Strange Science

A screenshot from Powder Game. Colored mesh shows wind force.

Physics sandboxes!

I figured why not. Who doesn’t enjoy a little fun while studying nature?

A physics sandbox is basically what the name implies. A sandbox in which you can “play” with different elements and see the reactions.

There are many different Java-based games, as well as downloadable games, that you can use to simulate different element interactions. Right now, my favorite is a Powder Game, featured here. You can draw with many different elements, and make them interact. Magma, water, suds, wind, lightning, and even explosives. It’s a lot of fun!

Another site you’ll want to check out if you enjoy the Powder Game is Pyro Sand 2 and  New Sand. These sites all have really annoying banner ads, but the games themselves are both fun and addicting. Powder Game has to be my favorite, though. I love how real to life the addition of wind power is.

Yes, you read right. Unicorns live not in lush forests or hidden amongst the misty shadows of mystic realms…they live right in the icy-cold oceans of the Arctic Circle. Though their “horn” isn’t really a horn at all, but rather an extremely elongated tusk (a type of tooth) that can grow almost 9 feet long!

This tusk’s purpose is not fully understood, but it can be assumed that it is used for defense, and perhaps even courtship and mating rituals for the species.

Male narwhals are best known for this spiraled tusk, but even some females grow their own, though not as prominent as the males’. The video below shows these fantastic oceanic mammals swimming and interacting in the wild.

If you’d like to find more information about these strange sea creatures, drop by National Geographic’s website and read more about them!

=D