Gist Project:

1. Ideal Gas Law

• It is possible to combine the laws that describe the relationships between volume and temperature (Charles's law), volume and pressure (Boyle's law) and the knowledge that the volume of a gas is directly proportional to the amount of gas into one simple relationship, the Ideal Gas Law PV = nRT Here, P is pressure, V is volume, T is temperature, n the number of moles of gas and R the ideal gas constant. Despite its simplicity, this law is remarkably good at predicting the behavior of real gases at ordinary temperatures and pressures. Once you know three of the four properties of a gas (P,V,T,n), you can compute the fourth easily. Moreover, this law applies to almost all gases: even though argon is a noble gas and nitrogen is a diatomic molecule, they both still obey the ideal gas law quite well. 

2. Wave on a String

• Waves on a String
• Waves come in many different forms, but perhaps one most familiar to us are waves on a string. In this simulation you can launch waves of different amplitude and frequency down a string and watch what happens when it hits the other end and reflects. The reflected wave can either add to an incoming wave (constructive interference), or the incoming and reflected waves can cancel out (destructive interference). A wave on a string is known as a transverse wave since the string itself actually moves perpendicular (up-down) to the motion of the wave (left-right). Go ahead and try different initial conditions and see what happens. A very rough analogy in space might be when a perturbation from the Sun's solar wind impacts the Earth's magnetic field. The solar wind acts as a driver and a magnetic field line acts like a string. Pulses can move along the magnetic field line and satellites in space can actually measure these waves
• Waves on a String with Damping 
• Waves can be damped when they travel through different materials. In this wave on a string simulation you can see the effect of this damping. If the damping is strong enough, the wave will not make it through the damping region to the other side. You can play with the damping strength and the driving wave amplitude and frequency. See if you can get waves to travel through to the other side. Or what happens when the damping is very strong. Try the simulation and find out! 

• 3. Sound Wave in a Pipe
• Sound waves are created when there is a disturbance in that air that causes the molecules to move in a certain way. Through this simulation particles are made visible so you can see what a sound wave might look like. This type of wave is referred to as a compressional wave where there are regions of increased air pressure (compressions) and regions of decreased air pressure (rarefaction) as the wave moves along. In this simulation the wave is guided through a tube forming a plane wave. Start the simulation and try different conditions to see how the wavefront moves through the system. This type of wave is also known as a longitudinal wave since the wave disturbance moves in the same direction as the wave. 
4. Spherical Sound Waves
• Sound waves are created when there is a disturbance in the air that causes the molecules to move in a certain way. Through this simulation particles are made visible so you can see what a spherical sound wave might look like. The view you have here is similar to looking down on a calm pool of water as an oscillator moves up and down on the surface of the water creating outgoing circular waves. This type of wave is referred to as a compressional wave where there are regions of increased pressure (compressions) and regions of decreased pressure (rarefaction) as the wave moves along. In this simulation there are two wave sources such that you can see what happens when the waves either add together (constructive interference) or cancel each other out (destructive interference). Start the simulation and try different conditions to see how the waves combine in the system. These types of waves are also known as longitudinal waves since the wave disturbance moves in the same direction as the wave. 
• 3a. Interference and Diffraction of Spherical Sound Waves
• Sound waves are created when there is a disturbance in the air that causes the molecules to move in a certain way. The view you have here is similar to looking down on a calm pool of water as an oscillator moves up and down on the surface of the water creating outgoing circular waves. Here a screen is set up so that the waves can travel through either a single opening or two openings of different size. If two openings are present, waves can travel through them and interact with each other behind the screen, which is called interference. For a single opening, the wave can penetrate through the opening and spread out behind the screen in a phenomenon known as diffraction. Interference and diffraction are particular consequences of wave motion and in fact were used to prove that light is actually a wave, rather than a collection of particles (photons). Run the simulation and try launching waves of different amplitudes and frequencies and see what happens when you have either a single opening or two opening. For either a single or double opening, change the size of the opening and you will how interference and diffraction depend on the opening size. 
• 3b. Doppler Effect
• If you have ever been near a fire truck moving towards you with its horn blaring, you may have noticed that after the fire truck goes by you and is moving away the tone changes from higher to lower. This change in tone occurs due to the Doppler Effect and happens when a source of waves is moving. As the source moves in one direction, spherical wavefronts generated by the source tend to "pile up" in front of the source and spread out behind the source. The best way to see this is to run the simulation here and watch the waves in front of the moving source and behind it. Try different speeds for the source to exaggerate this effect.
4. Dipole Magnetic Field
• You are probably familiar with a bar magnet that has a north and south pole. Here you can see magnetic field lines that emanate from a bar magnet. Use the mouse and click anywhere around the magnet and a magnetic field line will be drawn through that point. The pattern that forms when you have drawn many field lines is known as a dipole. The influence of a magnet spreads in space away from the magnet itself in the pattern of a dipole and you have probably seen this influence if you have ever brought two magnets close together. The Earth has a magnetic field generated in its core that is approximately like a dipole that spreads out into space. At the surface of the Earth, this magnetic field is what makes a compass needle align and point north! 

5. Electric Field

• Space is filled primarily with plasma, which is a sea of positive and negative charges. With all of these charged particles moving around, electric fields play a large role in the space dynamics. In this simulation you can trace the electric field lines of up to four different charged particles. The properties of each charge can be varied (positive or negative sign, charge magnitude, mass, and location) and the electric field, potential, and force on each charge can be displayed along with the field lines.

6. Magnetism

• In this simulations, you can study the motion of charged particles in given (external) magnetic and electric fields. The simulation allows up to four charged particles to be placed in the visual field. The charges can be moved around by placing the mouse pointer on the charge, holding down the left button, and moving the charge to the desired location. The mass, magnitude, location, and velocity of each of the charges can be varied as desired using the Charge Parameters option located under 'Control' at the right side. The charges can be set into motion by pressing the start button on the top Tool Bar or using the 'Motion' option on the control panel. The values of the electric and magnetic field can be varied as desired using the Magnetic and Electric Field option too. Try changing the charge and field parameters and play with starting and stopping the motion of the charges.

7. Magnetic Field Around the wires


• In this simulations, you can study the magnetic field around the wires when there is the current going through them. You also can see the magnetic field's properties when we put several wires together. According to right hand rule, when the current through the wire is going in, the magnetic field is going clockwise, vice versa. In the simulation, you can place the wires in any positions you want, and you also can change the current through the wire. Positive sign current means the current is going out and negative is going in.

8. Sun and Wind

• The Sun is Earth's nearest star. The very existence of life on Earth depends on the Sun, as it provides the Earth with warmth, light and energy. Moreover, the Sun's energy powers the chemical reactions in plant photosynthesis, which fix carbon, thereby supporting plant life and growth. This plant material, in turn, nourishes other life forms, and together they help form Earth's vibrant and diverse environment. The Sun, either directly or indirectly, provides us with nearly all of Earth's energy. The oil, gas, and light that keep us warm and fuel our vehicles are made from compressed and decomposed plants that lived many thousands of years ago. The chaotic and changeable aspects of the sun also affect the Earth. Magnetic storms, for example, can disrupt communications and power grids on Earth and can destroy electronic equipement on board satellites in orbit. Our lives are, in every way, tied to the sun.