The Physics Factory

Bruce and the Arizona Mathematics Roadshow in the Arizona Daily Star

2011-12-11T11:41:00.002-07:00

The article about him is on page 14!

http://arizonadailystar.az.newsmemory.com/special.php?date=20111211

2011 Tucson Pumpkin Toss Results

2011-11-27T19:34:00.001-07:00

The results are in!

#	Team Name	Distance Shot 1 (m)	Distance Shot 2 (m)	Wall Distance (m)	Boxes Dislodged	Range final score	Accuracy final score	Combined score
1	Strebuchet	26.10	57.00	57.00	0	57.00	0.00	57.00
2	Kupbis Kill	120.00	120.00	106.00	0	100.00	0.00	100.00
3	Amphitheater High School Panthers	9.20	14.50	9.00	3	14.50	30.20	44.70
4	Pumpkin Poison	22.00	0.00	22.00	0	22.00	0.00	22.00
5	St Greory Hawks	36.70	27.40	41.00	0	36.70	0.00	36.70
6	Pueblo Magnet High Warriors	88.10	86.80	89.40	1	88.10	100.00	188.10
7	Chunkin Pucker	94.90	93.10	92.00	0	94.90	0.00	94.90
8	Jack O'Launcher	42.15	40.50	42.50	0	42.15	0.00	42.15

Pumpkin Toss Video

2011-11-11T14:55:00.001-07:00

Thanks to all who participated in and attended the first annual Tucson Pumpkin Toss. It was loads of fun, and we now have plenty of pumpkin pie filling just in time for Thanksgiving! More to come soon on the results, but for now we have Leonard Vance, one of the Pumpkin Toss organizers, to thank for posting this video:

Fun with Physics at Casas Christian School

2011-11-08T12:07:00.004-07:00

The Arizona Daily Star published this article about our recent visit to Casas Christian School.

Tucson Pumpkin Toss Event Schedule

2011-10-27T20:00:00.000-07:00

Flying pumpkins! The first annual Tucson Pumpkin Toss is this Sunday on the University of Arizona mall. Registrants may still enter contest the event for a participation fee of $75. Here's the schedule:

9:00 - 10:00	Check-in
10:00 - 12:00	Practice Throws
12:00 - 1:00	Trebuchet Viewing
1:00 - 4:00	Competition Throws
4:30	Awards

See you there!

Still Time to Enter the Tucson Pumpkin Toss

2011-10-07T13:22:00.001-07:00

We know you have great ideas for building a contraption that can hurl a pumpkin 100 meters... Worry not! Late registrants may still enter the inaugural Tucson Pumpkin Toss contest until the day of the event for a participation fee of $75. Looking forward to your inventions!

The Weather Bus

2011-09-14T13:09:00.003-07:00

Today's Arizona Daily Star has a short piece about Jimmy Stewart's "Weather Bus" initiative, launching in October. We at the Physics Factory feel as if we might be responsible for this, since we started doing outreach to schools with our Physics Bus back in 2003! Now we also have the "Arizona Mathematics Roadshow" (the Math Bus for short).

Jimmy "will visit schools in a bus that has been converted to a schoolroom, teaching the science of weather to children." You can check it out at www.weatherbus.org.

Family Fun Night at Sky Bar

2011-09-07T10:32:00.003-07:00

The Physics Factory entertained kids and adults alike with various demonstrations. Bruce made a nifty dodecahedron out of 20 balloons and put Dolly inside! The geometric balloon wands and swords he made even elicited tips from appreciative youngsters. We'll be there once a month from 5-7pm, so mark your calendar.

Fun at Tanque Verde Elementary in May!

2011-07-02T10:42:00.007-07:00

Around the world on rubbish (vegetable oil)

2011-06-18T11:29:00.002-07:00

Here's a link to the Bio Truck Expedition. People after our own heart, for sure.

biotruckexpedition.org

Physics Factory in today's Star

2011-05-29T10:58:00.002-07:00

It's a nice long article with great photos of Kip and some kids.

http://azstarnet.com/lifestyles/relationships-and-special-occasions/article_2ea80bf6-1e7f-5598-8c5d-e19d117bdf33.html

Tax deductible donations to the Physics Factory help support the after-school program at the Holmes-Tuttle Boys and Girls Club, as well as all the other Physics Factory outreach efforts. There's a handy place right on the home page to click and give. It's easy and so rewarding!

A great day for science in Tucson

2011-05-26T09:23:00.002-07:00

We can all be proud of the scientists at the U of A for getting this amazing grant. It's so thrilling to be involved in science in Tucson because of developments such as this. http://azstarnet.com/news/local/article_b3ba74ec-870d-11e0-a4b2-001cc4c03286.html.

UA Physics Department in the news

2011-05-04T11:22:00.004-07:00

Here's a link to the May 3rd article about our colleague Brian LeRoy, assistant professor of physics, and his research with graphene.
http://azstarnet.com/news/local/education/college/article_039ea02e-f6c7-5cac-a2ec-d046def4f481.html

Icosadedron!

