All Questions

211 views

What is planetary surface temperature given constant sub-surface temperature?

If a planet of radius $R_1$ has a constant sub-surface temperature $T_0$ at $R_0<R_1$, what is the long-term equilibrium surface temperature $T_1$? Say we assume constant thermal diffusivity of ...
211 views

Why do regular lattice elements heat up faster?

For example iron. A metal spoon heats up much quicker than a wooden/plastic one. Why?
744 views

Tricky spring on a surface question

I have this relative simple-looking question that I haven't been able to solve for hours now, it's one of those questions that just drive you nuts if you don't know how to do it. This is the scenario: ...
763 views

Why do leptons and quarks mix?

Is the fact that weak eigenstates are not mass eigenstates completely arbitrary? Or is there a deeper reason for the existence of the PMNS and CKM matrices?
21k views

What Is Energy? Where did it come from?

The simplistic undergrad explanation aside. I've never really understood what energy really is. I've been told that it's something when converted from one kind of something to another kind does some ...
22k views

How exactly does curved space-time describe the force of gravity?

I understand that people explain (in layman's terms at least) that the presence of mass "warps" space-time geometry, and this causes gravity. I have also of course heard the analogy of a blanket or ...