# All Questions

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### Difference between spin and polarization of a photon

I understand how one associates the spin of a quantum particle, e.g. of a photon, with intrinsic angular momentum. And in electromagnetism I have always understood the polarization of an EM wave as ...
27 views

### In which direction due to a polarizing grid the photon's electric field is oriented?

After a photon passes the slit, is it's electric field oriented perpendicular or parallel to the slit and why this is so?
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### Can we solve most of the cosmological questions using the Illustris universe simulation?

The Illustris project (http://illustris-project.org) attempts to simulate the universe in its most accurate form according to their website. With the simulation, they were able to predict the neutral ...
34 views

### Quantum cloning of orthonormal states

If I understand correctly, for two orthonormal states $\left|\psi_1\right\rangle$ and $\left|\psi_2\right\rangle$ in the Hilbert space H, there must exist a unitary transformation $U$, such that: ...
2k views

### How can we take pictures of something billion of light years away?

I have had this question in my mind for a long time, I thought you guys might enlighten me easily. I am confused about some space photographs and claims like "this galaxy is 13 billions light years ...
19 views

### Conditions of friction on constant acceleration [on hold]

If a body is moving with constant acceleration, then what would the frictional force be? Zero In forward direction, In reverse direction all of above
75 views

### Why are position and velocity enough for prediction and acceleration is unnecessary?

In classical mechanics, if you take a snapshot and get the momentary positions and velocities of all particles in a system, you can derive all past and future paths of the particles. It doesn't seem ...
20 views

### Why is the Great Dark Spot so shortliving unlike the Great Red Spot?

The Great Dark Spot is an anti-cyclone in Neptune. But unlike the Great Red Spot of Jupiter which lasts for more than hundred years, the Great Dark Spot exists for only one year or so. Why is it so??
1k views

### What do units like joule * seconds imply?

I can easily understand what divisive units imply, but not what multiplicative units imply. What I mean is, when I read "$12 \:\mathrm{eggs/carton}$", I mentally convert it to, "There are 12 eggs ...
44 views

### General Relativity: impact of acceleration on time, experimental setup

In What is relativity by Jeffrey Bennett (Amazon link), the author explains how acceleration/gravity impact time and causes time dilation. For this he takes an example of an accelerating space-ship ...
1k views

### Why is the equation for friction so simple?

The general equation for the force of friction (static or kinetic) is $F_f = \mu * F_N$, where $F_f$ is the force of friction and $\mu$ is the coefficient of friction (its value is dependent upon the ...
33 views

### Why is friction independent of contact area, and why does it increase with surface smoothness? [duplicate]

Below there is a line from my book: The force of limiting friction is independent of the apparent area of contact, so long as normal reaction between two bodies in contact remain same. Why is ...
579 views

### How much heat from a fire actually warms your home?

A fire in a hearth disperses heat to, I guess, three places: the bricks of the chimney out the hearth (where the person tending the fire is standing) out the chimney, above the house How would you ...
66 views

### Is it possible to single out a proton, electron, neutron?

I've read that it's nearly impossible to take a proton from an element. But if it's "nearly" impossible then it is possible to some degree. If this has happened, what is exactly the process of taking ...
55 views

### Is placing a heater in the coldest part of a room the most efficient place to put it?

I've noticed that stores blow hot air in a "sheet" by doors and windows, which is "where cold air enters". I assume they do this because it saves money and/or keeps the store a uniform temperature. ...
109 views

### Are wave functions real physical objects? [duplicate]

Are wave functions (ex. electron waves) real physical objects or just mathematical tools?. Some researchers say that they have proof that they are real objects. Here's [the link] ...
820 views

### Why does heat lose its energy as we get further away?

Why does heat lose its energy dramatically as I move back? Say I have a fire around 0.5 meters in front of me, I can clearly feel the heat, however, as I move even very slightly back, say 1 meter ...
46 views

### Could we describe acids and bases using electromagnetism?

Why don't we use Maxwell's equations in acids and base theory? Surely the interaction between two charged species is readily described by this. The theory I have so far come across is HASB theory. ...
54 views

### How fast am I moving? [duplicate]

Given the speed of light is 299,792,458 meters per second and that it is constant through out the universe, (i.e a person who measures the speed of light while standing still will get the same result ...
37 views

### Predicting balls's movement in well due to fluid flow

I am a total newbie in fluid dynamics. In one of my experiments/open project, my experiment setup is as below: a small ball sits in a circular well (has mass density a bit heavier than water), with ...
50 views

### What topics do I need to study electromagnetism on the quantum scale? [on hold]

What topics do I need to study (in order) so that I can study electromagnetics on the quantum scale? What is the name of the discipline studying electromagnetism on the quantum scale? Do I need to ...
48 views

### How are the Lorentz force, Maxwell's third law and Faraday's law of induction clasically related?

Faraday's law of induction can be used in any situation where the magnetic flux is changing through a closed conducting loop. While giving the correct answer, it seems to me that for the following ...
83 views

### Lightning strikes causing nudity [on hold]

Klutz's Zap Science states on p. 62: Ever Had Your Sweat Explode? A few survivors of lightning strikes — after recovering consciousness — have found themselves lying on the ground, groggy, ...
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### What is a nucleon field?

A nucleon is either a proton or a neutron. A field is, as John Gribbin says, a physical quantity that has a value for each point in space and time. But what is meant by a nucleon field? Can anybody ...
16 views

### Angular velocity of disc from induced motion

I came across a question regarding linear momentum $L$ and it's conservation, however I tried and got confused. It reads: A $40kg$ girl stands on the very edge of a rotating disc of mass $50kg$ and ...
$P=E/C$ In relativistic mechanics a Photon is defined as. $P=hf/C$ Replacing "P" $mc=hf/C$ $M=h/CT$ What does it mean, did they have mass?