iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Dean Baird @deanbaird.bsky.social · 30/09/2026

Do you want students to remember physics as the class where the teacher did cool stuff or the class where THEY did cool stuff? We used this in so many labs, I thought of it as the iPhone of my optics unit.

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Dean Baird @deanbaird.bsky.social · 03/09/2026

The show is at the Billings airport, so no bisons are buggered by the noise.

Dean Baird @deanbaird.bsky.social · 03/09/2026

If you wish to create a vortex ring from scratch, you must first invent the universe. And then ignite some non-trivial pyrotechnics.

Dean Baird @deanbaird.bsky.social · 02/09/2026

A few images from the recent Yellowstone International Air Show.

Dean Baird @deanbaird.bsky.social · 22/08/2026

As long as they promise to hurt the people I hate, they will win. It’s Texas.

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Dean Baird @deanbaird.bsky.social · 22/08/2026

Translation: Stop talking about Natalie.

I feel like this is the water pistol I'm bringing to a firehose fight. I cannot single-handedly solve the problem, but I cannot do nothing. So...TPT profile image updated.

This store uses no AI. All lessons crafted by a human.

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I don’t have confidence that the good people at TPT will be able to keep AI slop out. So global searches for resources at TPT are… useless. Instead, teachers will need to curate a list of trustworthy stores *within* TPT and limit purchases to only those stores. More work for the teacher? As ever.

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MAGA enthusiasts believe Trump’s wealth is their wealth. They applaud waste, fraud, and abuse that advances the interests of Trump and his cronies. People with eight teeth zealously defend the interests of people with eight yachts. That’s the timeline we’re living in.

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As AI slop oozes its way into virtually every corner of our lives, TPT has not been spared. I spend an embarrassing number of hours preparing my own resources, all without the use of AI. (I’m a gentleman of a certain age.) To avoid the slop, shop… www.teacherspayteachers.com/store/the-le...

Browse over 980 educational resources created by The Lessons of Phyz in the official Teachers Pay Teachers store.

The Lessons of Phyz

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Dean Baird @deanbaird.bsky.social · 10/08/2026

Sunballs before and Sun crescents during a partial eclipse

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Reposted by Dean Baird

Dan Burns @the-physics-well.net · 10/08/2026

Paul Hewitt's Conceptual Physics book shows a before and after pinhole image. @deanbaird.bsky.social made an extra credit assignment with this idea. It is good to show people pinhole images are present even without an eclipse. More info in his blog post: phyzblog.blogspot.com/2017/07/left...

image of woman by sidewalk looking at pinhole images of the sun cast by a tree. the first shows circles, the second crescents

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Dean Baird @deanbaird.bsky.social · 07/07/2026

I do like the full commitment to the reflection. Very nice.

Dean Baird @deanbaird.bsky.social · 07/07/2026

Between Sacramento and Bozeman, my access to fireworks reflections is limited. I was in DC this one time and scoped out a potential shooting location on the far side of the Potomac. My first try at shooting fireworks (2012).

Dean Baird @deanbaird.bsky.social · 06/07/2026

In my defense, the aurora was dancing Friday night / Saturday morning. And there I was in Cherry River Fishing Access without any illegal fireworks to set off. Defocusing during the long exposure on that colorful single burst was as fancy as I could get.

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Dean Baird @deanbaird.bsky.social · 06/07/2026

Fire in the skies this past weekend.

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Dean Baird @deanbaird.bsky.social · 15/06/2026

I moved to Bozeman because I wanted to be close to Yellowstone and the Tetons. But shouldn’t I be nervous about the Yellowstone supervolcano? Isn’t it due for a super eruption? No. “Are We Doomed?” has answers. And I have questions. Supervolcano! www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Are-...

Are We Doomed? - Supervolcano!

Questions to accompany the Are We Doomed? episode, Supervolcano. This is the May 5, 2026 episode of the podcast.As of the publication of this resource, the podcast streams wherever podcasts stream. Th...

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Dean Baird @deanbaird.bsky.social · 27/05/2026

A few selections from the updates to “The Baird Gallery” at my old school.

Dean Baird @deanbaird.bsky.social · 04/05/2026

May is upon us. AP exams, rallies, and other assorted school-schedule madness can be tricky to navigate. Here are some things that might help you steer through the chaos. lessonsofphyz.blogspot.com

lessonsofphyz.blogspot.com

The Lessons of Phyz

My high school physics and science curriculum at TPT, Pearson Education, Arbor Scientific, and PhET

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Dean Baird @deanbaird.bsky.social · 27/04/2026

Watching Ancient Skies gave me a bit of nostalgia for my 1980-81 high school physics course, which followed the non-PSSC post-Sputnik physics curriculum model. Oh, and here’s PBS’s trailer for Ancient Skies. lessonsofphyz.blogspot.com/2026/04/anci...

lessonsofphyz.blogspot.com

Ancient Skies

My first course in physics was my high school Project Physics corse. Project Physics was Harvard's post-Sputnik physics curriculum. The m...

Dean Baird @deanbaird.bsky.social · 27/04/2026

In episode 3, Newton deploys universal gravitation to organize celestial mechanics. And Hubble expands the universe far beyond our galactic island. And I have questions. Ancient Skies - 3. Our Place in the Universe www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Anci...

Ancient Skies - 3. Our Place in the Universe [PBS]

Questions to accompany PBS's Ancient Skies - Episode 3. Our Place in the Universe. A cast of scientific pioneers reshape our solar system.As of the publication of this resource, the video was availabl...

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Dean Baird @deanbaird.bsky.social · 23/04/2026

Here’s the “virtual” version of the Newton’s laws demo that I wasn’t willing to do without during remote learning. I think I used aluminum and cork, but steel and wood could work, too. Lead was too smooshable. Newtonian Shot [Virtual Demonstration] www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Newt...

