Public Demonstrations of Physics

In front of an audience of visiting middle school students, Emeritus Prof. Stan Christensen gets ready to make a bang, and provokes a variety of reactions from his audience, while below, Prof. Brett Ellman demonstrates the principle of jet and rocket propulsion using a fire extinguisher. Click on either picture for a larger version, or here for more about the above series of physics demonstrations.

In a vein similar to the bed-of-nails demonstration on the previous page, John Harden Jr. stands confidently as a dagger swings to within a fraction of an inch from his throat. DO NOT TRY THESE DEMONSTRATIONS AT HOME! Instead, see them, the Nitrogen Cannon, and other awe-inspiring demonstrations performed by Physics faculty members or by intrepid members of the Kent Chapter of the Society of Physics Students at one of a number of public events, including, on occasion, the All Portage County Science Fair, and Parents Day at KSU. A recent such event was titled Fun With Physics, staged in conjunction with the Experience Kent Festival.

Are you curious about antimatter? What does Scotty mean when he warns Captain Kirk of dire results if he is forced to mix cold matter and antimatter in the engines of the starship Enterprise? At some of the above-mentioned events, you can see what happens when antielectrons and electrons are mixed, under the supervision of physicists from Kent's Center for Nuclear Research.

Our faculty regularly visit secondary schools, typically on the occasion of their annual Science Week, and put on physics demonstrations. Contact the Physics Chair for more information.