Impossible Bottle with Arrow
Get an impossibe object from this artist here:
From Etsy: BUY NOW: Impossible Bottles and Objects
Impossible Bottle with Arrow Sculpture Puzzle: a new seemingly impossible object in my collection- Created with clever engineering, this “impossible” syrup bottle contains a wooden arrow that should not fit through its neck. The wood of the arrow is notably one uncut piece, and yet a metal washer is also somehow trapped on the shaft of the arrow. The puzzle aspect is to consider how the bottle was produced (I personally have some theories- but I do not know the secrets of this artist). I can tell you with high certainty that the bottle was never cut or altered in anyway, and it was not somehow formed around the objects. This bottle by Brad Byers is an expertly crated example of the impossible object genre.
3D Print Kaleidocycle
Get this beautiful 3D Print here:
From Etsy: BUY NOW: Kaleidocycle Fidget
Or print it yourself: Kaleidocycle print files
3D Print Kaleidocycle: this kinetic manipulation fidget toy is comprised of six hinges such that it can twist inwards continuously. Amazingly this item is 3D “printed-in-place”, which means it comes off the printer already assembled with movable links and ensures the color gradient is continuous across the joints.
Penrose Tiling Puzzle
This puzzle was produced and sold in the 1990s.
The individual tiles can be found on eBay (and sometimes the whole puzzle):
From eBay: Search NOW Penrose Pentaplex Puzzle
Wikipedia has the details on Penrose Tilings and their inventor Sir Roger Penrose (Recently won Nobel Prize!)
A nice basic version of Penrose Tilings is available here:
From Etsy: BUY NOW Penrose Tiles
Penrose Tiling Puzzle: a challenging puzzle with pieces that come in only two shapes. Sir Roger Penrose- who just yesterday won the Nobel prize in physics for his contributions to General Relativity- also discovered tessellations (tilings) that are aperiodic even though the two tile types are regularly shaped polygons. If one tries to shift a part of a Penrose tiling, the shifted part will not align or match up with any other part of the same tiling- all the way out to infinity! This puzzle, entitled “Perplexing Poultry”, created and sold by Penrose himself, uses polygons modified into crazy looking birds such that the tiles can only connect in specific ways to ensure the non-repetitive nature of the Penrose tiling structure. Shown here is one way these two tile types will fill the plane.
Surf's Up!
Kyle Auga-- kinetic sculptures:
Check out Kyle's art here:
From Etsy: BUY NOW Kyle's Kinetics
Surf's Up!: Another gravity defying creation by Kyle Auga, this time a well-balanced stainless steel surfer that carves waves in the air for over 10 minutes on one push! The surfer has the curious motion of a 3D physical pendulum- a complex motion which can be broken down into oscillations along two dimensions and rotation about the point of contact. The stick figure plus counterweights and bar structure is designed such that its center of mass is few centimeters below the contact point when at rest. When the sculpture is tipped the center of mass swings under the pivot point in this stable equilibrium condition- no magnets needed to create this physics magic.
Pencil Hyperboloid
Choose your color and get one here:
From Etsy: BUY NOW
Hyperboloid Pencil Holder
don't forget a set of pencils:
From Amazon: BUY NOW
Colored Pencil Sets
Better yet- get some thermochromic color changing pencils!
From Educational Innovations: BUY NOW
Heat-Sensitive Pencils
Pencil Hyperboloid: a perfect gift for any math teacher- the precisely oriented holes in this base direct 16 pencils to reveal a hyperboloid, the 3D surface traced by revolving a diagonal(skew) line, the outline of which is the conic section of the hyperbola. A doubly ruled surface for any desktop!
Pentominoes
Get this set here:
From Etsy: BUY NOW Hardwood Pentominoes
Many versions available here:
From Amazon: BUY NOW Pentominoes
The book by mathematician Solomon Golomb that started the polyonomo recreational math craze:
From Amazon: BUY NOW: Polyominoes
Pentominoes: The 12 possible arrangements of five identical squares joined edge to edge. Since 5x12=60, the pentominoes can tile a 6 x 10 rectangle with no gaps (2339 ways to do this- yet even finding one solution is a challenge). I love this beautiful set from artist/woodworker Ron Moore where each pentomino is made from a different kind of hard wood.
Golden Ferrofluid
Available on Etsy: BUY NOW Gold Ferrofluid Cell
Golden Ferrofluid: colloidal ferromagnetic liquid in a specially prepared water-alcohol suspension. Curious behavior results from the interplay between magnetic force and surface tension. I'm still investigating the gold coloring and the specific makeup of the clear suspension fluid- both trade secrets it seems. The gold color appears to be a thin coating at the boundary between the ferrofluid and the suspension liquid.
Impossible Jar with Golf Ball
Get this "impossible" jar and other amazing things from this shop:
From Etsy: BUY NOW: Impossible Jar & Golf Ball
Impossible Jar with Golf Ball: a regular off the shelf golf ball somehow trapped within a standard glass jar. Neither the ball nor the jar were cut or glued in the fabrication process. The puzzle aspect is to consider how this object was produced (again, I have some theories- but I do not know the secrets of this artist). This incredible piece was made by craftsman and artist Nathan Nickerson, and comes with the golf tee display stand (a nice touch!)
Scutoids
This set of 3D printed scutoids available here:
From Etsy: BUY NOW: Scutoid container set
Scutoids: a recently recognized form of geometric solids discovered in 2018. Scutoids have a different polygon on each end, and when packed together maximize stability and minimize energy when forming a boundary layer- such as the membranes around organs in living tissue. These 5-6 scutoids have pentagons on one end and hexagons on the other. Discovered by a collaboration of biologists and mathematicians in 2018, this set is sold by Recep Mutlu of 3DPrintBase.