Newtonian Shot [Virtual Demonstration]

Two dart guns are fired toward the ground simultaneously. One fires a light dart, the other fires a heavy bullet. Which dart hits the ground first?I use this demonstration after teaching all three of ...

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Dean Baird @deanbaird.bsky.social · 23/04/2026

I was always an unapologetic fan of drilled balls. Early on, I acquired 10 sets of aluminum, brass, cork, lead, steel, and wood drilled balls. Pendulum bobs were just the start. Such utilitarian objects. A Millikan oil drop activity? Sure. Newton’s laws dart gun demo? Absolutely.

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Dean Baird @deanbaird.bsky.social · 23/04/2026

In episode 2, we rise from the mists of cultural astronomy to advances whose authors are named. Ptolemy, Copernicus, and Galileo enter the chat, and the universe gets reorganized. And I have questions. Ancient Skies - 2. Finding the Center [PBS] www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Anci...

Ancient Skies - 2. Finding the Center [PBS]

Questions to accompany PBS's Ancient Skies - Episode 2. Finding the Center. Episode two charts our efforts to give the earth shape and place in the cosmos.As of the publication of this resource, the v...

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Dean Baird @deanbaird.bsky.social · 20/04/2026

Open the Strait of Vermouth, you crazy bastards!

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Dean Baird @deanbaird.bsky.social · 20/04/2026

Somehow I missed this when it aired in 2019. But I’m on it now. @philplait.bsky.social and others recount how humans came to understand the heavens. A great story, well told. And I have questions. Ancient Skies - 1. Gods and Monsters www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Anci...

Ancient Skies - 1. Gods and Monsters [PBS]

Questions to accompany PBS's Ancient Skies - Episode 1. Gods and Monsters. Explore the earliest origins of our relationship with the skies.As of the publication of this resource, the video was availab...

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Dean Baird @deanbaird.bsky.social · 16/04/2026

I had to pin my ears back to craft this set in just few hours. And here I’m trying to live a life of retired leisure out here on the frontier. It was great fun, for the most part. If you’re wrangling taxes tonight or caught up in testing schedules and just need a moment, this might hit the spot.

Dean Baird @deanbaird.bsky.social · 16/04/2026

NOVA’s premiering its Artemis II episode while Integrity is still drying off. This is as “ripped from the headlines” as it gets for NOVA. If you want to get some current events into your curriculum, well … I have questions. Return to the Moon www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Retu...

Return to the Moon [PBS NOVA]

Questions to accompany PBS NOVA's Return to the Moon This was season 53, episode 7 of NOVA. Follow the Artemis mission to bring humanity back to the Moon for the first time since Apollo.As of the publ...

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Dean Baird @deanbaird.bsky.social · 14/04/2026

Our New World, episode 2. A Wild Revival takes us to the French Alps, the seaweed forests off Japan, and a new forests in Alaska. I have questions. Our New World - 2. A Wild Revival www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Our-... My Magic 8 ball tells me that NOVA returns tomorrow with … Artemis 2.

Our New World - 2. A Wild Revival [PBS]

Questions to accompany PBS's Our New World - Episode 2. A Wild Revival. Four people across continents face environmental change and seek coexistence with wildlife.As of the publication of this resourc...

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Dean Baird @deanbaird.bsky.social · 09/04/2026

Our New World [PBS] looks at how humans and wildlife are navigating climate change together. Wombats, tigers, and elephants are featured in episode 1. You might experience some feels. And I have questions. Our New World - 1. The Pulse of Change www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Our-...

Our New World - 1. The Pulse of Change [PBS]

Questions to accompany PBS's Our New World - Episode 1. The Pulse of Change. Four people across continents face environmental change and seek coexistence with wildlife.As of the publication of this resource, the video was available via PBS streaming. Amazon Prime, and Apple iTunes. PBS streaming lin...

Dean Baird @deanbaird.bsky.social · 02/04/2026

Achieving orbit is no mean feat. But TLI (translunar injection burn) is when astronauts put Earth in the rearview and put the pedal to the metal. Or as Smashmouth fans recall it, when they are finally “Go for the Moon.” Hey now…

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Dean Baird @deanbaird.bsky.social · 02/04/2026

On the off chance that there’s a sudden interest in crewed moon missions, For All Mankind (1989) retraces the sequence of an Apollo mission. No tech specs. The human experience. The film streams on YouTube. For free. And I have questions. For free. www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/For-...

This is a video question set to accompany the 1989 documentary, For All Mankind. This is the best take on the Apollo mission I have ever seen, and it was eventually added to the prestigious Criterion ...

For All Mankind

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Dean Baird @deanbaird.bsky.social · 08/03/2026

Marsha singing “every girl’s a woman, too” didn’t age well.

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Dean Baird @deanbaird.bsky.social · 04/03/2026

Just as Americans voted for.

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Dean Baird @deanbaird.bsky.social · 04/03/2026

They’re moving away from any attempt at hiding it anymore. Their clock is ticking; they need everyone to be inured to the rhythms of naked autocracy.

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Dean Baird @deanbaird.bsky.social · 03/03/2026

Tried this because it’s been a while since I shot a lunar. A learning experience. Hope to do better in … is it 2028?

Full moon ranging from dark orange on top rights to bright white bottom left.

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Dean Baird @deanbaird.bsky.social · 24/02/2026

Well that brings joy to my heart.

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Dean Baird @deanbaird.bsky.social · 24/02/2026

The Germans probably have a word for simultaneous delight and embarrassment. I often feel that courtesy of episodes of Nova. So it was with this therapsid-themed story. Nevertheless, I have questions. (What’s a therapsid?) Mammal Origins [PBS NOVA] www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Mamm...