The “balancing bird” is a delightful toy you can buy, but it’s much more fun, cheaper, and better for the environment to make your own! If you like this, there are LOTS more toys you can make at home in my book Mr Shaha’s Marvellous Machines. TEACHERS This is a great activity to do to when teaching about moments and centre of gravity. EXTRAS: If you enjoyed making the balancing bird, you could try making other shapes that balance, like a butterfly or the spaceship designed by the brilliant Sai Pathmanathan in… Read more Balancing Bird →
Catapults are fun! This “mini mangonel” is a really simple, safe design that was invented by my friend Jonathan Sanderson as part of his work for the University of Northumbria’s engineering outreach team, NUSTEM. I was delighted they allowed me to use this for Mr Shaha’s Marvellous Machines because it perfectly fitted in with my aim of having “machines” in the book which were easy to make and left lots of room for children to “tinker“, and develop them into something better for themselves. TOP TIP: If you don’t have… Read more Mini Mangonel →
This is the introduction to my new book, Mr Shaha’s Marvellous Machines I was born in a little village in Sylhet, Bangladesh. Back in 1973, there was no electricity or… Read more The Joy of Making →
Here’s a word document with most of the equations used in A-level Physics so you can cut and paste them instead of writing them out in Word’s equation editor every time. Please let me know if you spot any errors.
Flashcards are a useful and effective way to revise things like equations and definitions. I know that a large part of the usefulness of flash cards is in the process… Read more A-level Physics Equations Flashcards →
This is my basic recipe for dal – it’s the one I cook when I need a fresh pot of dal quickly. Ingredients: 300g split red lentils 900 ml water… Read more Cheap, Easy, Quick Dal →
How does the length of a piece of string or rope vary with the number of knots tied in it? I came across this question a few months ago and decided to try it out as an investigative activity to help A-level Physics students revise some basic practical skills. I’ve since seen other Physics teachers, like Frank Noschese, tweet about using it in class. What’s the relationship between the number of knots and the length of the rope? Great #modphys graphing lab I learned from @hbarphysics! pic.twitter.com/jPlA1xdp1o — Frank Noschese… Read more A knotty problem →
Every year, I send out a tweet asking UK sci-commers what they’re doing to mark Black History Month (BHM), and every year, I get the same lack of response which tells me that no-one is doing anything. This year, I don’t want to just send out my usual tweet because I suspect all it really accomplishes is to make a few more people in sci-comm dislike me. So, for the past few months I have been talking to lots of important, influential people who I think could make things happen… Read more Black History Month 2018 →
I recently read a “popular science” book on a topic that I felt I needed to learn more about. The book was well-written, ideas were clearly explained, and I finished… Read more Pop. Sci book or Textbook? →