Fandom High School

Physics, Monday, Class #15, Period 4

Mon, 15 Dec 2008 07:39:00 GMT

Posted by: carter-i-am.livejournal.com

The class had been ~~handwavily~~ contacted to meet Sam outside for the final class, so hopefully they were appropriately dressed for the weather and the proceedings.

"Hello, everyone," Sam greeted them cheerfully from where she was standing next to a table covered with lots of pumpkins of approximately the same size and weight. "Congratulations, you've almost made it through the class. All you have to do today is explain your pumpkin chucker design, what principles of physics you relied on primarily, and then, well, chuck your pumpkin. Whomever wins gets the J,GoB pie of their choice."

She paused. "No, I'm not baking it, calm down. No reason to sabotage this." After she'd cleared her throat, she continued, "I'd also like to thank you for being such an attentive class, and a pleasure to teach. I know the material has sometimes been dense, but I'm very proud of the effort you've put in and home that, at some point, something you've learned here will be useful."

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Physics, Monday, Class #14, Period 4

Sun, 07 Dec 2008 21:32:00 GMT

Posted by: carter-i-am.livejournal.com

"Hello, everyone. Welcome back. Today we'll be learning about quantum mechanics, which refers to the study of the way in which molecules, atoms, electrons, protons, and other subatomic particles interact with each other."

She went on to explain the theory, as well as the interactions with other subjects they'd studied, as well as its practical applications.

Then, she placed a sealed box on the table. "Inside this box is a cat. This cat may be either alive or dead, or perhaps both. At what point does this cat cease to be alive? Can it be alive and dead at the same time, if we don't know what the state is?"

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Physics, Monday, Class #13, Period 4

Mon, 01 Dec 2008 13:17:00 GMT

Posted by: carter-i-am.livejournal.com

Sam was beaming as the class ~~who had been handwavily notified of the change in classroom location~~ showed up outside the flight simulator. "Hello! Today, we'll be discussion aeronautics, in particular the branch of science known as aerodynamics, or the study of the interaction between air and a solid object, hopefully creating flight.

She passed out a number of handouts, which were as usual filled with complicated mathematical formulae, and concentrating in particular on the discussion of the laws of conservation, the new vocabulary, and the different types of flows. "Today, you'll be learning that there can be a useful purpose to all this math and science. You'll be flying various American military aircraft, and you can either fly against one other person in a run, or combat situation, or you can just practice your flying, landings, or takeoffs, or just fly around and look at the ~~moddable~~ American scenery, circa 2008. If there's anyone here who has never been up in a plane before, I'd be happy to take you up, if that would make you more comfortable."

Sam rattled off the rules of using the sim next. "No eating or drinking in the room or the cockpit--if you've just eaten, no breaking the sound barrier or performing barrel rolls. If you break the rules and throw up, you get to clean it up, or deal with Professor Skywalker. Any questions?"

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Physics, Monday, Class #12, Period 4

Mon, 24 Nov 2008 07:16:00 GMT

Posted by: carter-i-am.livejournal.com

"Hey, everyone," Sam greeted them. "Since everyone's probably mentally ready for Thanksgiving and our time off, I'm going to give you a choice of activities. First, if you want to work on your final projects, there's plenty of room for that, and I'll be here ~~eventually~~ to answer any questions you may have--though I won't offer suggestions, as much as it might kill me to keep my mouth shut. The other option is to watch some episodes of Mister What, and for you to tell me of at least one thing that we've discussed and that they've used as a plot device. Also, why does or doesn't it work?"

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Physics, Monday, Class #11, Period 4

Mon, 17 Nov 2008 07:23:00 GMT

Posted by: carter-i-am.livejournal.com

"Hello, everyone. Don't forget final projects are due next week," Sam said, once the students were seated. Around the room, they might notice some pictures and video. On each desk was a fresh apple. "Today, as a treat, we'll be discussing wormholes."

No, she wasn't kidding about the treat part. Sam thought this was the best subject ever.

"Wormholes get their name from the easiest way to describe them. If a worm is traveling over the skin of an apple, then the worm could take a shortcut to the opposite side of the apple's skin by burrowing through its center, rather than traveling the entire distance around, just as a wormhole traveler could take a shortcut to the opposite side of the universe through a topologically nontrivial tunnel. Or, in other words, the shortest distance between two points - even in space and time - is a straight line, just as it is when you're working with maps or the shortest route to the corner store. On the larger intergalactic scale, however, that straight line is called a wormhole."

