Carl Mungan, United States Naval Academy
mungan@usna.edu

Starts with a Bang! is a website at https://medium.com/starts-with-a-bang presenting science stories.

Some tips for getting girls involved in STEM are online at http://ithare.com/tips-for-getting-girls-involved-in-stem/.

Kyle Forinash has an inexpensive iBook that includes 33 interactive simulations involving sound waves available at https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/sound/id1194175298.

A web calculator to solve a system of linear equations using several different input options can be accessed at http://wims.unice.fr/wims/en_tool~linear~linsolver.en.html.

NIST has a simulation of a drumhead they have constructed on a microchip to measure zero-point fluctuations at https://www.nist.gov/news-events/news/2015/06/vacuum-fluctuations-measuring-unreal.

A lovely interactive global map of wind, weather, and ocean currents is online at https://earth.nullschool.net/.

The first direct observation of crystallization at the molecular level is discussed at http://wis-wander.weizmann.ac.il/chemistry/crystallization-made-crystal-clear.

Funsize Physics at https://funsizephysics.com/ discusses current research in materials science.

Did you know that Winston Churchill penned an essay about the likelihood of extraterrestial life? Read the Nature commentary at http://www.nature.com/news/winston-churchill-s-essay-on-alien-life-found-1.21467.

The debate about the conditions under which warm water can freeze faster than cold water continues to stir interest at http://www.chemistryviews.org/details/ezine/10245331/Why_Warm_Water_Freeze_Faster_Than_Cold_Water.html.

A nifty astronomomy video showing four planets orbiting a star 130 light years away can be viewed at https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap170201.html.

A science alert at http://www.sciencealert.com/hydrogen-has-been-turned-into-a-metal-for-the-first-time-ever reports the metallization of hydrogen.

The US Navy’s plans for a 150 kW laser weapon aboard a ship is discussed at http://www.nextbigfuture.com/2017/01/us-navy-will-fire-150-kilowatt-laser-on.html. Also read about UK’s plans at http://optics.org/news/8/1/11.

Tell your class about an atmospheric radiative cooler that operates without electrical input at http://physicsworld.com/cws/article/news/2017/feb/13/new-metamaterial-enhances-natural-cooling-without-power-input.

Watch this video of Feynman explaining how a train stays on its tracks at https://www.wimp.com/feynman-explains-how-trains-stay-on-train-tracks/.

Recently I have become interested in optical computing. One small firm working to bring this idea to reality reviews progress in the field at http://www.optalysys.com/technology/optical-processing-timeline/.

A classic article on the mechanics of effective scientific writing has been reprinted online at http://www.americanscientist.org/issues/pub/the-science-of-scientific-writing.

A learning space for science education can be found at http://www.visionlearning.com/en.

Disclaimer – The articles and opinion pieces found in this issue of the APS Forum on Education Newsletter are not peer refereed and represent solely the views of the authors and not necessarily the views of the APS.