Description

Copper canister with rubber stopper on copper case; part of a set of two.

In 1956, Professor Jerrold Zacharias convened a group of science teachers to discuss the state of physics education. A year later, the launch of Sputnik prompted a reform of basic science education, boosting support for the Physical Science Study Committee (PSSC).

The PSSC made materials for high school classrooms that emphasized an experimental approach to physics. In the video "A Million to One," , physicist E.M. Purcell and a circus-trained flea used these canisters to demonstrate the principle of inertia.