Sam also went on to explain, in great and extensive detail, the difference between black holes and wormholes, as well as the fact that a collapsing black hole would not cause a black hole.

"Of course, this is all purely theoretical," Sam finished, smiling slightly, "unless some of you know differently?"

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Physics, Monday, Class #10, Period 4

Mon, 10 Nov 2008 07:26:00 GMT

Posted by: carter-i-am.livejournal.com

"Afternoon, everyone," Sam greeted the students as they entered, "and please consider this your official reminder that the end of the semester is coming up, and I'll be expecting to see your pumpkin chuckers and to hear about the theory and math behind your design, unless you'd prefer not to have to defend it out loud and choose to write a paper and show me your work that way instead."

"Today, we're going to be discussing time travel. Which, considering a good number of you are from the future, may seem a bit unnecessary. As I've been reminded, however, even if you're looking at this area of physics in an 'isn't that cute,' historical way--which, by the way, I appreciate you keeping that particular sentiment to yourself--it still gives you a point of reference for why it takes the human race so long to get there."

"One of the biggest problems with time travel, of course, is the creation of paradoxes, particularly the ever popular grandfather paradox. But is it really a problem? Several physicists have theorized that time travel through a wormhole," and here she may have smiled a little, "won't lead to a paradox. Another way around the paradox is the discovery that you're not actually traveling within your own universe, but are instead within a parallel timeline, meaning that you're having an effect on someone else's universe, not your own."

"However, if you're ever in an alternate universe with another version of yourself, I can tell you now that entropic cascade failure is a very painful reality. Obviously Fandom is the exception to this rule, as it is to so many others. Anyway, I digress. Stephen Hawking has a theory that the fact that we haven't seen tourists from the future means that Fermi's paradox exists and that time travel hasn't been discovered. However, isn't it just as likely that it's used cautiously? I'd like you to discuss the implications of time travel with each other. Also, would you travel in time, if you could? Why or why not? Do you honestly think it's possible?"

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Physics, Monday, Class #9, Period 4

Mon, 03 Nov 2008 07:40:00 GMT

Posted by: carter-i-am.livejournal.com

"Hello, everyone," Sam greeted the class, who would find handouts already at their desks. "As promised, today we're going to discuss the many theories of how light works. First, there's the Indian theories, which is really the first place where we begin to see light itself made up by atoms. The Greeks had a rather unique theory, at least by our standards, that humans are able to see because of rays of light that emit from our eyes. Which, intriguing, but a bit too sci fi and comic book for me, personally."

"As if that wasn't enough, there is also optical theory, which we covered a little bit last week, particle theory, wave theory, electromagnetic theory, and quantum theory."

She went on to explain the ins and outs of each theory in extreme detail. Probably extremely extreme detail.

"Today's experiment involves light, but somewhat indirectly. I've set up a series of cameras and film for you--none of which are digital, since I want you to have fun manipulating light to create different images on the film. Develop your pictures, see what you get, and come back and report your results, okay? If you want to bring the pictures, feel free."

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Physics, Monday, Class #8, Period 4

Mon, 27 Oct 2008 07:35:00 GMT

Posted by: carter-i-am.livejournal.com

"Afternoon, everyone," Sam said from her perch on the desk. "It's good to see you all after the parental invasion this weekend. Rodney, I hope you found your sister."

"Today we'll be talking about light. The three primary properties of light are intensity, frequency or wavelength, and polarization."

"The human spectrum of visual is from red to violet, which can be seen individually when you look at white light through a prism," she explained, writing ROYGBIV on the board, near the equations, "but ultraviolet and infrared are just as important for human survival, as well as the survival of the planet. A red shift--where suddenly infrared light is visible to the human eye--is fatal after a remarkably short period of time. Not just to the humans, but to the things that humans depend on for food, such as plants and animals."

Not their shining moment of Stargate use, no.

"Light, obviously, can come from a number of different sources, although the primary source of light on this planet is obviously the sun. Light, which is thought to travel in waves, can be refracted, or bent through the use of optics. We'll get into theories of how light works next week. For now, I just want you to get used to seeing it and measuring it--there are prisms, magnifying lenses, and telescopes for you to work with, as well as different light sources, so you can see how the spectra of light differ. There are also spectrometers, so you can measure the light and try to predict its behavior, if that's your thing."

