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American Museum of Natural History

Physics

What is Physics?

Physics is the study of matter and its motion through space and time. Albert Einstein was one of the most famous physicists. With his powerful imagination and curious mind, he investigated challenging questions about things like the nature of light, the force of gravity, and time.

Take your imagination on a wonderful, mind-bending trip with these "thought experiments"!

Make a carbon mobile with scissors, wire, pipe cleaners, and clay.

Take a quick look at where Einstein's curiosity took him—and the world.

Check out this quick guide to reading the periodic table of elements.

How enlightened are you about the subject of light? Play this trivia game to find out!

Where did Einstein get his great ideas? Find out with this virtual tour.

Send a note to a friend with these colorful letterheads.

Find out why a ball thrown in the air will return to the ground.

Einstein believed that messing up was a part of being successful-an idea that, itself, has proven relevance.

What happens when you mix colors of light? The results might surprise you!

Take an enlightening look at light with these three easy experiments.

We see with our eyes, but our brains do most of the work. Watch what happens when light bounces off an object and enters your eye.

How do you describe your place in the 4th dimension?

Mix up some Jell-O, and find out how space bends around anything with mass.

Explore the third dimension by building an origami waterbomb!

Take a personal look at how the height and velocity of your vantage point can affect the view.