Sixty Symbols

I went to a Physics course in Nottingham in October but when I was tidying up I found my notes in which I wrote down that I 'Should YouTube Sixty Symbols' so I followed the instructions of my past self and I found amazingness! Total Physics perfection for about half an hour before I had to return to my original task of tidying my room. But not before subscribing and promising to watch at least some of the other videos. It's really informative accessible and entertaining, plus it stars my favourite, most charismatic professor from the course - Professor Moriarty! My favourite video however was one about de Broglie wavelengths.

Solution!

I will never ever laugh at anyone using the student room after an exam ever again!

My teacher didn't get back to me and I had no sudden moment of enlightenment so I thought I would just have to cope with my frustrations. Then today I just thought I would check and see if anyone has started a thread yet and they had! With model answers! Totally perfect!! But I didn't let myself look at any other answers, that would just frustrate me I think! Here is their solution to the question I got stuck on:

So basically the theorem is that a tangent is perpendicular to the radius of the circle (which I knew!!) which creates a right angled triangle with an angle that is half the angle at the centre of the sector. The height (Hypotenuse) is the radius of the sector (in this case 6) minus the radius that we are trying to calculate. Using sine and a bit of rearrangement you get an answer!

Ironically, as a last resort strategy in the exam I said that the radius was a third of the radius of the sector, I wonder if it is just a coincidence that this also gives you a value of 2 or it actually works every time? I wouldn't get method marks though..

So I suppose it was quite simple in the end... I'm so happy just to know now!

Frustrated! Help please?

So today I sat an exam for one of my maths modules and I think it went well except for one question. One question that nobody I have spoken to could do and even now with google at hand I still cannot do! I assumed there must be some kind of theorem for this but if there is I can't find it. I usually laugh at people who use the student room after an exam because it doesn't help anyone - the exam is over. But I decided that the frustration of not knowing the answer was bigger than the frustration of knowing I could have known the answer this time! But I still can't find the answer!?

I know nobody reads this but it would be amazing if anybody could find the answer? I'm just about to email my teacher so you can race her!

So the radius of the sector was 6cm and the angle was in radians. We had to find the radius of the circle. I tried everything I can think of including drawing out a rough sketch of a complete circle with this pattern repeated 6 times, trying to use congruent triangles and drawing in a new diameter from the centre of the sector downwards... Is it to do with tangents? Or a theorem? Help?

I'm Awesome

I played around with my camera and paint and word processing (because I'm so sophisticated with my software!) today and made this as a profile picture (decided I needed a real one!) and I can honestly say I have never felt quite this awesome before! So I wanted to post it so that I could be totally sure that you see it!

The Big Day

So today was the first module for my AS Physics. It was so scary! I was getting really nervous before we started which was weird for me because although I'm usually a bit apprehensive I usually manage to calm myself down. Even thinking in terms of the universe didn't help!

The exam paper was soaking from bitter tears of regret! Just kidding, they were wet due to sweat pouring off my forehead due to working so hard on my answers! Just kidding, there was a slight accident with my water... But really it could have been any of those! I'm not sure if it is the emotional energy of being stressed or if I was running on adrenaline for revision but I am so exhausted now! Which is really bad considering I have 4 exams left this week..

I thought of a reason not to like Physics - if you like Physics and you tell everyone about how much you like it and how important it is to you then it is going to be really hard to hide your disappointment from them when you do badly on results day.

I hope I did well...

Trip into Space

I had the coolest Physics dream last night! I just hopped into a bubble (for just £360!) and suddenly I was in space! Weightless and surrounded by blackness, I was looking down on the Earth. It was a really vivid kind of dream where the colours were extra bright , beautiful swirls of emerald and azure. I could really feel myself floating! Interestingly I didn't have any trouble breathing but I did feel very sick and dizzy - I'm clearly not built for space travel...

Science Apps

So I downloaded some free sciency applications for my Ipod touch and I thought I might do a little review for some of them!

I have had the 'How Stuff Works' app for a while now and I literally cannot express my love of this website and app enough! Anyone who ever has to write a science essay or just casually wonders about things needs this app! It is so much easier to get a straight answer from this rather than trawling through countless websites from Google.

Today I downloaded the NASA app and it is packed full of great stuff! I'm sure that one day this will be an invaluable resource for some kind of project but that is all I would recommend it for - use it when you need it, there is too much for just casually looking through! I was intrigued by the sighting opportunities section though! However it turns out that I will have to be getting up about 3-4am for any actual sightings of a shuttle or the international space station!

