Yearly Archives: 2011

Q: If atoms are mostly made up of empty space, why do things feel solid?

Posted on January 19, 2011 by The Physicist

Physicist: (The following paragraph is wrong.  Like, really wrong.  There’s a redaction here: My bad: If atoms are mostly made up of empty space, why do things feel solid?) As atoms get too close to one another their charges begin … Continue reading →

Posted in -- By the Physicist, Particle Physics, Physics | 72 Comments

Q: Can we build a planet?

Posted on January 14, 2011 by The Physicist

Physicist: In theory, there’s nothing standing in the way.  In fact by constructing a planet from asteroids, comets, or dust you can expect to get a fair amount of energy back out.  Normally, you’d just chuck a bunch of dust, … Continue reading →

Posted in -- By the Physicist, Astronomy, Physics | 30 Comments

Q: π = 4?

Posted on January 10, 2011 by The Physicist

Physicist: Recently this picture has been floating around confusing everyone, and making people think that maybe Indiana wasn’t completely off base when they moved to declare that . The exact answer to this question comes from deep in the field … Continue reading →

Posted in -- By the Physicist, Geometry, Math | 22 Comments

Q: How does a scientist turn ideas into math?

Posted on January 4, 2011 by The Physicist

The original question was: How does a scientist/physicist map ideas and concepts into/onto mathematics?  Are there a sequence of steps?  If one starts with a mathematical model I can sort of see how using deduction, induction etc…. And what about … Continue reading →

Posted in -- By the Physicist, Math, Philosophical | 13 Comments