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Rimac vs. Porsche

This Video is a Physics Teacher’s Delight!

Marques Brownlee’s new video featuring the Rimac Nevera and its impressive acceleration has surely caught the attention of car enthusiasts and physics teachers alike.

The quad motor all-electric supercar’s outstanding performance is particularly evident when it goes head-to-head in a drag race against the Porsche 911 Turbo S, even giving the Porsche a two-second head start and still emerging victorious in the quarter mile race.

The inclusion of a beautiful aerial shot (at 4:36) of the drag race adds an extra layer of excitement and makes the video even more appealing for analysis with video tracking software like Tracker.

Rimac vs. Porsche

This footage provides physics teachers with an excellent opportunity to delve into a full analysis of the race. (Does Rhett Allain have a bat signal?) It will be fascinating to see the analysis unfold and discover the insights that can be gleaned from studying the position data of both cars. Overall, it’s an exhilarating video that combines high-speed action with a potential educational angle for those interested in physics and car performance!

Get a direct link to files hosted in Google Drive

Update [10/2/2016]: It appears that Google has finally put a stop to this trick.

Update [11/7/2016]: Looks like Jonathan in the comments has figured a new way to do it!

Update [2/7/2017]: The website http://gdurl.com works too!

Imagine you want to use a QR code so guests at Parents’ Night can scan the code and stream video or audio straight to their mobile device. If you share the files in Google Drive, users will be taken to a Google page where they have to download the file first. But if you can create a link that points directly to the file, users can access the content right in their mobile browser.

Direct link files in Google Drive
Direct link to files in Google Drive

Turns out you can do this while still using Google Drive. Any public folder in Drive can host files and provide direct links to the files.

How to create the hosting URL:
https://googledrive.com/host/FolderID

This will provide a folder that will give direct links to files inside the folder.
Note: hosting view will not display files created in Google Docs.

Example:

Once in the hosting folder, you can right click on any of the files to get a direct link to the file.

Trouble embedding YouTube in PowerPoint? Fixed!

I’ve heard from several people last week that they could no longer get their YouTube videos to play in PowerPoint. If you didn’t know, PowerPoint (starting with version 2010) allows you to easily embed online videos using the video’s embed code.

Here is a quick tutorial that explains how to set this up.

HOWEVER, last week this method seemed to stop working. After a little tinkering, I figured out how to get it working again.

It turns out that you need to remove a little bit of the YouTube embed code before you paste it into PowerPoint.

Delete a bit of the embed code
Delete the highlighted text before embedding in PowerPoint

For example, to embed the video Read More

Eight reasons to keep YouTube out of schools

noyoutube.jpgFrequently, I hear teachers yearn for access to YouTube in their classroom. Yet, I question if this really is a good idea. Below are eight things we need to worry about if YouTube is allowed in the classroom:

  1. copyright infringement: it’s so easy to get videos that were posted to YouTube illegally. You can’t expect students to do their own work when you showed them a pirated video yesterday. However, I am afraid that the temptation will be too great for many teachers. Read More

Don’t flip for the Flip

Not the FlipSome times I think what is hip and cool is not always right for school. The latest trendsetting gadgets are Flip Video’s digital camcorders. It seems like everyone is in love with the Flip. These little camcorders fit in your pocket and have a handy flip out USB connector so you can transfer your movies with ease.

I think the Flip camcorders are a little overhyped. It might be a great little camcorder to carry in your pocket for a night out on the town but we’re not sending our students to shoot video in the clubs. If you’re looking to just record short video clips, many affordable digital cameras can do the job and you’ll be able to use that camera to take great still images too. Here are a few reasons why I don’t flip for the Flip: Read More

Eight reasons to use YouTube in school

youtube1.jpgNot a week goes by without one of my colleagues asking me how to show a YouTube video in class. Because of it’s history of inappropriate content, ranging from pointless to tasteless, YouTube has been blocked in schools across the nation. However, the same content filters that are supposed to be blocking the bad sites are preventing “…teachers from accessing cutting-edge widgets and digital materials that have enormous potential for expanding learning.” [1]

I think it’s time for schools to take another look at YouTube’s use in the classroom.  Here are a few reasons why we should let YouTube into our schools:

  1. viewing is easy: there are a lot of video sharing websites out there, but YouTube makes the experience simple and seamless Read More

All hail the clip show

As a huge fan of The Simpsons, I’ve been slowly buying the DVD sets for each season. I have always thought about going through each DVD and pulling out clips that I could use in class. Perhaps I could create a log book to record the timestamp for each clip. I’ve even considered using some DVD ripping software to make a master DVD to hold all my physics-related Simpsons clips. Of course, both of these methods would take a lot of time.

However, I think I’ve found a better solution. More and more content is being put online for viewers to watch on demand. I think the service that does this best is Hulu.com. Read More