I also downloaded the Science Glossary @Visionlearning and it has a random option in which it gives you a random science word from its dictionary and the definition. For example I have now learnt that Nucleotides are the building blocks of DNA made of a nitrogen base, a 5-carbon sugar and one or more phosphate groups.  However this might be of a more productive use when completing glossaries for next years modules.

The final one for today was one called Space Images which is REALLY cool! My favourite so far is this one of Andromeda:

If you have any App recomendations that would be really cool!

Star Formation

In an attempt to consolidate my revision I will now describe the formation of a star (possibly my favourite part of this unit at the moment) without looking - corrections I make after will be made in red.... Here I go!

Stellar Nursery in the Rosette Nebula

So we start off with a stellar nebula which is a dense cloud of gas. The gas particles are attracted by gravitational forces. As they accelerate towards each other they collide and the temperature rises. The gases cluster and fragment. This is a Protostar

Eventually the cluster and fragmentation is enough for the ignition temperature to be reached and fusion can begin. If this is never reached then it is just a protostar.

The Structure of the Sun

In the main sequence a star has a core in which fusion of Hydrogen takes place (proton proton chain), a radiation layer in which x-rays and gamma rays carry energy, followed by a convection zone where plasma something something carries energy to the surface. The bigger a star is the more power it generates and the quicker it burns out.

From now on larger mass stars and slightly smaller stars like our Sun have different life cycles. I will do the smaller star life cycle first (although technically you might argue it isn't a cycle at all...)

Eventually the star will run out of Hydrogen and fusion will stop slow down. Without energy being produced, the core contracts. Now pressure in the core is more dense has increased and it's temperature has risen enough for the fusion of Helium which then causes the core to expand again creating a Red Giant.

Ancient White Dwarf Stars
in the Milky Way 

something something The Helium fusion causes larger elements but the temperatures are not high enough for these to fuse so the star collapses to form a White Dwarf

Fusion no longer takes place but it is still dectable visible at optical wavelengths for 10 to the power of 9 years, this is called a Black something Dwarf

So a larger star will form a Giant Red Super Giant (that name must be totally wrong.. It was!) which is bigger than a normal Red Giant.

Once the Helium runs out the core will collapse and the temperatures will become high enough to fuse Silicon to form Iron. The core will become too heavy to support itself and here is where something really cool happens. The core contracts so it is really really dense and then the rest of the star collapses in extremely fast. It rushes in and rebounds off of the dense core creating temperatures high enough to fuse very large elements and make elements such as gold. There is a supernova shock wave which ejects 95% of the mass. This is a supernova type two  (I have no idea what a type one is?! oh there are actually 3 types of type 1, type 1a, 1b and 1c) and as Brian would say 'it is the brightest event in the cosmos' (he likes using that word but I don't actually know exactly what it means? It means the universe!)

Pulsar Animation

What is left is an extremely dense neutron star made up of protons and electrons (rather ironically not neutrons??) Which emits radiation form its magnetic poles and if the neutron star spins it is called a pulsar which creates a lighthouse effect so our detects receive signals on and off depending on when a pole is facing us.

After time the neutron star collapses into and the continued collapse of matter a black hole is formed which is a singularity of infinite density (which is a concept I REALLY struggle with even if I do try to think of it in terms of marshmallows...). The exit velocity is the same or larger than the speed of light and since nothing can travel faster than the speed of light nothing can escape. The star is surrounded by an event horizon beyond which we cannot see anything.

And that is everything I know! After seeing a few science blogs over the last couple of days I feel slightly embarrassed by my lack of knowledge and depth. I know there must be a whole lot more - I look forward to learning it one day! I got all of my pictures from the NASA website.

Amazing Website

I found this website on someone elses blog but I'm still allowed to talk about it if I link them right?

So this is the most amazing website! They have literally listed every number from 0-9999 and said what is special about each. As someone who as a child in moments of boredom attempted to write out as many numbers as possible I realise how much time this list must have taken (I never got so far as 9999!). I'm pretty sure Pythagoras would have been extremely proud!

So I haven't explored this page nearly enough (I think it would take years!) but so far I have already learnt what a Kaprekar number is. It is when you square a number and split the result into two numbers, add them and you get your original number - for example:

9 sqaured = 81                             8 + 1 = 9

9999 sqaured = 999800001        9998 + 00001 = 9999

Pretty cool right?!

The Wait Is Over!

They arrived!! I ordered a free set of human genome magnets from the open university a while back and today they finally arrived! I may have written a post a little while ago about how frustrating my wait was... There was a pile of post this morning and I just knew they would be there! Granted I have had the some feeling every day for the last 3 weeks or so but this time I was right!! So shockingly, it wasn't a conspiracy after all!

