Fresno State professor has 2M Instagram followers. His content? 1,700 science toys
Every room in Ray Hall’s home features some kind of science toy.
Some of the Fresno State physics professor’s vast array of toys are simple, like tippy tops that, when spun, suddenly flip to spin on their narrow stems. Others are more complex, like Tesla coils that generate lightning-like electrical currents.
Hall’s vast array of toys aren’t only used in the classroom — they’re the star attraction of one of Instagram’s most popular science accounts.
In his account @physicsfun, Hall shares demonstrations of these toys and explains the physics behind them to an audience of over 2 million followers.
“My goal is to get these toys into the hands of people because it’s one thing to watch me manipulate them. But if they’re excited enough to buy it and show it to their kids, show it to their friends. That’s when the joy of physics starts to spread,” Hall said.
Hall has over 1,700 physics toys. Some are less than $10 and others are worth several hundred dollars.
Each of Hall’s Instagram videos includes a caption linking to sources for further information. The videos follow a consistent formula: they’re short and simple, with the toy clearly taking center stage. They demonstrate concepts like chaos theory, gyroscopic stability and magnetic levitation.
“Almost all of my Instagram videos, especially the ones I’m most proud of, make people go, ‘What? That’s how it works?’” Hall said. “They get people more invested in science.”
Hall also has a YouTube channel with 610,000 followers that he monetizes as well as a Facebook page with 731,000 followers.
“Everything I try to show on Instagram has that little element of surprise like you weren’t expecting for that to necessarily happen,” Hall said. “I also try to make my videos so that they’re not overproduced. It’s always my hands and I don’t really talk to the camera.
Hall first decided to share his toys on Instagram in 2015 after his stepdaughter posted a video of one of his tippy tops and it received a lot of likes from her high school friends. But his Instagram account only started growing significantly after his videos went viral on Reddit from 2016 to 2017. His following grew from 6,000 followers to 20,000 in three days. He reached 1 million followers by 2017.
“The biggest key to success on Instagram is continuity and that means having a daily post,” he said. “YouTube is a different beast. I have someone who mashes up my videos and posts them for me because I just don’t have the time.”
Hall added that what motivates him to keep making videos is to keep trying to get more people curious about the world around them.
“It’s more so a cheerleading to get them to think more deeply and go pursue further content,” he said.
Hall’s interest in physics dates back to his childhood. He grew up watching science documentaries and visiting museums like the Exploratorium in San Francisco. He recalls spending time with his father who worked for the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power and loved being in his tool shed.
“My dad was a jack of all trades, his garage was full of tools and he was always fixing stuff. I would hang around with him and he would explain to me how things worked,” Hall said. “And physics I think is kind of the ultimate ‘how do things work’, so it appealed to me.”
A first-generation college student, Hall studied physics at Fresno State, earning his bachelor’s degree in 1988 and his doctorate from UC Riverside in 1994. His research focused on high energy particle physics. It was around that time that he came across some physics toys at a shop in Occidental and started collecting them.
“Back when I was a grad student, I did have some teaching responsibilities,” Hall said. “So it hit me when I was at that shop that sold kites and other toys that I could really teach physics with them.”
After grad school, Hall got a job at Fresno State and has been a physics professor at the university since 1999. He teaches physics along with critical thinking classes for students who aren’t planning to pursue careers as scientists.
“My passion now is trying to convince people that science is a lot more interesting than pseudo science. There’s a lot of awful belief in things, like that the Earth is flat, and people that take it seriously. That concerns me,” he said. “It seems like there’s a fundamental misunderstanding on what science is trying to do.”
As for the future of his social media content, Hall said he may explore new formats — possibly videos where he speaks directly to the camera. He also plans to keep searching for new physics toys.
“I’m taking everything one day at a time and I’m not looking to stop,” he said.
This story was originally published June 7, 2025 at 10:00 AM.
