Mathematics

Optics

Patterns

Physics

Shape and Space

Moire Patterns

Imperfect alignment can lead to interesting patterns. When you look through one chain-link fence at another, you sometimes see a pattern of light and dark…

"Delta Phi"

Optical phenomenon: caustics. The surface of this object resembles that of moving water. Illuminated from above, it reflects incoming light rays in various…

3D-Shadows

Shadows gain depth. Illuminated with red and green light, a tetrahedron casts a red and a green shadow on the screen. Viewed through glasses with red and…

847 Compass needles

Magnetic Domains. There are 847 compass needles attached to a disc. Because they are so close together, they influence each other. With a magnet, the compass…

A riddle for intelligent and patient people

Puzzles for the sharp-minded and patient. Trickier than it seems: these eleven puzzles with strings, boards, and rings are challenging. One of them cannot be…

A Slice of Turbulence

by Ned Kahn If the crest of the wave collapsed over the surfer off Hawaii and he could bring home a slice of salami from it, he would have the original to the…

A Table with loose Legs

Three, two, one – stable. How many supports do we need to stabilize a tabletop? Without screws, without glue, of course. Sharp-minded (and experimental)…

Additive Color Mixing

Mixing light colors. Play with red, green, and blue light, and with their brightness. When overlapped and adjusted optimally, red, green, and blue produce…

Adhesive Air

Coandă Effect: How shape, position, and surface influence airflow. The Coandă effect occurs when fluid or gas jets deviate from their original flow direction…

Aeolian Landscape

«Aeolian Landscapes» Wind shapes the landscape, just like water and ice do. As the wind sweeps over the sand surface, dune-like ripples form. When their…

Air Bubbles

Like dolphins: forming rings that rise. By pumping air into the glass tube filled with water, air bubbles rise. They ascend vertically. Often in a straight…

Air cushion

Inventive talent is called for here! Use scissors and tape to build objects out of paper that float on the wide air cushion. While testing and optimising, you…

Air Fountain

Dance with scarves. They rise and fall. Colorful scarves, moved by the airflow as if by an invisible hand. Choreography: visitors on the platform. by Daniel…

Air lift

The vacuum makes the difference. When the ball moves up the tube, the airflow is directed in such a way that a vacuum is created. How must it be directed for…

All Triangels are the same

Central projection: Using various triangular shapes to cast congruent shadows onto a patterned wall with equilateral triangles.

Angled Mirrors

Many polygons. Two mirrors positioned around an axis at various angles: a simple way to create shapes with many sides (polygons). At certain angles,…

Anti Gravity Mirror

Half a person becomes whole. Reflect the right half of the body, and there you have it: a complete person. It’s fascinating to watch them move. Can you manage…

Ascending magma

«Intrusion» Volcano in cross-section: This is what happens beneath its vent. What looks like magma is actually air-blown glass particles. They behave like a…

Aurora

A different kind of reflection. Colored filters in a mirror: why don’t we simply see their exact image? The surface of the mirror is rough. Restless,…

Ball in a Bowl

Particle accelerator. Hula hoop meets spinning coins: balls orbit inside the sphere. Circular movements propel the two balls onto their orbits within the…

Ball in a Bowl

Shorter path = faster to the goal? A question that occupied the best mathematicians three hundred years ago. This competition compares two parallel tracks,…

Ball on water-beam

Drawn to the jet. Table tennis balls float on a water fountain: how is that possible? The ball doesn’t stay exactly in the center of the jet. It rotates…

Ball sorting machine

Playful tidying up. Yellow. Red. Blue. This machine sorts the small, medium, and large balls among Pierre Andrès' “Machines Singulières” in a playful manner.…

Banana

If you place a blue filter exactly on the yellow banana, the banana appears green - logical, isn't it? A larger blue filter that also covers the white…

Beam Bridge

The simplest form, but not the most stable. This bridge demonstrates the forces acting on a straight beam when it is loaded and supported only at its two…