It was really fun pairing them up and putting them in size order - I know that sounds really strange but maybe it was because I had waited so long or because compared to revision everything is 10 times more fun or maybe because I've pretty much always enjoyed ordering things? It was so great it didn't even seem like biology! Oh wait, am I supposed to be nice about biology now? Oh, that's going to be hard... Just kidding! Kind of...

So next time my parents moan at me for not liking lemon and mushroom soup or risotto with olives as big as your face (maybe slightly exaggerated...) I can say 'it's not my fault, it's my chromozome 1...' (am I allowed to say that?! I have no idea...)

Ps. The spare Y chromosome is holding up the paper explanations of what each chromosome is, don't worry!

Close your eyes!!

Okay so I spent some time today redesigning my blog, mostly to postpone maths revision without feeling guilty for wasting time and also partly because I'm pretty proud of my blog and I wanted it to look its best and suddenly the grass seemed kind of 'meh'. So I made a few alterations, was totally pleased with the outcome and then I look at it on my iPod - it looks awful!! Honestly awful... So annoying! What should I do? I can't change back to the grass after publically criticising it! I just hope no one uses a mobile device...

Reason To Like Physics Number Five

Physics is the future.

As we develop technologies further, our capacity of knowledge grows. This means particle accelerators become more advance, we can see further and clearer into the universe and you know what that means - things get even more exciting!

As we rely on technologies more, it will need to be improved - storing, processing and sending information, renewable energy sources and things we can't even begin to imagine yet.

The more we know, new questions arise, there's more to find. The adventure never ends, (except for Indiana Jones, the adventure should just have ended after the third film...) it only gets deeper and more complex.

In the future we won't get a choice of if we like Physics or not, it will be so much a part of our life it will be natural, like reading. Shocking discoveries of today become the doodled over textbooks of bored school children in the future just take the splitting of the atom for example - somehow, to me Bohr's model of the atom seems the most natural thing in the world.

Reason to like Physics Number Four

Wow, this was supposed to be a series I had going on all the time, how have I only done four and more importantly, why has it taken me so long to do the most obvious one?

It is just amazing! Pure beautiful brilliance! So brilliant it is almost impossible but of course it decides what is possible so it is possible. So, light is behaves as a wave and a particle? Most would say (myself included) that's not possible, how can it be both. And yet Physics (or rather Physicists) say it is so it is!

Imagine the smallest thing you can. There is something smaller and then something smaller and the there are characteristics of these smallest things that define possibilities.

How could anyone not be excited by Phyiscs? Okay, forget particle physics for a second, I feel like I'm always talking about that. How about electricity, something so ordinary it only occured to me how brilliant it really is the other day. I mean electrons carry energy around a circuit?! Electrons, a fundamental particle (couldn't help myself!), with enough energy to power my computer, light up Time Square and keep a person alive on life support. That is pretty amazing... and it is limitless!

Calculator drama continues

Do you remember when I had to buy a new calculator? Well I had this whole moral dilemma because I needed a fancy calculator with a multilog button but I loved my old calculator so much. It was crazy but I couldn't just give upon her, not after 5 years! In the end I caved in and bought a new calculator.

At first I was sceptical, it was too shiny, it demanded extra bracket use, wrote out standard form in full and insisted on presenting my answers in fractions! And then I discovered a repeat button, fell in love with fractions and when we used radons - it put my answers in term of pi! Our relationship grew until the point that I literally struggled to survive a day when I left her at home.

And then she left me. No goodbye, no warning, not even a clue to where she might be! She left me for another.. I tried looking for her but she clearly doesn't want to be found...

So now I'm back to using my old calculator.. Its awful! I can't help but make constant comparisons... And the worse thing is that I have to go through the whole emotional rollercoaster of buying a new calculator for my exam all over again because I literally have no idea how to cope without a multilog button anymore! I feel guilty of course, I've treated my old calculator so badly and yet, she's still here. Shes's here for my exams when I need her the most and yet here I am about to replace her, again...

Waiting Waiting

You may remember I wrote this post years ago.

So I'm still waiting for my Human Genomes? Where are they?! I ordered twice just incase I did it wrong the first time. I sent the link to a friend, she ordered them maybe an hour after me and she got hers after a couple of days?!

Maybe they found out that I occasionally enter Physics vs Biology debates, and may possibly have developed arguments outlining the loserness of Biology in the face of sheer awesome Physics and they think that I don't deserve them?

