In this What's Up in the Environment? video segment, an electrical engineer in Virginia and his 13-year-old son explain how they produce electricity in their home. [3:58]

A basic description of electricity and the role it plays in everyday life.

A slideshow and a short multiple-choice quiz on the basic concepts and vocabulary of magnetism.

[Free Registration/Login may be required to access all resource tools.] The Earth's magnetic field and how it protects life on Earth, and how it is used for navigation.

This article discusses the properties of electromagnetic radiation and photons.

Students are given a history of electricity and its development into the modern age lifeline upon which we so depend. The methods of power generation are introduced, and further discussion of each technology's pros and cons follows.

Uncountable times every day "with the merest flick of a finger"each one of us calls on electricity to do our bidding. What would your life be like without electricity? Students begin learning about electricity with an introduction to the...

Timeline of key discoveries and uses of electricity.

Energy can be described as being in different "stores". It cannot be created or destroyed but it can be transferred, dissipated or stored in different ways. There are seven main stores of energy: magnetic, internal (thermal), chemical,...

Use this site to learn about the inventor of the electro-magnetic motor, Nikola Tesla. Find out why Tesla's experimentation with alternating current was so important to later inventions and use of electricity.

Determine the mass and KE of a particle trapped in a magnetic field given the charge of the particle as well as the speed and strength of the field.

Use your knowledge of physics concepts like electricity, reflection, magnetism, etc. to complete interactive online puzzles.

In this interactive tutorial students will look at the energy stored in the magnetic field of an inductor. Self-inductance and mutual inductance will be distinguished and circuits with capacitors and inductors, or LC circuits will be...

Solar cells provide a clean way of making electricity directly from sunlight. In this project you will build a simple circuit and experimental setup to investigate whether the power output of a solar cell changes with ambient temperature.

Here you can find what you need to scientifically assess battery performance. In this exercise (that should take about one week) learn how batteries work, how they wear out and most importantly, how to make valid measurements to assess...

Batteries are expensive to purchase in a store, but you can make one your self for exactly 24 cents. In this experiment, you will make your own voltaic pile using pennies and nickels and determine how many coins in a pile will make the...

James Prescott Joule experimented with engines, electricity and heat throughout his life. Joule's findings resulted in his development of the mechanical theory of heat and Joule's law, which quantitatively describes the rate at which...

In the modern world, virtually everyone is familiar with electricity as an accessible, essential form of energy. In electricity's earlier days, scientists used the buildup and release of static electricity.

In a career that lasted seven decades, Max Planck achieved an enduring legacy with groundbreaking discoveries involving the relationship between heat and energy, but he is most remembered as the founder of the "quantum theory."

Students are introduced to the electromagnetic spectrum through this group research activity. Each group investigates a different wavelength range within the em spectrum and reports back to class. Discussion ideas also included.

A good resource offering lessons, animations, slide shows, example exams, and facts covering basic physics topics: mechanics, electricity & magnetism, energy, waves, and modern physics.

[Free Registration/Login Required] Explore a different way of thinking about electricity as a way to become familiar with the concept of potential, current, and resistance using this interactive simulation. A PDF worksheet and a video...

Explore the origin of energy bands in crystals of atoms. The structure of these bands determines how materials conduct electricity. Java required.

Describes solar winds, solar wind variations, and spacecraft studying solar wind. Also includes solar wind conditions for the past day/week.