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 ...

This is a requested post. Clearly, I do requests. The idea here is that I am going to give all the details needed to determine the equation of motion (and then model it) for a basic pendulum. Warning: ...

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 ...

French physicist Léon Foucault (1819–1868) is best known for developing the Foucault pendulum, a device that demonstrated once and for all that the Earth rotates. But he was also a master inventor, ...

When an athlete swings upside down atop a 7-meter (23-foot) pendulum, it may seem like a feat of strength, courage or technique. A new study suggests it is something more fundamental: a striking ...

A Foucault pendulum is a simple device for observing the Earth's rotation. While such pendulums have been around for more than 150 years and are a staple of the modern science museum, they are ...

Have some wood and 16 spare bowling balls on hand? Why not make a huge pendulum wave? Due to conservation of energy, a weight on a pendulum that is released will swing out and hit a point of ...