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Sanctuary’s science, spin and songs
by
Bryan Sanctuary
May 4, 2011
Published by Bryan at May 4, 2011
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Let us suppose that you read somewhere that perfect pancakes should have a density of 0.7 g ml-1. How could you ensure that you cook the pancakes so that they come out with that density?
April 25, 2011
Published by Bryan at April 25, 2011
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The skin of the Earth rearranges in a cataclysmic event. As the Earth’s crust trusts and turns, tsunamis slosh around the globe and volcanic activity obliterates the sun causing rapid cooling. Such an event can happen over the period of a few days, as evidenced by the fast freezing of animals found with their tropical diet still intact in their bellies. Many species become extinct, and those pockets of human’s that do survive are thrown back to the Stone Age.
April 18, 2011
Published by Bryan at April 18, 2011
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What do hot chickens, pH of blood, bubbly drinks, coral reefs, and thermostating the Earth have in common? They all make use of one of the most basic processes in the Physical Chemistry: the equilibrium between carbon dioxide and carbonic acid.
April 16, 2011
Published by Bryan at April 16, 2011
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A song by Flanders and Swan recorded many years ago that explains the laws of thermodynamics very clearly
March 30, 2011
Published by Bryan at March 30, 2011
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In this third part on nuclear radiation I want to mention some of the biological effects. Although many agree that no level of radiation is safe, it really comes down to a matter of chance. Since negative effects of radiation increase with increased exposure, we should do what we can to keep radiation around us to a minimum.
March 26, 2011
Published by Bryan at March 26, 2011
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The fission reactor uses a controlled nuclear fission process to produce thermal energy, which is then converted into electricity by boiling water. With the exception of the reactor core, a nuclear power plant is similar to any other power plant that relies on thermal energy. The difference is the means by which the thermal energy is produced.
Nuclear fuel is most commonly composed of compounds containing Uranium 235 which makes up less than 1% or uranium ore in natural abundance. Most Uranium is U -238 and we have seen in part 1 that this is radioactive and decays primarily by alpha emission.
March 25, 2011
Published by Bryan at March 25, 2011
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In this part I will talk a bit about the types of radiation. In part 2, I will explain how a reactor works, and finally in part 3, discuss some of the effects of radiation on humans.
March 9, 2011
Published by Bryan at March 9, 2011
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n 1887 J.J. Thomson discovery of the electron was a significant step that led to a much deeper understanding of the microscopic properties of Nature. In this entry, I will discuss the famous Millikan Oil drop experiment which was done in 1909.
But recall that in his characterization of the properties of the electron he could only determine the charge to mass ratio, given by -1.76 times ten to the 11th Coulombs per kilogram. Was this ratio a result of two big values or two small values?
Robert Millikan was able to separate the ratio in order to show that the ratio was that of two small numbers and in this way he was able to extract the elementary charge and the electron mass. Comparing the electron mass to that of the lightest element, Hydrogen, it is found that the mass of an electron is 1800 times smaller. Indeed at that time this was the smallest particle known.
February 17, 2011
Published by Bryan at February 17, 2011
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In this entry I will present the evidence that shows that Bell’s inequalities have no consequences for understanding quantum vs. classical correlations. I will also show that spin is a two dimensional anyon. After a summary, two recent proofs are presented that show BELL’S INEQUALITIES are incorrect due to an over simplistic treatment of spin by Bell. Finally I relate these approaches to my sub-quantum 2D spins which are identified as anyons.
February 14, 2011
Published by Bryan at February 14, 2011
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Discussion of the discovery of the electron by J. J. Thomson in 1897 using a cathode ray tube. He was able to obtain the charge to mass ratio, but not the actual mass or charge. Later Millikan was able to separate the two. Indeed Thomson found a new state of matter which laid the foundations for quantum mechanics and a huge range of technologies
September 4, 2010
Published by Bryan at September 4, 2010
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It is important to be able to use mathematics, which is the logic of the LHS of the brain, to visualize what is going on, using the RHS of the brain. The two must be consistent. Heisenberg said that we observe our natural surroundings and intuitively develop a visualization of what is going on. We do not need a mathematical description macroscopically, unless we need precision, and Classical Mechanics works extremely well.
June 16, 2010
Published by Bryan at June 16, 2010
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A sub-quantum theory is presented which accounts for the EPR correlations with a product state with no entanglement and no nonlocality. In addition the anomalies found in EPR data of Gregor Weihs and as analyzed by Adenier and Khrennikov, are explained by the product states of the bi-particles getting out of sync as they separate. The sub-quantum theory treats the ontic particles that form the ensembles or the quantum states. Whereas quantum states are hermitian, the sub-quantum spin state is fundamentally non-hermitian.
A spin is found to have a two dimensional structure rather than the point particle of quantum mechanics and in the absence of a probe, a spin is in a state of zero angular momentum.