Monday, February 16, 2015

The science of wineglass tears (or wine legs)

The surface tension of water and the evaporation of ethanol produce an interesting effect in a wineglass known as "tears" or "legs".  The process is caused by the Marangoni effect, which explains how toy soap boats work among other interesting things.


Sunday, February 8, 2015

Tools and Tips #1 from Applied Science



I present some of my favorite tools and techniques from the workshop.
https://www.patreon.com/AppliedScience - Support Applied Science

Cable tie gun - www.mcmaster.com 5401T11

Devcon plastic welder - http://www.amazon.com/Devcon-22045-Plastic-Welder-Dev-Tube/dp/B003NUGL9S/

E6000 adhesive - http://www.amazon.com/E6000%C2%AE-Craft-Adhesive-3-7-oz/dp/B007TSYNG8

3M DP-8005 - www.mcmaster.com 7467A32

Ikea lamp - http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/20169658/

Well nuts - www.mcmaster.com 93495A130

Irwin tap wrench sockets - http://www.amazon.com/Hanson-3095001-2-Piece-Adjustable-Socket/dp/B000TGM7HY/

Double-sided tape - http://www.findtape.com/product190/Permacel-P-02-Double-Coated-Kraft-Paper-Tape.aspx

Gaffers tape - http://www.findtape.com/category/gaffers-tape-rolls-of-industrial-gaffer-tape.aspx

Drill bits for plastic - http://www.mcmaster.com/#plastic-cutting-drill-bits/=vtpc4m

Monday, January 26, 2015

Covert radio pen with bone conduction speaker

https://www.patreon.com/AppliedScience ---- Donate here!
I built a tiny radio into a ballpoint pen that allows the user to hear audio by casually biting the pen.



Sunday, January 11, 2015

How a horn amplifies sound (hint: Impedance matching)

A horn-shaped speaker is louder than an equivalent speaker without the horn.  This fact doesn't violate physics because the horn is acting as a matching device between the speaker and the air around it.

Photo Credit for phonograph: Norman Bruderhofer,  Collection of John Lampert-Hopkins


Monday, December 15, 2014

Chocolate gun dispenses edible molten chocolate


I modified a standard hot glue gun to dispense molten semi-sweet chocolate. This is great for decorations and gingerbread houses.