Physics
grrlscientist | June 19, 2008tags: 42, Shell Theorem, Newtonian physics, theoretical physics, bad science, streaming video
This streaming video is a short presentation of a theoretical physics exercise to demonstrate Newtonian physics and the Shell Theorem [1:58].
Okayyy .. what's wrong with the er, "science" in this video?
pontiff | June 16, 2008I do believe this is the first time I've performed the paper dance on the scienceblogs incarnation of this blog. Yep, it's that time again: it's the paper dance!
"A far away light in the futuristic place we might be; It's a tiny world just big enough to support the kingdom of one knowledgeable; I feel a wave of loneliness and head back down I'm going too fast (I'm going too fast)"
arXiv:0806.2160
The Stability of Quantum Concatenated Code Hamiltonians
Authors: D. Bacon
Abstract: Protecting quantum information from the detrimental effects of decoherence and lack of precise quantum control is…
grrlscientist | June 9, 2008tags: science, physics, time-saving techniques, peeling hard-boiled eggs, streaming video
We all know that each day is filled with a variety of time-wasting activities that are necessary for us to be able to enjoy those brief, fleeting moments of freedom from such drudgery. So I thought I'd suggest something that you can do to reclaim four days of your life that would otherwise be devoted to the time-wasting activity of peeling hard-boiled eggs -- and this is all due to the wonders of SCIENCE [0:36].
Of course, this looks like so much fun that you'll probably invest those four reclaimed days…
grrlscientist | June 6, 2008tags: physics, second law of thermodynamics, unmixing a solution, streaming video
The second law of thermodynamics: the overall entropy, or disorder, of an isolated system which is not in equilibrium will increase over time, approaching a maximum value at equilibrium, or at maximum disorder.
Okay, we all know that, according to the Second Law of Thermodynamics, you cannot unmix liquids after they've been mixed, right? Okay, all you smart people, here's a streaming video for you to watch and to explain, where a mixed solution is unmixed by reversing the stirring process. [2:19].
In the…
pontiff | June 5, 2008Blessed be Mike Lazaridis:
Waterloo, Ontario, Canada, June 4, 2008 - In a new and generous act of personal philanthropy, Mike Lazaridis has provided an additional $50 million (Canadian) to Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics (PI). This private donation increases his personal contributions to $150 million in the research institute.
drorzel | June 5, 2008In the last few weeks, I've been wrapping up E&M, which has included talking about Faraday's Law and induced currents. I did the traditional demonstration using a PASCO ring launcher to demonstrate Lenz's Law, showing that the induced current flows in a direction that creates a field opposing the change in magnetic flux. The ring launcher uses an alternating current in a solenoid to shoot a metal ring a meter or so up in the air, which always gets a good reaction.
The extreme version of the same basic physics is the Meissner Effect, in which currents in a piece of superconductor…
drorzel | June 4, 2008I'm giving the last lecture of new material in my intro E&M class today, on Maxwell's equations and electromagnetic waves. In the last couple of weeks, I've been struck again by the way our trimester system (three ten-week terms, instead of two 15-week semesters) is a lousy match for the standard curricula. Or even new curricula, like the Matter and Interactions course we've started using this year.
In this case, it's not a matter of needing to rush to fit things in, though. It's a matter of peaking at the wrong time
M&I is different than the standard textbooks in a lot of respects,…
grrlscientist | June 4, 2008tags: Magnetic Movie, magnetic fields, human technology, NASA, physics, streaming video
Magnetic fields are invisible, at least usually. But scientists from NASA's Space Sciences Laboratory have made them visible as "animated photographs," using sound-controlled CGI and 3D compositing. It makes the fields, as explained by the scientists, dance in an absolutely gorgeous movie called Magnetic Movie [1:17].
A reader, Ale, has provides commentary below that will provide more information.
drorzel | June 4, 2008I've written my last lecture for the first-year E&M class, and will be giving it at 10:30 this morning. (Friday's class will be given over to exam review). The spring term, which had felt like it would stretch into July, is basically over.
Oh, and some guy won an election.
drorzel | June 3, 2008The World Science Festival happened while I was at DAMOP (I missed getting to talk to Bill Phillips, because he left shortly after his talk to go to NYC), and by all reports it was a success-- they claim 120,000 attendees on their web site, and sold more tickets than expected for several events, and favorably impressed journalists. Good news, all.
Of course, at the same time on the opposite coast, the annual Book Expo America was going on, and as Jennifer Ouellete reports, science was shut out:
Every conceivable genre was prominently represented -- sci-fi, fantasy, mystery, romance, foreign…
drorzel | May 30, 2008I spent a whole bunch of time running around between talks on Thursday, and at one point was grumbling to myself about the way the organizers had scheduled all the good stuff at one time. Only later did I realize that it really wasn't their fault-- it's all good stuff, and there are only a few sessions here and there that I have absolutely no interest in seeing.
