liquid, given densities of the object and liquid
• Apply the definition of density to both liquids and solids
• Relate the buoyant force on an object to the weight of liquid it displaces
• Describe how the buoyant force is related to an object's relative density to the fluid
• Predict the weight of a completely or partially submerged object of known mass and volume
• Describe the forces that act on a completely or partially submerged object
• Explain how an object that is more dense than water can be kept afloat by placing it on an object that is less dense than water

To enable Flash for all websites, open your Chrome browser and type chrome://settings/content in the address bar, then press enter(1). Then on the Content Settings page, scroll down to Flash and select the button next to 'Allow sites to run Flash

Topics

• Oscillator
• Normal Modes
• Polarization
• Mass Spring System
• Frequency
• Amplitude
• Phase

Description

Play with a 1D or 2D system of coupled mass-spring oscillators. Vary the number of masses, set the initial conditions, and watch the system evolve. See the spectrum of normal modes for arbitrary motion. See longitudinal or transverse modes in the 1D system.

Sample Learning Goals

• Explain what a normal mode is.
• Explain what are the frequency, the amplitude, and the phase of a normal mode.
• Explain why different normal modes have different frequencies and why higher-numbered modes have higher frequencies.
• Identify how many normal modes a given system has and be able to sketch the individual modes qualitatively, for both 1D and 2D systems.
• Explain the distinction between transverse and longitudinal normal modes in a 1D system.
• Explain how adjusting the phase of a normal mode affects the motion of the system.
• Explain qualitatively how any arbitrary state of the system can be written as a sum of normal modes; that is, explain the superposition principle.
• Explain which properties of the system are set by the initial conditions, which properties are time-independent, and which properties are time-dependent.
• Explain why striking a metal plate in one spot raises the temperature of the plate.

Topics

• Motion
• Acceleration
• Velocity
• Position
• Gravity

Description

Build your own system of heavenly bodies and watch the gravitational ballet. With this orbit simulator, you can set initial positions, velocities, and masses of 2, 3, or 4 bodies, and then see them orbit each other.

Sample Learning Goals

• Predict the necessary mass, velocity, and distance from the sun of a planet in order for this planet to make a circular orbit around a sun.
• What happens when you increase or decrease the mass of the planet, but keep everything else constant? Does this agree with your prediction?
• What happens to the orbit of the planet when you increase or decrease the magnitude of the velocity of the planet, but keep everything else constant?
• What happens to the planet's orbit when the increase or decrease the initial distance between the planet and the sun?

Topics

• Pressure
• Water
• Fluids
• Fluid Dynamics
• Bernoulli
• Density

Description

Explore pressure in the atmosphere and underwater. Reshape a pipe to see how it changes fluid flow speed. Experiment with a leaky water tower to see how the height and water level determine the water trajectory.

Sample Learning Goals

• Investigate how pressure changes in air and water.
• Discover how you can change pressure.
• Predict pressure in a variety of situations.
• Determine how fluid motion affects the pressure.
• Figure out how to convert water pressure to water velocity.

Topics

• Force
• Position
• Velocity
• Acceleration

Description

Explore forces and motion as you push household objects up and down a ramp. Lower and raise the ramp to see how the angle of inclination affects the parallel forces. Graphs show forces, energy and work.

Sample Learning Goals

• Predict, qualitatively, how an external force will affect the speed and direction of an object's motion.
• Explain the effects with the help of a free body diagram.
• Use free body diagrams to draw position, velocity, acceleration and force graphs and vice versa.
• Explain how the graphs relate to one another.
• Given a scenario or a graph, sketch all four graphs.

Topics

• Force
• Position
• Velocity
• Acceleration

Description

Explore forces and motion as you push household objects up and down a ramp. Lower and raise the ramp to see how the angle of inclination affects the parallel forces. Graphs show forces, energy and work.

Sample Learning Goals

• Predict, qualitatively, how an external force will affect the speed and direction of an object's motion.
• Explain the effects with the help of a free body diagram.
• Use free body diagrams to draw position, velocity, acceleration and force graphs and vice versa.
• Explain how the graphs relate to one another.
• Given a scenario or a graph, sketch all four graphs.