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Physics, Monday, Class #7, Period 4

Mon, 20 Oct 2008 07:31:00 GMT

Posted by: carter-i-am.livejournal.com

"Good afternoon, everyone," she greeted the class, glancing up as they entered. "I hope you all enjoyed your week off and have recovered from Homecoming sufficiently to be fully mortified when your parents show up this weekend, because yes, we live to torture you."

Sam grinned. Obviously they didn't (as far as she knew), but the timing was a bit coincidental. "In what is continuing to be an incredibly brief overview of physics, today we'll start discussing relativity. As you can see from the handouts, sometimes the umbrella of relativity also encompasses the theory of Galilean, or Newtonian Relativity, depending on who you're talking to, but in most cases, people who discuss relativity really mean either Albert Einstein's theories of special relativity or general relativity."

"So, why do we care? At least in this time period," and here, she may have smirked just a tiny bit, "we believe that relativity is the key to figuring out not just time travel, time dilations, and gravitational time delay, we also believe that it's the key to interstellar travel at faster than light speeds."

Another grin. "Trust me, this is a good thing. Plus, I have my suspicions that it's part of what makes Fandom possible."

"I realize that I've thrown a lot of material at you in a very short time, so I'll give you the rest of the period to process the information, to look through the handouts, to ask questions, and to work on your final projects if you want."

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Physics, Monday, Class #5, Period 4

Sun, 05 Oct 2008 20:19:00 GMT

Posted by: carter-i-am.livejournal.com

Anyone who was paying attention might notice that Sam looked considerably more rested and relaxed this week. They'd probably also notice a few mini pool tables set up on the desks. "Good afternoon, and welcome to what I hope will be an informative class. Today we'll be discussing Isaac Newton's laws of motion, getting ever closer to our goal of exploring relativity after midterms, which I'm sure you're all waiting for with baited breath."

She was kidding, mostly.

( And lo, there was physics )

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Physics, Monday, Class #4, Period 4

Mon, 29 Sep 2008 14:32:00 GMT

Posted by: carter-i-am.livejournal.com

As the students entered, they would probably notice that Sam was muttering under her breath as she held her cell phone to her ear and paced. After a few minutes, she closed the phone with a snap and turned to face the class. "Good afternoon. I'm sure some of you will be thrilled to know we won't be blowing anything up today. For those of you who are disappointed, well, there will be other weeks for that."

"Today we're going to talk about means of communication and how they work." Sam passed out handouts explaining the wonders that were ballpoint pens, cellular phones, universal messaging, instant messaging, telephones, e-mail, and smoke signals. "I may have forgotten some, and if I've left out your favorite, please feel free to let me know."

She paced to the front of the room and leaned against the desk, arms folded. "So, my question to you is this: If you were going to be captured or just leave after trashing someone's apartment, which do you think would be the most efficient and versatile form of communication? Or, in other words, which would you prefer to have with you to contact someone and let them know that you were, in fact, not dead? Or even that you might need help to stay that way? Why? Are there modifications you would make?"

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Physics, Monday, Class #4, Period 4

Mon, 22 Sep 2008 07:27:00 GMT

Posted by: carter-i-am.livejournal.com

The students should have ~~handwavily~~ received notice to meet in the Danger ~~Room~~ Shop this afternoon. However, if they hadn't had time to check their e-mail, they might find the yawning and exhausted-looking Sam to be more lenient than they might otherwise expect. A sign had also been posted on the classroom door.

"Hello," she greeted the students as they filed in. "We'll still be having class, but I wanted to have the protection of this room's safety protocols for the practical part of today's lesson. You'll also probably a very large number of fire extinguishers and fire-proof padding." They'd probably also notice a large number of high-powered squirt guns, some red food coloring, a bunch of crash-testesque dummies and a number of tasers. "While I wasn't here this weekend to experience the latest bout of weirdness, there's something about Fandom that requires you to think fast on your feet. Here's one way to improvise a weapon that might work. If it doesn't work, I would like you to tell me why not, using these formulas." She wrote several formulas for electric conductivity, resistance, volume, and ways to determine trajectories.

"Oh, and if you point either the stun guns or the electrified water pistols at each other, I will assign detention," she said in a voice that brooked no argument. "Even water pistols will cause a problem, since you'll then be working with electricity. That's what the dummies are for."

