Geekswipe

Just in case a #Soyuz lands near you, on one side of the capsule there are instructions about how you let the cosmonauts out. Also, a Kaktus precision γ-ray altimeter is the reason for the radiations warning

In recent years, astronauts have reported their vision changing as a result of long-duration spaceflight. Pre- and post-flight studies of astronauts’ eyes showed flattening along the backside of the eyeball, and scientists hypothesized that the redistribution of body fluids that occurs in microgravity could be reshaping astronauts’ eyes by increasing the intracranial pressure in their skulls. 

A new study tested this hypothesis with the first-ever measurements of intracranial pressure during microgravity flights and during extended microgravity simulation (a.k.a. bedrest with one’s head pointed downward). The authors found that humans here on Earth experience substantial changes in intracranial pressure depending on our posture – while upright we experience much lower intracranial pressure than we do when we’re lying flat. In both microgravity flights and simulation, patients had intracranial pressures that were higher than earthbound upright values but lower than what is experienced when lying flat on Earth. 

Ripple tanks are really cool ways to explore the way a wave behaves under the influence of a perturbation.

They are fairly simple to make, and are usually available in college and school laboratories to render better understanding of the wave phenomenon.

How does it work ?

                   Source

There is a usually an oscillating paddle( above- used to produce plane waves) or a point source/s ( below - used to produce circular waves ) which are actuated by eccentric motors, solenoids, etc + a shallow tank of water.

And that’s about it! One is ready to visualize wave phenomenon

Here are some of my favorite renditions of physical phenomenon on a ripple tank. Check sources for more. Enjoy!

1. Diffraction

2.Double slit experiment

3. Reflection

4. Refraction

5. Parabolic Reflectors

A gif is worth a thousand pages. :D

* Since the maximum gif size that one can upload on Tumblr is 2 Mb, the images had to be resized. The unedited album of gifs has been uploaded to Imgur (click here) if you are interested :D