I should probably have given up hope on them ever arriving but still every time my parents say, 'something came for you' I feel my hopes soar only to be faced with the bitter dissappiontment of yet another university prospectus to add to my pile...

You want to know what makes it even worse? My friend made this post saying how great they were! I'm so jelous!

I may even have resorted to singing along to 'Mr. Postman' by the Carpenters and changing the lyrics to 'Please, Mr Postman, look and see, if theres human genomes in your bag for me. oh yeaaaaa'. I am a bad singer. Please arrive soon - my families ears are at stake here!

Ahhhh Revision

Can I tell you a secret? I'm actually starting to enjoy Physics revision! And I never thought I would say that!!

I think it's partly because I've reached the point where my hard work seems to be helping and I am actually improving. Of course it is also because it means I get to spend extra time on my favourite topics, such as star formation and particle Physics (it's pretty good once you stop fighting against it!)

I changed my password on facebook to the star classification of 'OBAFGKM' so that I would learn the order and it definitely worked! (I've changed it back now before you try and hack my account!) Then I found the acronym of 'Oh Be A Fine Guy, Kiss Me' (totally a physics chat up line right there!) on wikipedia so now I have two methods - if I forget I will never forgive myself!

I've made a few posters for my wall for some visual stuff which look pretty boring but I'm pretty proud of them actually!

I've nearly finished making my notes on the computer, I just have to finish off the wave section.

I've got 2 A's in practise tests so far! I'm hoping this success rate will increase in the next week before the exam!

I also set this as my laptop wall paper not that I spend a long time staring mindlessly at my computer screen but I'm trusting in Karma and Tescos - 'every little helps'?!

So overall - I'm a little more hopeful for this exam? Not overly confident but not waking up in the middle of the night scared with a sore throat due to drowning in fundamental particles either, so a healthy balance?

I'm back! Oh, you didn't even notice I was gone? Oh...

I haven't written a blog post in so long! Well obviously not that long in terms of the universe but pretty long in terms of eating rainbow drops and learning the electromagnetic spectrum (which in fact takes me a lot longer than you would expect!) It's because of exams not just because precipitation candy. Revision has driven me a little mad...
I find myself thinking of things in terms of the universe a lot recently which should probably be a cause for concern but I think it helps calm my nerves for exams so I'm not too worried yet! I mean we are so small and young, in comparison to a Quasar for example (which is Quasi Stellar Radiation <-- see Dad, I'm revising not wasting time!) and yet so much is going on inside of us (exchange particles, energy transformations let alone all the stupid biology stuff!). Exams are very small in terms of the universe. Its easier to see them that way than in a way relative to university and jobs and dream lifes' and future selfs'.

Obviously that doesn't mean I'm not revising! It's hard to maintain such a high level of concentration though, maybe I shouldn't stop writing posts for too long. Maybe... But for now maybe I should go do a practise paper for my statistics module!

On the other hand I haven't made a post in over 2 weeks and suddenly I have a load of page views from Ukraine! Is this as cool as it currently seems to me or is revision even more boring than I first thought?! It is pretty cool I think :) Hi!

Practise makes Perfect...

Today I did a practise paper at home under test conditions and it wasn't totally awful! Which was a pleasant, welcome surprise!

Maybe we took the test conditions a little far: hiding notes, turning off electronic communication devices, using a pen, clean copy of data sheets, my Brian book on the desk for good luck etc. I even considered the offer of my father as an invigilator but realised that might be a little too extreme! But I wanted to do it right..

It's clear that there are still several areas for improvement but so far as 'first mock papers ever' go, it was okay! When we mark it I'll probably get a D now... I hope not! I wonder if Brian hated revision?


Oh no, I didn't remove my calculator lid :0

Cans of Density

I have been interested to see if this experiment would work for a while but no one in my house drinks coke, actually we hardly ever drink fizz but on Friday I had a group of friends over to watch the Royal Wedding (it was sooooo lovely!) and we stocked up! I needed a can of diet coke and a can of normal coke, I bought both so it was the perfect opportunity!! Except I was so busy hanging bunting and licking the bowl after my Dad iced the cupcakes cleaning that I forgot about the experiment and my friends drank all the normal coke! So I made a few alterations to the experiment...
The theory is that a can of fizzy drink that has more sugar in it will sink because it is more dense than the water and one without sugar will float. This did actually happen! The diet coke apparently has no sugar so it floated and the can of Aranciata had 30.9g of sugar so it sank!

So the experiment worked which is actually just really lucky because this wasn't exactly a fair test. There is a whole list of different ingredients and the cans themselves could weigh differently but  the difference in flotation ability is remarkable different so I'm counting it was a total success?