-
Looking Too Closely at Light Blew Newtonian Physics out of the Water
Newtonian physics works pretty darned well. It’s our common-sense experience of the world translated into the jargon of math and science. As I write in Why Stuff Falls Down: Newton’s groundbreaking ideas, developed using the principles of the Scientific Revolution,…
-
What’s the Big Deal With Newton and an Apple?
Did Isaac Newton get conked on the head by an apple? Well, that’s not the way he told the story! I was taught in elementary school that Isaac Newton had solved the riddle of gravity, of how and why stuff…
-
What’s So Special About the Scientific Method?
Why should you trust the scientific method? What makes it any better than a great idea from someone you respect? I’ll share some excerpts from my book (Why Stuff Falls Down), and you can see what you think! The essential…
-
What’s a Fact?
Sometimes it’s hard to tell what’s a fact, what’s a wild guess, and what qualifies as a valid scientific theory. Folks often use the word “fact” to mean something that they really believe in — not necessarily something that can…
-
Force That Takes No Energy
There are forces that we see every day that take no energy. How can you have a force that takes no energy? It all began with me musing as to how a magnet sticks to my refrigerator. A conversation with…
-
Which Way Down?
OK. This is going to sound crazy, but the direction of down where you are is not the same as the direction of down where I am. Why? Because everything on Earth gets pulled towards the center of the Earth.…
-
Dropping Hammers, Feathers, and Balls – Oh My!
How does gravity actually act? Back in ancient Greece, Aristotle said that the speed of a falling object depends on how heavy it is. Twice as heavy? It’s going to fall twice as fast. Well, that’s just common sense. A…