Why does a curveball curve? Why does ice float? How do CDs and DVDs work? Why don't your legs break when you jump off a chair? What keeps a moving bicycle from falling over? These questions involve physical principles that relate not only to interesting aspects of our daily lives, but also explain fundamental features of reality. In this DVD-only course, filled with hands-on demonstrations, you explore the physics of everyday events and end up with a deeper understanding of the universe.
Physics in Your Life
An award-winning professor brings physics down to earth from everyday examples to universal principles.
Rated 2 out of
5
by
MichiganLifeLongLearner from
Well Prepared But Annoying Delivery
It’s obvious that he spent a lot of time preparing the material. Unfortunately he had to talk very fast to get everything in the 36 hour format. Also, it was very to see him constantly looking at his notes. I got the feeling that he was checking them to make sure that he was getting everything covered in the compressed time frame.
Finally, in several places he talked about events that happened 10-15 years ago. I wonder what this course would look like if it was recorded more recently.
Date published: 2023-06-25
Rated 5 out of
5
by
Nana22 from
very good
I think this professor is excellent! I though Physics was very hard to understand, but he made it far easier for me to understand. And this course covers a lot of knowledge in Physics. I am glad that I found it.
Date published: 2022-07-10
Rated 5 out of
5
by
RalphieP from
A Fascinating Course Very Well Presented
All credit to Professor Wolfson for providing an excellent series of lectures that are interesting and informative without being too heavy for a non scientific person to understand. Starting to show it's age now (2004) but the majority of the content is still relevant. I thought that overall the course was excellent and very well presented.
Date published: 2022-03-10
Rated 5 out of
5
by
romurf from
Just what I was looking for.
Will be a great resource for reference and refreshing past study of the subject.
Date published: 2022-02-02
Rated 5 out of
5
by
Vero from
Great introduction into physics - for everybody
The lectures are very inspiring and the teacher is OUTSTANDING.
Can't imagine that one can do it better. The course is VERY entertaining and one learns a lot. Just absolutely fantastic.
Date published: 2021-10-28
Rated 5 out of
5
by
CD43 from
Absolutely fantastic course!!!
Brings physics into every day life and shows you how physics works in almost everything we do in actual life. Professor clearly demonstrates the everyday way physics affects every aspect of daily activities. Highly recommend this excellent course!!
Date published: 2021-08-19
Rated 5 out of
5
by
PEM 111 from
wolfs is an amazing lecturer
just the module on computers makes this course worth the time and expense. Unlike a few other physics courses, this one is easily understandable and i still paraphrase parts of it 8 years later
Date published: 2021-01-05
Rated 5 out of
5
by
Jmckiii from
Excellent method of presentation
Less emphasis on math and more on the concepts ....
Date published: 2020-07-21
Overview
About
Dr. Richard Wolfson is the Benjamin F. Wissler Professor of Physics at Middlebury College, where he also teaches Climate Change in Middlebury's Environmental Studies Program. He completed his undergraduate work at MIT and Swarthmore College, graduating from Swarthmore with a double major in Physics and Philosophy. He holds a master's degree in Environmental Studies from the University of Michigan and a Ph.D. in Physics from Dartmouth.
Professor Wolfson's published work encompasses diverse fields such as medical physics, plasma physics, solar energy engineering, electronic circuit design, observational astronomy, theoretical astrophysics, nuclear issues, and climate change. His current research involves the eruptive behavior of the sun's outer atmosphere, or corona, as well as terrestrial climate change and the sun-Earth connection.
Professor Wolfson is the author of several books, including the college textbooks Physics for Scientists and Engineers, Essential University Physics,and Energy, Environment, and Climate. He is also an interpreter of science for the nonspecialist, a contributor to Scientific American, and author of the books Nuclear Choices: A Citizen's Guide to Nuclear Technology and Simply Einstein: Relativity Demystified.
01: Realms of Physics
Professor Richard Wolfson introduces the field of physics and describes the fundamental role it plays in our lives. He discusses the difference between classical and modern physics and outlines the course scope....
32 min
02: The Amazing Disc
This lecture uses compact discs and DVDs as metaphors for the whole realm of physics, especially for the phenomena of light and sound....
30 min
03: The Wonderful Wave
Most of our contact with and knowledge about the world comes from waves. This lecture explores basic wave behaviors and properties, and everyday phenomena....
30 min
04: Seeing the Light
We learn how images are formed in the eye and how the principles of optics are used in everything from telescopes to microscopes, CD players to cameras....
30 min
05: Is Seeing Believing?
Nature and technology have a variety of tricks for altering the path of light, some of which form images while others result in such beautiful optical effects as rainbows. The optical fibers that carry our email and web pages exploit such "tricks."...
30 min
06: Music to Your Ears
Sound is a propagating disturbance that carries energy but not matter. Sound waves are important not only for hearing but for probing structures as diverse as the Sun and developing fetuses....
30 min
07: May the Forces Be With You
The single most important concept in physics is that forces cause not motion but change in motion. This lecture introduces Newton's famous three laws of motion....
