Second law of thermodynamics      01/31/16
One of the most enigmatic yet intriguing facets of fundamental physics is the second law of thermodynamics. The second law dictates a seemingly simple yet consequential rule, that the entropy in all systems can only increase. Entropy is the measure of disorder in a thermodynamic system, think of it like if there was one room half filled with people wearing red shirts and half blue shirts, with one room they are split evenly half and another they are strewn around in a desultory manner. The second law states that all systems start out like the former and end up like the latter. The dire implications of this quandary is that a perpetual motion machine is completely impossible any any attempt will only based off of erroneous reasoning.  

Phases of matter      01/30/16

 

Complex matter is invariably found in a physical state. A state of matter can be defined as the macroscopic order that the components are in. There are four (main) type of macroscopic states of matter, Solids, liquids, gases, and Plasmas. Every complex object can be found in one of those states and can transfer between one of those states through a change in temperature and pressure.

The most intuitive phase of solid is the solid. Objects in a solid state have their molecules packed closely together, with the forces so strong that the neighboring molecules are only able to vibrate. Consequently, solids have a definite shape and volume (unless deformation by an outside force impinges upon it, but that’s a topic for a later lecture).

 

Given the precise conditions, an object can also be extant in a liquid state. If a solid object is heated above the melting point, then the molecules begin to break free of their rigidity but the intermolecular forces are still strong enough to hold them together. As a result, liquids do not have a dependant shape (their geometry is contingent upon the space of the container that they are suffused in).  A most intriguing and peculiar facet of nature is that of the triple point, in which the state transitions for a certain object are all bordering one another.

 

If one is to change the pressure or temperature conditions to the point where the molecules are able to break completely free of neighboring van der wal force impingements, then a gas is formed. Gases have no definite shape or volume, so they are free to move around with little constraint. If enough heat is applied to a gas, then it will undergo a process known as ionization in which all of the electrons will break free of the molecules and a plasma will be formed. Plasmas have much of the same physical properties as a gas except for the fact that they are completely electrically conductive (not to say that gases can not be electrically conductive, just not on the same level as Plasmas)

Waves                01/25/16

 

Waves are a most peculiar phenomena in the physical universe. To put it concisely, waves are a transfer of energy through oscillations and vibrations from one point to another. Waves are one of the most commonly occurring facets of natural natural world, being present in everything from water perturbations to earthquakes.

 

Waves a multitude of intriguing properties. Unlike particles, when two waves come into contact, instead of colliding, they combine to form an temporary superposition,  and then proceed on the path they were on. This phenomena is known as interference.  During this ephemeral interference state, their directions of oscillations are combined, so if two (or more) were oscillating in the same direction he combined amplitude would be greater and vice versa if tf there directions were incongruous. Waves can also be reflected of reflective media, such as glass. Since waves are commonly are thought of of disturbances through media, their phase velocity is contingent upon such, and if their surrounding media change, then so do their phase velocity. Think of it like a falling ball being dropped into a pool of water, at first the ball only has to face the fluid resistance of the surrounding velocity of the atmosphere, but after coming into contact with the water it will slow down due to the denser material makeup of water. In fact, this is the reason why light changes angles when it strike water!

 

Wave motion comes in two forms, transversal and longitudinal. Transversal waves consist of energy oscillating perpendicular to the direction of movement, while longitudinal waves is the inverse (oscillations occur in the direction of displacement). Since transversal waves can oscillate in any direction perpendicular to the phase velocity, such waves can have multiple directions of oscillation.  Consequently, there is an effect known as polarization, in which the waves have all but a select set of directions filtered out. In addition, there are two (known) types of wave in the universe, mechanical and electromagnetic. Mechanical waves consist of oscillations of material matter, so their entire  exantness is contingent upon the medium that they are suffused in. The latter phenomena is the paramount divergence between mechanical and Electromagnetic waves, as the latter can transfer energy even in complete vacuity. Consequently, since light is an electromagnetic wave, light can move through the vacuum of space unimpinged.

      Sound                    01/24/16

 

“What is sound?”

 

It might come as a surprise to many that all of the opulent varieties of sounds that we listen to are nothing more than simple vibrations of air! Everytime we move our vocal cords, the surrounding medium is perturbed. Consequently, this perturbation stimulates a mechanical wave that propagates throughout the enveloping space. Since waves are contingent on the medium that they travel through, sounds greatly affected by the density, pressure, motion, and viscosity of the aforementioned medium, with the speed of sound being dependent on the density. (Furthermore, if no medium is present, then sound can not exist! The reasoning is simple, if sound is nothing more than a disturbance in a medium and no medium is present, then no sound can be created. It’s like trying to send send an electrical signal with no wiring! So that’s why in space, no one can hear you scream).

 

When such medium disturbances reach the human ear,sound waves collected by the ear lobe are passed through the ear canal which stimulates a vibration in the ear drum. The vibrations in turn are amplified by small bones in the inner ear, and the cochlea (inner ear) turns these mechanical vibrations into electrical signals which are guided by the auditory lobe in to be processed by the ever so scrupulous brain. Furthermore, the brain is able to synthesize information about the sound by determining it’s pitch (frequency), time duration, loudness (amplitude), Timbre (quality), sonic texture, and spatial location.

Isn’t it flummoxing how over the years curious Scientists have corroborated the seemingly insoluble problem of sound? To think that all of our auditory sensations are nothing more than mechanical disturbances in the surrounding medium is absolutely bewildering. And most dazzling is when one considers the fact that all of these sensations are just electrical signals in the brain.