Who won the Nobel Prize for the blue LED?
Isamu Akasaki, Hiroshi Amano, and Shuji Nakamura won the 2014 Nobel Prize in Physics for inventing the blue LED, which made bright, energy-saving white LED lighting possible.
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Physics Facts
Physics facts and facts about physics.
35 facts on this shelf
What is superfluid helium?
When cooled close to absolute zero, liquid helium becomes a superfluid that flows without friction and can creep up the walls of its container.
Can helium freeze?
Helium is the only element that won't freeze at normal pressure, even at absolute zero.
How was graphene discovered?
Scientists Andre Geim and Konstantin Novoselov isolated graphene, a single layer of carbon atoms, using Scotch tape in 2004 and won the 2010 Nobel Prize in Physics.
What color is liquid oxygen?
Liquid oxygen is pale blue and is attracted to magnets.
How thin can gold be hammered?
Gold is so malleable that a single ounce can be hammered into a sheet covering about 300 square feet.
Which metal conducts electricity best?
Silver conducts electricity and heat better than any other metal.
How does a theremin work?
A theremin has two antennas. Moving one hand near the vertical antenna changes the pitch, and moving the other near the loop antenna changes the volume.
Why do theremin players have to stay so still?
A theremin responds to the electrical properties of the player's body, so even small movements can change the sound.
Why does a Hang have a hole on the bottom?
The hole on the bottom of a Hang, called the "Gu," creates a deep bass tone.
How does a glass armonica work?
A glass armonica has spinning glass bowls on a rod, which the player touches with wet fingers to make sound.
Why does a waterphone sound wobbly?
The water inside a waterphone shifts as the player moves it, which makes the sound wobble.
How does a jaw harp make different notes?
A jaw harp player changes notes by reshaping the mouth, which acts as the instrument's resonating chamber.
How does the Sea Organ make sound?
The Sea Organ has 35 pipes under marble steps, and waves push air through them.
How does the Great Stalacpipe Organ make sound?
The Great Stalacpipe Organ uses rubber mallets to tap stalactites.
What are sympathetic strings?
A nyckelharpa has sympathetic strings that vibrate on their own when other strings are played.
What did Maharishi Mahesh Yogi study in college?
Maharishi Mahesh Yogi studied physics.
What was Einstein's miracle year?
In 1905, often called Albert Einstein's "miracle year," he published four groundbreaking papers, including special relativity and the idea behind E=mc².
What did Einstein win the Nobel Prize for?
Albert Einstein won the 1921 Nobel Prize in Physics for explaining the photoelectric effect, not for his theory of relativity.
What does E=mc² mean?
Albert Einstein's equation E=mc² shows that mass and energy are related.
Did Newton study alchemy?
Isaac Newton wrote more about alchemy and theology than about physics.
What unit is named after Tesla?
The tesla, a unit used to measure magnetic fields, is named after Nikola Tesla.
Who was the first woman to win a Nobel Prize?
Marie Curie was the first woman to win a Nobel Prize, and she's the only person to win Nobel Prizes in two different sciences, physics and chemistry.
What did Aristotle get wrong about falling objects?
Aristotle wrongly believed that heavier objects fall faster than lighter ones.
What did Galileo notice about pendulums?
As a young man, Galileo noticed that a swinging chandelier in Pisa Cathedral took the same amount of time for each swing, which led to his study of pendulums.
What did Archimedes say about levers?
Archimedes is said to have claimed that with a long enough lever and a place to stand, he could move the Earth.
What is Archimedes' principle?
Archimedes' principle explains buoyancy.
What did the Large Hadron Collider discover?
The Large Hadron Collider discovered the Higgs boson in 2012.
How long does light take to escape the Sun's core?
Energy made in the Sun's core can take tens of thousands of years or more to work its way to the surface.
What is spaghettification?
"Spaghettification" describes how a black hole's gravity would stretch an object into a long, thin strand.
Who won the 2020 Nobel Prize for black hole research?
Roger Penrose, Reinhard Genzel, and Andrea Ghez won the 2020 Nobel Prize in Physics for black hole research.
Is the wheel a simple machine?
The wheel and axle is one of the six classical simple machines, along with the lever, pulley, inclined plane, wedge, and screw.
Who won a Nobel Prize for inventing the blue LED?
Isamu Akasaki, Hiroshi Amano, and Shuji Nakamura won the 2014 Nobel Prize in Physics for the blue LED, which made bright white LED lighting possible.
Did the inventors of the transistor win a Nobel Prize?
Bardeen, Brattain, and Shockley shared the 1956 Nobel Prize in Physics for inventing the transistor.
Who won the first Nobel Prize in Physics?
Wilhelm Röntgen won the first Nobel Prize in Physics in 1901 for discovering X-rays.