30 min
08: Aristotle's Revenge
Friction is a hidden force that obscures the simplicity of Newton's laws. Without friction, we couldn't walk, run, or dance; start, stop, or steer a car; or even balance....
31 min
09: Going in Circles
Motion in curved paths, especially circles, is important in everything from atoms to cars to satellites to galaxies, yet few ideas in physics are so confusing....
30 min
10: Taking Flight
We look at how balloons and airplanes achieve flight. Newton's laws provide a simple but full explanation for flight. A more sophisticated explanation involves the physics of fluid motion....
31 min
11: Into Space
This lecture investigates the physics of space flight, from orbits to the misnamed state called "zero gravity." We also look at many applications of space technology....
30 min
12: A Conservative Streak
Under the right conditions, energy and momentum are conserved-that is, their values do not change. This explains many of the interactions that occur....
31 min
13: The Electrical Heart of Matter
This lecture looks at aspects of electricity, including electric charge and electric fields, and the role electricity plays in holding matter together....
30 min
14: Harnessing the Electrical Genie
Current is the net flow of electric charge. Voltage is the energy imparted per unit charge. Together, they give us electric power. Electric charge flows more easily in some materials than others, and these differences are exploited in technology....
31 min
15: A Magnetic Personality
Magnetism arises from moving electric charges. We use this relationship in a huge number of ways, from motors and loudspeakers to clocks and circuit breakers....
31 min
16: Making Electricity
To make electric current and keep it flowing, we need devices that can separate positive and negative charge and keep them separate. Here we look at devices from everyday batteries to solar cells....
31 min
17: Credit Card to Power Plant
Electromagnetic induction is the basis for electric generators and a host of applications-from devices that read credit cards, to tape recorders, bicycle speedometers, and electric toothbrush chargers....
30 min
18: Making Waves
Everything we know about electromagnetism is described by Maxwell's equations. Maxwell's equations lead us directly to the nature of light, radio, x-rays, and other electromagnetic waves....
30 min
19: The Miracle Element
Professor Wolfson uses a series of six lectures to take us from the atomic level all the way up to a complete computer. This first lecture examines the intriguing properties of the element silicon, essential to modern electronics....
31 min
20: The Twentieth Century's Greatest Invention?
One of the most important inventions of the 20th century is the transistor, a tiny semiconductor device at the heart of every electronic gadget, from the simplest radio to the most complex supercomputer....
31 min
21: Building the Electronics Revolution
The revolution that enabled modern electronics came in the early 1960s, when engineers learned to combine multiple transistors and other electronic devices on a single piece, or "chip," of silicon....
30 min
22: Circuits-So Logical!
The fundamental building blocks of computers are digital circuits that store and process information in the form of binary numbers....
30 min
23: How's Your Memory?
We investigate how individual electronic memory cells work and how they're assembled into voluminous computer memories....
31 min
24: Atom to Computer
We learn what goes into a complete computer, comprising a microprocessor, motherboard, and different peripheral devices....
31 min
25: Keeping Warm
This lecture introduces a number of ideas related to heat, including the flow of heat, temperature and how it is measured, and energy balance....
31 min
26: Life in the Greenhouse
Professor Wolfson discusses the process of energy balance as it applies to Earth's climate and how human activity may be altering that climate....
30 min
27: The Tip of the Iceberg
We investigate changes in state between liquids, solid, and gases, and how these affect different substances, including water, which has some unusual properties....
31 min
28: Physics in the Kitchen
The kitchen is full of examples of physics, especially relating to heat transfer. We explore refrigeration and the many styles of cooking, including broiling, boiling, steaming, and microwaving....
31 min
29: Like a Work of Shakespeare
The writer C. P. Snow compared the second law of thermodynamics to the works of Shakespeare as being something every educated person should know....
30 min
30: Energy in Your Life
How much energy does it take to supply our energy needs? Professor Wolfson inventories our energy use and gives a visceral demonstration of what that implies....
30 min
31: Your Place on Earth
Featuring a potpourri of physics applications, Professor Wolfson begins a five lecture series which opens with a look at the Global Positioning System (GPS), a constellation of satellites that can pinpoint a location on Earth within inches....
30 min
32: Dance and Spin
The physics of rotational motion leads to some surprising phenomena, with roles in such everyday occurrences as bicycle riding, ice skating, and weather....
30 min
33: The Light Fantastic
The laser is among the most important inventions of the 20th century. We explore different types of lasers and their uses....
31 min
34: Nuclear Matters
Nuclear physics is inextricably part of our lives-in energy, defense policy, medicine, airline security, and even in smoke detectors and radiocarbon dating....
30 min
35: Physics in Your Body
Beginning with the mechanics of how the human body works, we then investigate medical techniques that use physics, particularly medical imaging tools such PET, CAT, and MRI....
31 min
36: Your Place in the Universe
Professor Wolfson closes with a philosophical look at where we humans fit into the universe, particularly how the material from which we are made comes, ultimately, from stars and from processes that commenced during the Big Bang....
31 min