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Physics, Monday, Class #3, Period 4

Sun, 14 Sep 2008 22:19:00 GMT

Posted by: carter-i-am.livejournal.com

Sam was probably looking a little tired as the students entered, but that didn't stop her from smiling at them, even as she held to her coffee mug like a lifeline. "I know I promised that we'd address Einsteinian definitions of gravity, but I've decided that makes more sense to discuss when we get into relativity. Today we'll be looking at the laws of thermodynamics. Traditionally, there have been three laws, but fairly recently a fourth--or zeroeth--has been added." She wrote four equations on the board and passed out some handouts explaining the laws in more significant detail.

"So, why do we care?" She paced back and forth in front of the class, gesturing with her coffee and perhaps jostling a person or two who might be dozing. "Because it explains how heat and energy work both within a single system and between systems. They explain how one event will always have a ripple effect, even if its ultimate result is completely unpredictable."

"For the rest of class, I'd like you to work on the experiment that's detailed in your handout packets. You may work either alone or in teams of two. Please be careful using the bunsen burners and make sure to wear the safety goggles at all times. I'll expect to see your graphs and charts at the end of class. Just leave them on the desk before you go."

[ooc: OCD ~~in a second!~~ is up!]

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Physics, Monday, Class #2, Period 4

Sun, 07 Sep 2008 20:04:00 GMT

Posted by: carter-i-am.livejournal.com

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."

( It's perfectly safe. It's just technobabble. )

[ooc: OCD is up!]

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Physics, Monday, Class #1

Mon, 01 Sep 2008 00:21:00 GMT

Posted by: carter-i-am.livejournal.com

Sam had gotten to class very early that morning. On her desk were a number of different textbooks, open to different lessons, and a notebook, full of ideas for classes and lab experiments. On the front chalkboard, she'd printed her name. On the chalkboard to her left were a number of complicated formulae which had nothing to do with anything she'd be teaching her students, but she'd had an idea, and there they were.

( And lo, did Sam attract teal deer )

"Finally, as a final project, you'll be designing and building pumpkin chuckers in teams of two. Which, for those of you who are uninitiated, are like catapults or trebuchets, but with pumpkins. So, start thinking about your design ideas and who you want to pair up with, and get back to me with the pairs by next week, okay? Now. Who's first?"

[ooc: OCD ~~coming~~ is here! Have fun!]

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Physics

Fri, 16 Dec 2005 10:42:00 GMT

Posted by: equalsmcsquared.livejournal.com

*There are two portions to the physics final exam: written and experimental.*

*Again, Ms. Sidle doesn't think either is particularly difficult, especially if the student has actually been studying.*

[ooc: Same song, third verse! Respond with test and semester grade, please.]

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Physics

Fri, 09 Dec 2005 09:15:00 GMT

Posted by: equalsmcsquared.livejournal.com

I'm passing around a study guide for the final exam. That will take place next Friday here.

Today, we will be briefly discussing and performing an experiment on refraction.

Refraction produces optical illusions.

Ever reached down into the bath tub water to grab a toy and found that it was not in the position it appeared to be? What you are experiencing is the effect called refraction (the bending of a wave path, as of light or sound, at the boundary between two different mediums) . When light enters the water (or any transparent material) it slows down slightly. If the light enters the water at an angle then this change in speed causes the light beam to bend away from its original path. This is called refraction.

Refraction experiments are based on the times of arrival of the initial ground movement generated by a source recorded at a variety of distances. Later-arriving complications in the recorded ground motion are discarded. Thus, the data set derived from refraction experiments consists of a series of times versus distances. These are then interpreted in terms of the depths to subsurface interfaces and the speeds at which motion travels through the subsurface within each layer. These speeds are controlled by a set of physical constants, called elastic parameters that describe the material.

Now, please complete the experiment listed. You may leave when you are finished.

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Physics

Fri, 02 Dec 2005 09:56:00 GMT

Posted by: equalsmcsquared.livejournal.com

Hello, everyone. Feel free to help yourselves to the coffee and don't forget to sign the roll sheet.

Today, we will be having both a lecture and a lab.

Thermodynamics is the field of physics that studies the properties of systems that have a temperature and involve the flow of energy from one place to another. Find out about the laws of thermodynamics, entropy, Maxwell's Demon and more.

