Fandom High School

"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?"

"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?"

"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?"

"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."

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 )

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."

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!]