Wow. That’s Tubular!

By Dan

Let’s face it: You spend most of the day on YouTube anyway… so why not check out some cinematic science?

I never learned how to play dominos. I knew the dots were important, but that’s as far as I got. Who has time to learn the intricacies of the game when you’re busy setting up huge chains and then watching them tumble down in a mesmerizing display of controlled chaos? And the sound… that’s a great sound!

But the typical rainy day domino tumble is nothing compared to the amazing creation from Domino Day 2009, which set the world record with 4,491,863 tiles toppled. Watch and enjoy – and learn a little something about energy, reaction, friction, acceleration and physics.

It’s been estimated (by me) that at least 93% of the videos on YouTube feature the now-infamous Mentos-Diet Coke spectacle. These guys have it down to an art form – or to a science!  When it comes to raw power, these folks have their own technique for achieving maximum height on their rockets. Amazingly, there had been no rigorous scientific studies of what caused these awesome reactions until 2008. But the June 2008 issue of the American Journal of Physics found the answer — a combination of low surface tension of Diet Coke made even lower by the gum arabic in the Mentos, and the dense candy’s disruption of the network of water molecules. Now you know.

It only seems right that a discussion about science on YouTube would mention cats. There are lots and lots of cats on YouTube, especially befuddled cats trying to understand what’s so amusing. Here’s one, confounded by the power of static electricity.  Static electricity occurs when two materials (for instance, a cat and a balloon) are brought in contact and one “captures” electrons from the other. One material is now positively charged and the other negatively charged. Opposites attract, remember? The negatively charged material is attracted to positively charged material and vice versa. Just like I’m attracted to cat science on YouTube.

Static electricity can also make Rice Krispies party and even bend water.  Cool.

Hey… here’s an idea.  When you get tired of watching cool science on a little screen, why not see it in person? Our new Wonder Warehouse exhibit has more than a dozen sweet experiments for you to try.  It just opened, and there’s no substitute for the real thing.