Eureka! (Canadian TV series)

Last updated
Eureka!
Eureka cartoon.JPG
Genre Animation
Written by David Stansfield
Denise Boiteau
Voices of Billy Van
Luba Goy
Country of originCanada
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons1
No. of episodes30
Release
Original network TVOntario

Eureka! is a Canadian educational television series which was produced and broadcast by TVOntario in 1980 and 1981. The series was narrated by Billy Van, and featured a series of animated vignettes which taught physics lessons to children. It is currently available online.

Contents

Synopsis

Eureka! is a series of animated shorts that illustrate concepts in physics. Each program takes a simple and direct approach to the subject matter; while the basic concepts are explained in a voice-over, cartoon characters and a variety of animated objects demonstrate the principles on the screen. Constant review and reinforcement make the message clear; as a result, the study of physics becomes easy and accessible - even to viewers without a solid background in the subject. Basic formulae and concepts are introduced with a recap of what was learnt in the previous episode to build knowledge on a topic and create connections.

Production

Animation - Grafilm Productions Inc.

Design - Joe Meluck

Educational Consultants - John Kuropatwa, Paul Henshall, Bryan Kaufman, Ernie McFarland, Michael Broschart

Unit Manager - Vickie Gilchrist

Production Assistant - George Pyron

Episodes

30 episodes were produced. All of the episodes are five minutes in length.

Unit 1: Force and Energy

  1. "Inertia"
  2. "Mass"
  3. "Speed"
  4. "Acceleration I"
  5. "Acceleration II"
  6. "Gravity"
  7. "Weight vs Mass"
  8. "Work"
  9. "Kinetic Energy"
  10. "Potential Energy and Speed"

Unit 2: Simple Machines

  1. "The Inclined Plane"
  2. "The Lever"
  3. "Mechanical Advantage and Friction"
  4. "The Screw and the Wheel"
  5. "The Pulley"

Unit 3: Heat and Temperature

  1. "Molecules in Solids"
  2. "Molecules in Liquids"
  3. "Evaporation and Condensation"
  4. "Expansion and Contraction"
  5. "Measuring Temperature"
  6. "Temperature vs Heat"

Unit 4: The Conduction of Heat

  1. "Atoms"
  2. "Electrons"
  3. "Conduction"

Unit 5: The Convection of Heat

  1. "Volume and Density"
  2. "Buoyancy"
  3. "Convection"

Unit 6: The Radiation of Heat

  1. "Heat as Energy"
  2. "Radiation Waves"
  3. "The Radiation Spectrum"

Related Research Articles

Chemistry is the scientific study of the properties and behavior of matter. It is a physical science under natural sciences that covers the elements that make up matter to the compounds made of atoms, molecules and ions: their composition, structure, properties, behavior and the changes they undergo during a reaction with other substances. Chemistry also addresses the nature of chemical bonds in chemical compounds.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Energy</span> Property that makes changes possible

In physics, energy is the quantitative property that is transferred to a body or to a physical system, recognizable in the performance of work and in the form of heat and light. Energy is a conserved quantity—the law of conservation of energy states that energy can be converted in form, but not created or destroyed. The unit of measurement for energy in the International System of Units (SI) is the joule (J).

Physical science is a branch of natural science that studies non-living systems, in contrast to life science. It in turn has many branches, each referred to as a "physical science", together called the "physical sciences".

The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to physics:

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Thermodynamic temperature</span> Measure of absolute temperature

Thermodynamic temperature is a quantity defined in thermodynamics as distinct from kinetic theory or statistical mechanics.

The volumetric heat capacity of a material is the heat capacity of a sample of the substance divided by the volume of the sample. It is the amount of energy that must be added, in the form of heat, to one unit of volume of the material in order to cause an increase of one unit in its temperature. The SI unit of volumetric heat capacity is joule per kelvin per cubic meter, J⋅K−1⋅m−3.

In physics and chemistry, binding energy is the smallest amount of energy required to remove a particle from a system of particles or to disassemble a system of particles into individual parts. In the former meaning the term is predominantly used in condensed matter physics, atomic physics, and chemistry, whereas in nuclear physics the term separation energy is used.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Heat transfer</span> Transport of thermal energy in physical systems

Heat transfer is a discipline of thermal engineering that concerns the generation, use, conversion, and exchange of thermal energy (heat) between physical systems. Heat transfer is classified into various mechanisms, such as thermal conduction, thermal convection, thermal radiation, and transfer of energy by phase changes. Engineers also consider the transfer of mass of differing chemical species, either cold or hot, to achieve heat transfer. While these mechanisms have distinct characteristics, they often occur simultaneously in the same system.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Linear particle accelerator</span> Type of particle accelerator

A linear particle accelerator is a type of particle accelerator that accelerates charged subatomic particles or ions to a high speed by subjecting them to a series of oscillating electric potentials along a linear beamline. The principles for such machines were proposed by Gustav Ising in 1924, while the first machine that worked was constructed by Rolf Widerøe in 1928 at the RWTH Aachen University. Linacs have many applications: they generate X-rays and high energy electrons for medicinal purposes in radiation therapy, serve as particle injectors for higher-energy accelerators, and are used directly to achieve the highest kinetic energy for light particles for particle physics.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Thermal energy</span> Energy that is measured by temperature

The term "thermal energy" is used loosely in various contexts in physics and engineering. It can refer to several different well-defined physical concepts. These include the internal energy or enthalpy of a body of matter and radiation; heat, defined as a type of energy transfer ; and the characteristic energy of a degree of freedom, , in a system that is described in terms of its microscopic particulate constituents.

The molar heat capacity of a chemical substance is the amount of energy that must be added, in the form of heat, to one mole of the substance in order to cause an increase of one unit in its temperature. Alternatively, it is the heat capacity of a sample of the substance divided by the amount of substance of the sample; or also the specific heat capacity of the substance times its molar mass. The SI unit of molar heat capacity is joule per kelvin per mole, J⋅K−1⋅mol−1.

The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to energy:

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dielectric heating</span> Heating using radio waves

Dielectric heating, also known as electronic heating, radio frequency heating, and high-frequency heating, is the process in which a radio frequency (RF) alternating electric field, or radio wave or microwave electromagnetic radiation heats a dielectric material. At higher frequencies, this heating is caused by molecular dipole rotation within the dielectric.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gas</span> State of matter

Gas is one of the four fundamental states of matter. The others are solid, liquid, and plasma.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Temperature</span> Physical quantity that expresses hot and cold

Temperature is a physical quantity that expresses quantitatively the perceptions of hotness and coldness. Temperature is measured with a thermometer.

This glossary of engineering terms is a list of definitions about the major concepts of engineering. Please see the bottom of the page for glossaries of specific fields of engineering.

This glossary of physics is a list of definitions of terms and concepts relevant to physics, its sub-disciplines, and related fields, including mechanics, materials science, nuclear physics, particle physics, and thermodynamics. For more inclusive glossaries concerning related fields of science and technology, see Glossary of chemistry terms, Glossary of astronomy, Glossary of areas of mathematics, and Glossary of engineering.

This glossary of civil engineering terms is a list of definitions of terms and concepts pertaining specifically to civil engineering, its sub-disciplines, and related fields. For a more general overview of concepts within engineering as a whole, see Glossary of engineering.

This glossary of engineering terms is a list of definitions about the major concepts of engineering. Please see the bottom of the page for glossaries of specific fields of engineering.