http://carter-i-am.livejournal.com/ ([identity profile] carter-i-am.livejournal.com) wrote in [community profile] fandomhigh2008-09-07 08:04 pm
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Physics, Monday, Class #2, Period 4

Sam was smiling as the students wandered, in, once again nursing a large cup of coffee. "First, I'd like to welcome you all back to class. For those of you who aren't fulfilled with only one physics class a week, I'd like to announce that there's a science lab that will be open once a week for anything you'd like to do, science-wise, barring intentional explosions or things that would be more appropriately conducted in the Danger Room Shop. This will probably be on Saturdays. It's a good place to work on and test your pumpkin chuckers before the final exam. Speaking of which, I'll need your pairings at the end of class, please."

"We'll start with the basics. Geophysics today and next week, Thermodynamics to round out the month," she said. "As we started talking about Sir Isaac Newton last week, I figured we'd begin with his definition for gravity first, then move on to the Einsteinian next week."

She wrote the equation for gravitation on the board, including writing out what each constant meant. "Force equals mass times the gravitational constant, which means that the gravitational force equals the mass of the object times 9.8 meters per second squared, at least on Earth. On smaller planets or places like the moon, the gravitational pull on the same size body will be less than it is on Earth, which is less than it is on a planet the size of Jupiter."

"Why is this important? Well, gravity keeps the universe from falling apart--it keeps you on this planet, it keeps the planets in orbit around the sun, and it keeps satellites from falling out of orbit around their planets. It's also responsible for things like the tides. Basically? It keeps you from drifting out into the open void of space, which is generally considered a good thing. For the less graceful among us, it's why we own things like brooms and mops and dustpans."

"And now that you've sat through the boring parts," she grinned, "I'll let you try gravity in action. There are raw eggs over on the table--and yes, they're fresh--and fully moddable packaging materials are next to them. Try to make a protective covering that will keep your eggs safe, and then we'll drop them to see whose egg survives the trip."

[ooc: OCD is up!]