Energy3D is a free, open-source tool we are developing from scratch to empower students to design, make, and test energy-efficient model houses. Today we had some students design and make…
A new study has been published disproving the previous explanation for the end of the Marinoan ice age, also known as “Snowball Earth.” That ice age ended abruptly about 600…
The Journal of Chemical Education, published by the American Chemical Society, selects my paper “Visualizing Chemistry with Infrared Imaging” as the cover article on the July 2011 issue. The IR…
The virtual heliodon of Energy3D in action. According to Wikipedia, “a heliodon is a device for adjusting the angle between a flat surface and a beam of light to match…
In an earlier post on this blog I wrote about the need to increase our knowledge of how people think about climate change and then apply that knowledge to expedite…
A new study from the University of Washington suggests that Earth’s temperature will keep increasing, even if all greenhouse gas emissions were stopped right now. Why? Because greenhouse gases will…
Metals feel colder because they conduct heat faster, not because they are really “colder.” This is often a misconception from students. A very simple IR experiment may dispel this misconception by…
The following are two Energy2D simulations that compare convection and conduction, which should run within this page if you have installed Java and Java applets are enabled with your browser….
Yes–if you’re a coral. Biologist Brent Constantz has formed a company to sequester carbon dioxide just as corals in the ocean do. The strategy is simple–combine carbon dioxide, water, and…
Pollution has its benefits. With fewer particulates being released by smokestacks and cars, there are fewer aerosols in the atmosphere. Fewer aerosols means that more solar radiation hits the ground….