CuriousPhysics

The Big Bang Theory is an American TV show produced and distributed by CBS since 2007. Created by Chuck Lorre and Bill Prady, the series describes the daily life of a group of friends: Lenard, Sheldon, Howard and Raj. The four scientists will live many adventures: from unexpected marriages to significant scientific discoveries. The most eclectic of the group is surely Dr. Sheldon Cooper. Sociopathic, brilliant and sometimes childish, Sheldon represents the stereotype of the misfit scientist. In the first episodes of the series, Cooper is engaged in the development of a scientific model that can explain the characteristics of dark matter. The physicist Sheldon Cooper is a genius in his field. What are the experimental evidences of this type of matter? Scientists for the first time hypothesized the existence of dark matter by referring to rotation curves of galaxies. In fact, they noticed that the velocity of rotation of spiral galaxies did not decrease accordin

The Martian (2015) is an American movie, based on the story written by Andy Weir in the homonym novel. Astronaut Mark Watney, played by Hollywood actor Matt Damon, remains wounded on the surface of the red planet at the end of a space mission. Abandoned by his team, Mark must work hard to survive on the hostile Martian soil. At the end of the movie, the astronaut leaves the red planet's surface to intercept a spacecraft sent for his recovery. Since his spaceship can not get closer to the rescue team, Mark is forced to use the oxygen of his suit as a propeller to fly in free space. Mark grows potatoes in order to survive on Mars. What is the Physics behind this idea? The principle exploited by the brilliant cosmonaut is the conservation of linear momentum. Assuming that Mark starts at rest, his total linear momentum is zero. In addition, in a closed system where the resultant of external forces is null, the total linear momentum is conserved. Therefore, when Mark pier

The Amazing Spider-Man 2: Rise of Electro, directed by Marc Webb, tells the adventures of one of the most famous heroes of the Marvel universe. In this chapter, Spider-Man is engaged in the fight against Electro, a super villain capable of manipulating the laws of electromagnetism as he pleases. This power makes him a fearsome opponent for Spidey who will have to protect himself from the huge electric currents generated by Electro. Electro seems to be able to store electrical charge in his body and then release it in the form of electric currents: a sort of human battery. Therefore, Spidey needs a particular material to use his web to grab Electro's electrically charged body. In fact, a common spider web could be damaged by the enormous electric current produced by the huge potential difference between Electro and ground. Electro is a human battery. Let's see how the web is damaged by the current! An insulating material, also called dielectric, can support up to

The famous Harry Potter fantasy saga was conceived by the English writer J.K. Rowling who, since 1997, has published seven novels, leaving a huge footprint in modern literature and cinematography. Each novel, coupled with the related film, describes the deeds of Little Whinging's wizard in the fight against the Dark Lord: Voldemort. Harry, like any other student, is engaged in extracurricular activities to say the least singular. In fact, he manages to pass the selections for the Gryffindor Quidditch team and proves himself a champion as the team seeker. The seeker, on top of his flying broomstick, has the task of catching the flying Golden Snitch so as to decree the victory of his team. Harry is Gryffindor's seeker. We try to explain how, in our Universe, the broomstick could realistically rise from the ground, contrasting Earth's gravity. Magnetic levitation is one way we can describe this phenomenon. This technique exploits two types of materials: a ferrom

Jack Sparrow is ready to face Davy Jones and his crew. The saga of the "Pirates of the Caribbean" has, immediately, enjoyed a worldwide fame thanks to the talented group of actors presented by Gore Verbinski and the original storyline written by the producers. The various episodes describe the adventures of Orlando Bloom, Johnny Depp, Keira Knightley and Geoffrey Rush, committed to challenging fearsome creatures of the sea. In the famous chapter "The Pirates of the Caribbean - Beyond the World's Borders", a peculiar super villain gets into trouble Captain Jack Sparrow and his fellows. His name is Davy Jones and he is the captain of a ghost ship called the Flying Dutchman; he has the power to trap the souls of battle prisoners on the ship and trap them in the wooden structure of the vessel. In many scenes, the Dutch emerges from the depths of the ocean, although not having any type of engine! Davy Jones, captain of the Flying Dutchman, will be Jack Spar

The first Iron Man movie, released in 2008 and directed by Jon Favreau, was positively received by the public and achieved amazing results at the box office. Tony Stark, billionaire genius, MCU playboy philanthropist, played by Robert Downey Jr., is forced by a group of terrorists to design lethal weapons. Gifted with an extraordinary mind, he will succeed, with the help of a physicist, to realize with the few materials available an armor able to fly and protech him from the eniemies. How does our Tony speed up to reach ultrasonic speeds so quickly without losing consciousness? Anti-g suit A body within an accelerated frame of reference is subject to a fictitious force resulting from the acceleration of the frame itself. In the case of rapid vertical takeoff, the action of this force prevents the blood from flowing correctly towards the brain causing the loss of knowledge on the subject. To overcome this inconvenience, Tony, most likely, has implemented within his a