( Read more... )

In today's lab, I would like you to work this experiment.

Enjoy.

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Open Lab

Mon, 21 Nov 2005 15:00:00 GMT

Posted by: equalsmcsquared.livejournal.com

*If you need to make up work in any of Ms. Sidle's classes, now would be a good time.*

*She is, after all, in a frighteningly good mood.*

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Physics

Fri, 18 Nov 2005 08:49:00 GMT

Posted by: equalsmcsquared.livejournal.com

Greetings, everyone. Help yourselves to the snacks--god knows I won't eat enough of them.

There will be no class next Friday, as it falls in the Thanksgiving holidays. I know you are all crushed. And, since I am in a generous mood today, you will be taking a quiz.

Once it is completed, you may leave. *Smiles pleasantly.*

( The quiz )

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Open Lab

Wed, 16 Nov 2005 13:05:00 GMT

Posted by: equalsmcsquared.livejournal.com

*Sara is seated at her desk, grading various papers, ~~reading trashy romance novels~~, drinking coffee and finishing some research.*

*If any students need to make up assignments, now would be a very good time to do so.*

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Physics

Fri, 11 Nov 2005 09:49:00 GMT

Posted by: equalsmcsquared.livejournal.com

Good afternoon, everyone. Sodas and snacks are near the roll sheet.

Today, we will be discussing Einstein's theory of relativity.

Newton's laws of motion give us a complete description of the behavior moving objects at low speeds. The laws are different at speeds reached by the particles at SLAC.

Einstein's Special Theory of Relativity describes the motion of particles moving at close to the speed of light. In fact, it gives the correct laws of motion for any particle. This doesn't mean Newton was wrong, his equations are contained within the relativistic equations. Newton's "laws" provide a very good approximate form, valid when v is much less than c. For particles moving at slow speeds (very much less than the speed of light), the differences between Einstein's laws of motion and those derived by Newton are tiny. That's why relativity doesn't play a large role in everyday life. Einstein's theory supercedes Newton's, but Newton's theory provides a very good approximation for objects moving at everyday speeds.

Einstein's theory is now very well established as the correct description of motion of relativistic objects, that is those traveling at a significant fraction of the speed of light.

Because most of us have little experience with objects moving at speeds near the speed of light, Einstein's predictions may seem strange. However, many years of high energy physics experiments have thoroughly tested Einstein's theory and shown that it fits all results to date.

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Open Lab

Wed, 09 Nov 2005 15:34:00 GMT

Posted by: equalsmcsquared.livejournal.com

*If any Biology, Geology, or Physics students need to make up work, now is the time.*

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Physics

Fri, 04 Nov 2005 08:53:00 GMT

Posted by: equalsmcsquared.livejournal.com

Greetings, everyone. I have an appointment later today, so I am forgoing the lecture portion of today's class and only requiring you complete the following experiment.

We will use the experiment to derive the equation for time dilation. Following the steps of the derivation may also help you to understand how Einstein’s postulates lead inescapably to the conclusion that time dilation occurs.

The experiment uses a light-based clock mounted on a high-speed skateboard. Ordinary clocks use periodic mechanical or electric processes, such as the oscillation of a pendulum or a timing circuit, to establish a unit of time. A light clock uses the amount of time it takes a pulse of light to travel a particular distance. The light clock is convenient to use in this scenario, but any clock would record the same result.

A light pulse is emitted from the base of the clock. The pulse reflects off the top of the clock and returns to the bottom. The clock measures time by using the relationship of time to distance and speed. The elapsed time for the up-and-down journey equals the distance the light pulse travels, divided by the speed of light.

In our experiment, let’s consider one “tick” of the clock. The light rises from the bottom of the clock, reflects off the top, and returns to the bottom. The professor, who is also on the skateboard, sees the light pulse moving straight up and down, and he measures the distance it travels as being twice the height of the clock . . .

Oh, and Hank? I apologize for leaving without answering your question yesterday. Your paper was more than acceptable. *smiles*

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Physics

Fri, 28 Oct 2005 10:06:00 GMT

Posted by: equalsmcsquared.livejournal.com

I trust everyone remembered to write the papers I assigned. Please stack them next to the roll sheet and feel free to help yourselves to the coffee and snacks.

Today, we will be reviewing the laws of physics and how they are correlated when solving physical equations.

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