Articles by

Rhett Allain

What Is the Magnetic Constant and Why Does It Matter?

In physics, we have a bunch of constants that are used in models to explain how the...

What Is the Electric Constant and Why Should You Care?

It's fun to think about the fundamental physical constants. These are special values used in our models...

AC or DC: Which Is Better?

As the story goes, the rock band AC/DC took its name from a label on an old...

Einstein Showed That Time Is Relative. But … Why Is It?

So, you’re driving a car at half the speed of light. (Both hands on the wheel, please.)...

Space Elevators Could Totally Work—if Earth Days Were Much Shorter

Suppose you could speed up Earth’s rotation so that a day was only half as long? What...

Are Those Viral ‘Cooling Blankets’ for Real?

If you spend much time on the internet, you will see the same things pop up again...

Is Using a Stair Machine the Same as Climbing Stairs?

You can get a great workout by walking up the stairs in a tall building. The only...

The Phony Physics of Star Wars Are a Blast

I'm a huge fan of Star Wars. The first movie (no, not Episode 1) came out when...