Finding Physics in Everyday Objects

The wrinkling in an elephant’s trunk and in billionth-of-a-meter nanotubes proceed from the same physical principles. The oscillations and flutters that agitate a piece of paper when you blow on it operate by mechanisms similar to those that caused an improperly designed bridge to tragically, and famously, collapse. Watch demonstrations by applied mathematician Lakshminarayanan Mahadevan, whose curiosity and analytical prowess combine to identify and then explain phenomena such as the vexing problem of folding up a map (to which nature has invented a brilliant solution).

For more on Mahadevan, see "The Physics of the Familiar," in this magazine's March-April issue.

 

Click here for the March-April 2008 issue table of contents

Sub topics

You might also like

Understanding AI Vulnerabilities

As artificial intelligence capabilities evolve, so too will the tactics used to exploit them. 

Crypto—To Regulate or Not?

The former director of Harvard’s fintech lab reflects on the future of digital assets.

The Psychology of Virtual Reality

Harvard’s Steven Pinker on the psychology underlying the experience—and limitations—of VR

Most popular

See Their Faces

Confronting “some of the most challenging images in the history of photography”

The Standoff: Harvard’s Future in the Balance

Introducing a guide to the issues, players, and stakes 

Judge Orders NIH to Restore Grants

Ruling likely won’t affect most of Harvard’s research cuts. 

Explore More From Current Issue

Will the U.S. Dollar Always Be So Powerful?

The preeminence of U.S. currency at risk

A Justice’s Modest Counsel

Remembering David Souter ’61, LL.B. ’66

Julia Rooney’s Cyanotype Art At Harvard

Julia Rooney’s paintings cross the analog-digital divide.