2011-04-13T11:17:00.003-07:00

New volunteer Oliver Green, balloon twister extraordinaire, created this icosahedron (20 sides) at the College Academy for Parents on the U of A campus. Oliver is lending his talents to help the Physics Factory teach math.

Biosphere Earth Day Date Change

2011-04-13T10:11:00.002-07:00

In order to coincide with Biosphere's Earth Day festivities, the visit of the Physics Bus has been changed to April 23rd. Activities will occur from 10am to 4pm and will include the usual fun and educational bouncing balls, smoke rings, balloons, musical turkey basters, hovercraft rides and so forth.

Summer Camps 2011!

2011-03-24T18:37:00.004-07:00

Our popular Physics Factory Summer Camp is returning this year. Sign up now for our Invention, Demonstration, and Discovery Camp Sessions!

First Annual Pumpkin Toss

2011-03-24T18:35:00.001-07:00

The First Annual Pumpkin Toss takes place October 30, 2011 in Tucson. Sign up to take part!

Community Science Workshops

2011-03-24T18:27:00.002-07:00

Our successful Community Science Workshop continues at the Holmes-Tuttle Boys and Girls Club.

Science Workshop Success!

2010-09-29T18:25:00.005-07:00

Due to the success of the Wildcat Science Workshop we’re starting a new science workshop at the Holmes-Tuttle Boys and Girls Club. For more information, please see our new Workshops Page.

The Wildcat Science Workshop

2010-04-02T14:11:00.003-07:00

The Physics Factory is proud to be partnering with The Wildcat School to offer students opportunities to explore science with the Wildcat Science Workshop.

More Summer Camp Details

2010-03-20T13:54:00.008-07:00

We have more information about our exciting 2010 Summer Camp in Tucson, AZ:

The Physics Factory Summer Camps are for kids who want to play with science and safely learn about the “dangerous” aspects that are not taught in schools.

Kip Perkins, also a co-founder and exhibit builder, will teach separate weekly morning and afternoon classes, 9:00–12:00 and 1:00–4:00.

Morning Class Session 1 starts May 31st and will focus on electricity, lights, motors, sounds, and some dramatic demonstrations. Students will each take a project home.

Morning Class Session 2 starts June 7th and will explore electronics. Students will build small amplifiers and connect them to lasers and photocells to transmit music across the room.

In Morning Class Session 3, we'll be will be working with magnets, coils, TV sets, etc. We'll take equipment apart to create our own inventions.

The Morning Class Session 4 is art at its worst. It's very fun and gratifying, however, and students always surprise me with their creations. We start by taking office equipment apart, and then use motors, fans, solenoids, etc. to make kinetic sculpture.

In Morning Class Session 5, we build robot kits. Some are demanding and require soldering, others achieve the same result without soldering. Enrolling students can tell me which they'd like to make.

All afternoon classes will consist of taking machinery apart and reconstituting the innards into something they were never intended to be. We'll take big and small machines apart, from copiers to internal combustion engines. This is a favorite way to understand how things work.

Tucson Summer Camp 2010

2010-03-08T23:49:00.005-07:00

Wondering what you'll be doing this summer? Ready to build your own science demonstration? We're happy to announce The Physics Factory Invention, Demonstration, and Discovery Camp: Take Apart, Build and Play! We're taking reservations now, so please reserve your spot today! Click here for more information.

Everything is in place, all that's needed is a SPACE!

2009-12-15T14:05:00.003-07:00

Tucson is spilling over with science geeks and science stuff; but for now, what happens in our laboratories, workshops, backyards, garages, and kitchens stays in laboratories, workshops, backyards, garages, and kitchens. This leaves the public and, most of all our kids, in the dark. All that's needed is a community space, a science playground, where things are allowed to happen. What exactly is happening in the vacant buildings around town, anyway?

In the News: Creating a Science Center

2009-12-10T20:48:00.007-07:00

Our own Kip Perkins and our colleagues at Creative Machines are featured in this Tucson Weekly article discussing our drive to bring a new kind of science center to Tucson.

We look to build on the successes of the Physics Factory and Creative Machines, and find inspiration in the achievements of like-minded projects in other cities.

This is a bold, exciting and challenging undertaking, and one that can only succeed by harnessing the energy, ideas, support and generosity that we find in this great community and everywhere we've traveled as an organization.

Friday 23 October On Campus for Daughters' Day

2009-10-26T22:43:00.003-07:00

We have been presenting an annual science event for Daughters On Campus Day long enough that I've forgotten when we started. Came about through dogs, specifically me taking my dogs to the same park that Holly Altman takes hers to, and Holly thinking The Physics Factory sounded like something teenage girls would like. And she was right, every year the Daughters have given us rave reviews.

This year we got something extra: a new volunteer! Shelby Graham from Sunnyside High expressed interest in working with us, so I pointed her to our web site and told her to try to make Saturday's event at Mini Time Machine. We encourage would-be volunteers to get the full experience as soon as possible, since it's not always the easiest organization to be part of.