Drury Physics Club Performs Gravity Tests

By Daniel Kieffer
University Communications

If you were to walk by Turner Hall one Wednesday morning in the usual daydreaming stupor caused by late nights and early classes, you may be abruptly brought to reality. It would not be your morning coffee finally kicking in or the realization that you have a test you didn't study for, but instead you would by shocked by the Drury Physics Club.

On the first Wednesday of every month at 11:00 a.m., the Physics Club conducts gravity tests.   These tests consist of throwing many objects such as microwaves and furniture off of the roof of Turner Hall. These people are not crazy, they are helping to educate people about the world around them.

Do these physics students really doubt gravity and need to continuously test it to make sure it doesn't change? Jared Durden, President of the Physics Club and Founder of the Gravity Tests, shares some insight as to why these tests are conducted.

Durden says, “The idea started to promote the club and bring interest to those who may not be physics majors. The idea of a physics club is to promote interest in physics not to sit around and do math with letters. We want to educate and inspire people. We want to destroy the notion that it is not cool to think, which has become an apparently common philosophy. It's kind of the gateway activity to the club. People have fun breaking stuff and they find out more about us and see something else we do that they think is cool. We want to make people think.”

While these tests are conducted, the members of the Physics Club observe the way things break and look for fractilization and other similar phenomena.   The reason they drop the things they do also has a second purpose besides the initial test.   The Physics club uses the parts from those objects to build gadgets and toys for children to teach them basic principles of physics.

More information about the Drury Physics Club can be found by contacting President Jared Durden at jdurden@drury.edu .