Links checked 20th October 2007
This is a vast resource, like an alternative text book on every topic. It is at American university level, so you can understand a lot of it.
This set of explanations and little applets is useful, especially for A-level (e.g. mechanics)
Statics: A hinged bar - trap-door - with a movable weight hanging on it. You can move the weight and see how the force arrows showing tension and reaction at the hinge change - and how the three forces always aim to cross at a single point.
This shows a block on a slope, in equilibrium, with all the forces on it. You can change its weight, and see what happens to the other forces. Then you can exert a force on the top right corner of the block, and see what this does to the forces (change its size and its direction).
Parallelogram of forces with pulleys you can pull to the sides. You could use this as a model to compare with real results, since it gives the sizes and the angles.
This is a simple applet for combining two vectors, showing how they are linked to their resultant. As you change the vectors, the resultant changes. This one combines up to 5 vectors, and moves them around nicely to show how you get the resultant. Vector addition, with three vectors; two of which combine to give the third. I like being able to show the components, and how they add up.
Projectiles are here well-explained, with some simple simulations.
This is Mr. Fendt's beautiful projectile simulation. Essential viewing.
This is a projectile simulation with a useful dotted path.
The second applet of this pair shows a ball rolling down a plane, and plots its displacement and velocity. Once the ball has got to the bottom, by moving the cursor over the graph you can show how the average speed for each time interval has been calculated. Drag the top of the slope up or down. The trail of dots is like a ticker-timer.
Terminal
velocity nicely shown. You can
change the density of the medium, the mass of the ball, or its radius, and the
applet plots x, v, and a, simultaneously.
For the L6, this has a displacement-time and a velocity-time graph side by side; you can change the initial displacement, initial velocity, and acceleration. It isn't animated, but it repays close attention.
This applet shows an image of a sky diver, who then opens a parachute. It simultaneously displays the two forces on her, one constant, one changing, and the effect on the a = F/m calculation. {To freeze it, try clicking and holding somewhere in the images}
Here is a very simple Rutherford scattering with a nuclear atom. With the slit reasonably wide this is quite a nice simulation of Rutherford scattering.
The simple display of nuclei radioactively decaying with a plot of the number left, could be useful.
Beta decay is here shown as diagonal moves on the n-p plot. Simple but graphic.
More radioactive decay; this beautiful applet enables you to select a parent isotope at the start of a radioactive decay chain, and then watch, on the Z/N chart (unfortunately the 'wrong' way round) as the decay chain unfolds. Hovering over each isotope gives relevant information on it.
Resistivity formula quite nicely illustrated
Gas laws with atoms, very nicely simulated.
http://www.saburchill.com/physics/chap05.html This is another
remarkably useful set of notes and diagrams.
http://www.revision-notes.co.uk/revision/139.html (This one is very boring)
Reading micrometer, more micrometer, and verniers.