Trammel of Archimedes
Get similar devices here:
From Etsy: BUY NOW
Trammel of Archimedes
From eBay: BUY NOW
Trammel of Archimedes
Trammel of Archimedes: as the shuttles take turns completing their straight line journeys, the end of the crank arm traces an ellipse. Sometimes sold as a “do nothing machine” or “nothing grinder”, far from doing nothing this simple and crucially important mechanism demonstrates how rotational motion can be converted into translational oscillatory motion- such as how a piston can drive an engine’s crankshaft. This version was crafted from fine maple, cherry, and oak by artisan Neal Olsen.
Platonic Solids Dice Set
Get this nice set of regular polyhedra dice here:
From Etsy: BUY NOW: Polyhedra Dice Set
Less expensive sets of standard plastic dice here:
From Amazon: BUY NOW: Polyhedra Dice Set
Platonic Solids Dice Set: The five famous convex regular polyhedra in the form of fair dice. This set is cast in metal with clean edges and makes for a great way to own these symmetrical objects that have fascinated thinkers ever since the ancient Greeks wrote about them circa 360 BC. Only these five forms meet these criteria (in 3D space) for each face: must be equal in size, be equal in number of sides, each side of equal length, identical in angle were any two sides meet, and have the same number of sides meet at each vertex point of the solid. 2000 years later the famous mathematician Euler determined that for these 5 shapes V-E+F=2, the number of corners (vertices), minus the number of edges, plus the number of faces, will always equal 2.
Wine-Themed Kaleidoscope
precision aligned high quality front surface mirrors:
From Etsy: BUY NOW Precision Teleidoscopes
Fine art kaleidoscopes avaibable here:
From Etsy: BUY NOW: Fine Art Kaleidoscopes
Wine-Themed Kaleidoscope: precision construction using surface coated mirrors set at an angle of exactly 72 degrees creates the beautiful symmetry of a five point mandala in this artisan kaleidoscope. The viewing cell is filled with shiny and colorful wine themed trinkets- grapes, vines, and other items found in and around a winery. Swipe to see more of the intricacies of the patterns produced by turning the viewing cell. Invented by the famous Scottish physicist Sir David Brewster (1781-1868), the kaleidoscope is an ultimate physics toy and entire field of artistic endeavor.
Hybrid Kaleidoscope
High quality kaleidocsopes available here:
From Etsy: BUY NOW: Fine Art Kaleidoscopes
@physicsfun features a wide vatiety of kaleidoscopes (click to explore)
Hybrid Kaleidoscope: the beautiful symmetry of multiple reflections in a unique design- part teleidoscope (image from spherical lens) and part kaleidoscope (image from colorful objects in viewing cell). Invented by the famous Scottish physicist Sir David Brewster (1781-1868), the kaleidoscope is an ultimate physics toy and entire field of artistic endeavor. This vintage find is labeled “C. Bennett Scopes for AKAG 1984”.
The Heritage Periodic Table
Periodic Table with 83 element samples:
From Etsy store ProtoshopLLC : BUY NOW
Heritage Periodic Table
See also: The Collector's Edition with 85 samples
Please note: there are fradulent versions of this with only pictures embedded in the acyrlic being sold on facebook. The link above is the only place to get the actual version.
The Heritage Periodic Table Display: a comprehensive collection of the chemical elements that can fit in the hand. Embedded in acrylic are actual samples of 83 of the 118 elements- including pure bubbles of the gaseous elements- represented by 75 high purity samples and 7 compounds. 2019 marks the 150th anniversary of the world changing periodic system of Dmitri Mendeleev (published in 1869). This table and collection is the creative work of Tim and Cory Marriott of Engineered Labs Protoshop LLC
Fulgurite
It's now possible to obtain a fulgurite sample at a resonable price. Many sellers on Etsy offer a wide selection of specimens:
From Etsy: BUY NOW: Fulgurite Frozen Lightning
Fulgurite: glass formation from when lightning strikes sand. One of only four ways to produce natural glass- volcanos, earthquakes (pseudotachylite from fault zones), meteor impacts (tektites and impactites), and lightning strikes (fulgurites). This fulgurite tube was collected from the Egyptian Saharan desert.
Mirror Anamorphic Cup & Saucer
Get a set here:
From Etsy: BUY NOW
Anamophic Cup & Saucer
Mirror Anamorphic Cup & Saucer: the cylindrical mirror of the silver cup reflects and reveals the distorted scene of a carousel ride with four horses and the buildings of Macau Heritage City. The shape of the mirror allows for a mathematical operation, a type of affine transformation, to map the distorted image on the plate to the restored image reflected on the cup. A nice example of mirror anamorphosis through the medium of ceramics.
3D Print Planetary Gearset
Similar 3D prints available as fidget toys here:
From Etsy: BUY NOW: Gear Spinner Fidget Toy
Or print it yourself! (.stl files are available here):
From Thingverse:
Emmett Lalish Download: Gear Bearing
Refined version featured here by Don Stewart Download: Honeycomb Gear Bearing
3D Print Planetary Gearset: amazingly this gear set is printed assembled, with interlocking herringbone teeth. The gears will not come apart, in fact this design can only be accomplished by 3D printing the gears interlocked with each other. Designed and first printed by Emmett Lalish in 2013, and this version with refined precision and honeycomb by Don Stewart.