Physics like magic
Anna Baratto Roldán, OMA fellow based at the Universidad de Sevilla/Centro Nacional de Aceleradores, took part as a volunteer in the 15th Feria de la Ciencia of Seville, a three-day-long outreach event that attracted more than 20,000 people of different ages and backgrounds, especially from high schools. The event was created with the aim of disseminating science and bringing children and young students closer to the scientific world. To this end, more than 100 stands were installed at the Exhibition and Conference centre FIBES of Seville, offering interactive activities and brief talks covering all the fields of science and technology, from health and environmental science to robotics.
Anna participated in two of the three days of the event, collaborating with the stand of the Faculty of Physics of the University of Seville. She played with classical dynamics and thermodynamics to perform some simple but impressive experiments through which children had a possibility to experience and interact with phenomena illustrating basic physics principles, while having fun as well. Among the many experiments Anna took care of, the water glass trick (a one-meter plastic tube full of water used to show the action of atmospheric air pressure) and the spinning chair (to show angular momentum conservation) were those that impressed children most.
No special equipment is needed to make physics look like magic!