Comments on: Musings on Science, and other things

By: aiusepsi

aiusepsi — Sun, 08 Jun 2008 03:25:53 +0000

Hope your exams go well!

Thermodynamics has been and gone, along with Electromagnetism and Maths, next up is Quantum Mechanics. Should be fine, hopefully.

I'm also quite looking forward to Viva la Vida, I really liked Violet Hill, so hopefully the whole thing should be good.

By: Heather

Heather — Fri, 06 Jun 2008 03:58:05 +0000

At least all that extra time will ensure its Whedon-patented-uber-awesome. That kind is blatently the best.

I point and laugh at your worried-ness. I only have 2 SFPU tomorrow and History and Physics next Wednesday; 4-day weekend! No major flops yet I think, it's all good. Looking forward to..what was it...Thermodynamics? (I fail at the remembering of your degree modules.) The one you are a-fearing of, anyway.

Also very excited about Viva la Vida, coming out on the 11th. It's previewed quite well!

By: aiusepsi

aiusepsi — Tue, 03 Jun 2008 06:42:17 +0000

It does look several kinds of awesome. Especially the proper one, where they don't steal footage from old Buffy episodes.

Alas, it apparently won't actually be broadcast until January!

How are your exams going, anyhow? I've got one on Wednesday... it's worrying, it is.

By: Heather

Heather — Tue, 03 Jun 2008 04:45:36 +0000

Have you watched the new Dollhouse trailer? It does wonders for the pre-examination soul, I've found…

By: Lucy

Lucy — Mon, 02 Jun 2008 17:06:20 +0000

Physicists. And Americans. And the real world.

Pfff!

By: aiusepsi

aiusepsi — Sun, 01 Jun 2008 21:29:08 +0000

It's a Simpsons quote

Anyways, the thing about physics is you get a lot of approximation in the theoretical calculations anyways. It mostly isn't important, because as long as the approximation isn't too far out, the experimentalists won't be precise enough to notice the difference anyway.

Making pi exactly 3 is only a 4.5% error, and a pretty good experiment has 10% error anyway.

By: Lucy

Lucy — Sun, 01 Jun 2008 15:45:17 +0000

“Pi is exactly 3″?????!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !! !!!!

I am disappointed to say the least!

By: Josh

Josh — Sun, 01 Jun 2008 08:40:53 +0000

I read the first part of Q5, could not remember what degeneracy was so moved on.

By: aiusepsi

aiusepsi — Sun, 01 Jun 2008 06:57:25 +0000

Oh, I did the other stats question, so I have no idea. I thought it looked nasty!

The sum over states is N = Sum(all r) (nBE), then when that goes to an integral, it's N = n0 + Integral nBE dr, then you have to make it into an energy integral, epsilon = hwr, so epsilon/hw = r, therefore dr = depsilon/hw, which is where the hw comes from, it's from the change of variable. Maybe add an extra step explaining you have to count the ground state separately because it has 0 energy?

Bit late now though anyway.

I had no idea about how to do the last part of the other stats question, so I chucked away 3 marks. Never mind!

By: Josh

Josh — Sun, 01 Jun 2008 06:38:08 +0000

I also had no idea how to get the 1/(hw) to appear in the stats question, so I just put an arrow and said that it tended to that when T tended to what ever it said in the question.

I don't know of any question I definitely got wrong, but I know of many that I could have gotten wrong, or at least only partially right.