We need more sessions with names like "Boring Inscrutable Theory II," so I don't feel like I need to be in three places at once.
Anyway, a handful of highlights from Thursday's program:
I started off at the ultracold atoms session, to…
drorzel | May 28, 2008A very quick run-down of physics topics at DAMOP, before I go to bed:
I skipped the prize session at 8am, so I started my day with Bill Phillips's talk in the recent developments in optical lattices session. Oddly, his talk really didn't have much to do with lattices, but it's always a pleasure to see Bill give a talk.
Bill was followed by Immanuel Bloch, who gave an extremely impressive talk about experiments they've done with atoms in optical lattices. This is related to, but way, way beyond the stuff I did as a post-doc. They've done some amazing things with the manipulation of quantum…
drorzel | May 28, 2008I made it to Happy Valley without incident, though it is Orange Cone Season in Pennsylvania, and I spent a lot of time dodging construction. Happily, there really wasn't anything important at the meeting last night.
So I skipped out on the welcome reception to have dinner and a few beers with Kevin and RPM and the world-famous Prof. Steve Steve. They're good guys, as stamp collectors go...
Kevin and RPM both posted pictures, but I'm too lazy to bother right now. Maybe later. I'll definitely post something about actual physics later, but for now, I need to run off to hear more talks, and look…
drorzel | May 26, 2008Most of my reaction to this weekend's Emily Gould article in the Times was "Gosh, who knew that writing for Gawker might have a corrosive effect on your personal life...," but there were some interesting bits. She did a nice job explaining how blogging can be sort of addictive, and also had some good bits on the phenomenon of blog fame:
I started seeing a therapist again, and we talked about my feelings of being inordinately scrutinized. "It's important to remember that you're not a celebrity," she told me. How could I tell her, without coming off as having delusions of grandeur, that, in a…
drorzel | May 25, 2008Every now and then, I look at the huge list of blogs and news sources in my RSS feeds, and say to myself "You really need to thin these out..." How can I make any progress, though, when there are always great new blogs being created?
The latest new blog to ctach my interest and increment my subscription total is Built On Facts by a grad student named Matt, which was linked to by Tom. It features everything from a discussion of shaky physics in the new Indiana Jones movie to discussions of the physics or marksmanship, to an entire category of worked problems, with equations and everything.
OK…
pontiff | May 22, 2008Does anyone know if any author has ever had a paper published in the entire alphabet of Physical Reviews? (A,B,C,D,E) And if not, doesn't that sound like a fun task to try to achieve. OK, perhaps "fun" is the wrong word. Even better if you could carry out the task with alphabetical order corresponding to chronological order. Even better still would be if you could carry out the task with reverse alphabetical order corresponding to chronological order.
drorzel | May 21, 2008It's a simple question:
Who do you prefer, Lorentz or Lorenz?
Chaos butterflies, or time dilation. Choose only one.
drorzel | May 16, 2008Over at Cocktail Party Physics, Jennifer Ouellette offers her Top Ten events at the upcoming World Science Festival in New York City the week after next. The full program is at the festival site, and it looks like there's even something for the stamp collectors. Probably to keep the cool physics-themed events from being overcrowded.
I would be all over this-- NYC is just a few hours away, after all-- were it not directly opposite DAMOP. Which offers its own comprehensive slate of physics programming, albeit with fewer celebrities.
If you're within range of either of these fine events, check…
grrlscientist | May 16, 2008tags: ice-nine, supercooled water, physics, chemistry, thermodynamics, streaming video
This is a fun little experiment with water that was supercooled to -21C (-6F). The supercooled water is poured into a bowl. It pours out as a liquid and turns to slush, forming ropelike peaks [1:07].
What are the physics behind how water can be supercooled without freezing into a solid? It happens like this; when water is supercooled but remains undisturbed, it does not freeze into a solid unless there is an impurity present (a rough surface, for example) for the cold water to crystallize around (a "…
drorzel | May 16, 2008We had a colloquium talk yesterday from the very energetic Jessica Clark of the American Physical Society's outreach office who talked about the many things that the APS does to bring positive physics experiences to a wide audience. It was a terrific talk, and brought to my attention a couple of programs I hadn't heard about before, aimed at introducing physics to a younger audience.
One of these, aimed at middle-school students and teachers is the "Physics Quest" puzzle activities:
PhysicsQuest is a middle school competition that consists of four physical science experiments centered on a…