A Ripple Effect

Jason stood at the front of his Physics 101 classroom, the kinetic energy slide glowing faintly on the projector screen behind him. The morning sunlight filtered through the windows, but the atmosphere inside felt heavy. Half the students were barely paying attention, their eyes glued to their phones or doodling in their notebooks.

"A pop quiz for you," Jason said, clapping his hands to draw focus. He picked up a tennis ball from his desk and held it aloft. "If I drop this ball, what happens to its potential energy?"

A few students glanced up. One hesitantly mumbled, "It, uh, turns into kinetic energy?"

Jason nodded, tossing the ball into the air and catching it. "Exactly. Energy doesn't disappear—it changes forms. Kinetic energy, sound energy, maybe even a little heat. Physics is everywhere, folks. It's in this ball, your car, even your phone."

A student in the back snorted. "Yeah, but phones are cooler than tennis balls."

The class chuckled, and Jason smiled faintly. "Fair point. So let's talk about your phone. Ever wonder why it heats up when you stream TikToks for hours?"

This got a few chuckles, and a couple of students looked slightly more engaged. Jason took a deep breath. It wasn't much, but it was something.

After class, Jason was gathering his notes when Emily, the same student who had approached him earlier, hovered near his desk.

"Professor Welt?" she said tentatively.

Jason looked up. "What's up, Emily?"

She hesitated, holding up her phone. His latest TikTok video was paused on the screen, the spiral pattern prominently displayed. "Your new video—it's amazing. A lot of us are talking about it."

Jason raised an eyebrow. "A lot of you?"

Emily nodded. "Yeah! People in class, online... it's everywhere. My friend's cousin even set up a vibration experiment in their garage to try it out."

Jason blinked. "People are replicating it?"

"Totally. And they're getting results, too. Different frequencies, different shapes—it's wild. Some of them think it's connected to ancient symbols. My friend said the spiral looks like something from her mythology class."

Jason stared at her, the weight of her words settling in. The thought of people across the country—or even the world—joining in on his experiment was both thrilling and daunting. He had sparked something bigger than himself, and now it was spreading.

The excitement from Emily's words faded quickly when Jason returned to his office. The email from Dr. Emery loomed large in his mind, a constant reminder of the precarious balance he was trying to maintain. His experiments and videos had lit a fire, but that fire was threatening to burn away the foundation of his career.

Jason sat at his desk, staring at the glass of water still sitting on the vibration device. His phone buzzed with another notification from his latest video. He picked it up, scrolling through the comments.

"This pattern looks like Fibonacci spirals. Nature's code?"

"Dude, I recreated your experiment and got something wild! Posting soon!"

"You're doing amazing work, Professor. Don't stop!"

Jason set the phone down, exhaling deeply. He was torn between the thrill of discovery and the fear of losing everything he'd worked for. Was it worth risking his position at the university to keep going?

He rubbed his temples, his thoughts swirling. "What would you even do if you left?" he muttered to himself. "Become a full-time TikToker?"

The idea sounded absurd—but also strangely appealing.

Jason knew he couldn't afford to stay stuck in indecision. He needed to push forward, but he also needed a plan. He opened his laptop and began typing, drafting a new experiment outline. If he was going to keep this momentum alive, he had to do it right.

He jotted down a list of frequencies to test, drawing from the comments and suggestions he'd received. The Fibonacci spiral had opened a door, and now he wanted to see what other connections the water patterns might reveal.

Just as he was about to start the experiment, his phone buzzed with another email. It was from Dr. Emery.

"Jason, this is your final warning. If I see another one of these videos, we will need to discuss your future at this institution."

Jason stared at the words, his pulse quickening. The ultimatum was clear: stop the experiments, or leave the university. But as he looked back at his setup—the vibration device, the glass of water, the patterns waiting to be discovered—he knew his decision.

He picked up his phone, opened TikTok, and hit record.

Jason's voice was steady as he spoke to the camera. "Alright, everyone. Tonight, we're taking this experiment to the next level. I've been testing new frequencies and seeing how the patterns evolve. And let me tell you—what I've found so far is... extraordinary."

He turned the camera to the vibration device, the glass of water shimmering under the desk lamp. He adjusted the frequency to 600 Hz, and the spiral pattern began to emerge again, sharper and more defined than before.

"This," Jason said, pointing to the water, "isn't just a random shape. It's a Fibonacci spiral—a pattern that shows up everywhere in nature, from seashells to galaxies. But why is it here, in water? What's it trying to tell us?"

He paused, letting the question linger before turning back to the camera. "I don't know the answers yet. But together, we're going to find out."

Jason ended the video, his heart pounding. He uploaded it with a caption that felt both defiant and hopeful:

"Nature speaks through patterns. Let's listen."