The HUB visits with Matt Hannifin of Science Toy Magic:
OK, it was at 8:30 AM on a Saturday. It was cold out and Fort Collins’ Old Town Square just had three inches of new snow. It was time to visit Colorado’s tiniest toy store and meet with the owner / operator / physicist / toymaker / inventor / pyrotechnician and balloon wrangler — Mr. Matt Hannifin and listen to him as he explains his wonderful science toys.
First off it was all about the Bernoulli principle (As Dan Bernoulli might say “An increase in the speed of the fluid occurs simultaneously with a decrease in pressure”) and how you can feel a blast of air from an air gun from 20 feet away. Of course, that’s hard to demonstrate inside a toy store that is only 12 feet by 6 feet: Matt had us watching from the staircase as he shot his air gun in the hallway outside of his store. If you visit the store, Matt will be happy to demonstrate this principle on YOU!
Then there was the topic of gyroscopic precession. Gyroscopes and boomerangs can be great toys, but Matt brought up the concept that handling any kind of rotating tool like a circular saw for example may tilt in an unexpected direction due to precession– a safety tip for us makers to be aware of when using power hand tools.
And then we were treated to this: