A basic pendulum is a mass at the end of a string that swings back and forth. It seems simple, and it appears in most introductory physics textbooks. But it's not a trivial problem to solve for the ...

Nudge something away from where it was at rest, and often it will push back. And then overshoot. From atoms to bridges to wheeled luggage, much of the world is in simple harmonic motion Yesterday my ...

A good worksheet as the students approach A2 which guides them through the derivation, tests them on rearranging equations, and practises inputting data into equations. When a mass on a pendulum ...

Introduction Did you know that playground swings can provide a good lesson in physics—as well as lots of fun? The back-and-forth motion of a swing is an example of a pendulum. We see pendulums in ...

This post has been sitting in my mind for quite some time. Really, it is about mechanics - not about pendulums. What is the goal in mechanics (classical mechanics, if you like)? Generally, it is to ...

The Foucault Pendulum illustrates the rotation of the earth. It is not constrained to stay in a fixed plane like a clock pendulum, but instead its ordinary pendulum motion is free to change direction ...