Is That The Phone?

Honors Physics students regaled each other with the dulcet tones of a touch-tone phone symphony in lab today. Add tuning forks and vocalized vowels and you have a solid lesson on tones and overtones. The tuning forks gave nice pure tones when struck on a soft surface and a good sprinkling of overtones when struck on a hard surface. Whether the overtones were harmonic or inharmonic would need to be determined by a bit of math (that we will cover tomorrow), but it was easy to document their existence and their frequencies. Folks also got to investigate how a touch-tone phone uses sound to code numbers. Phone companies use the row frequency and column frequency combination to recognize what numbers are being dialed. Students were quickly able to discern the pattern and corroborated that the final row, consisting of *, 0 and # followed the same pattern.

Physics discussed the Doppler Effect on both sound and light waves. Intensity, as an inverse-square relationship was examined, as were the various scales used to report sound intensity. Relative intensity and the decibel scale was given special attention, as was the effect of various sound intensities on the human ear. We started discussing forced vibrations today and, after tomorrow's lab, will extend the discussion to the concept of resonance and harmonics.

Physical Science explored the electromagnetic spectrum. Remember that all EM waves travel the same speed in a vacuum (3 x 10⁸ m/s), regardless of frequency. Waves with higher frequencies carry more energy (think back on the particle model of light) and waves with lower frequencies are less energetic. We'll explore how this frequency/energy difference affects various behaviors of light as we move through this unit. Tomorrow, we'll focus our attention on reflection and that will be the topic of Thursday's lab.

Sound and Light

Physical Science watched a good introductory video on light and color and debriefed the film's information. Tomorrow, we will take time to discuss further the electromagnetic spectrum and begin to work our way into the behavior of light. We will spend time with reflection, refraction, total internal reflection, diffraction, dispersion and interference. Lab work will specifically tackle reflection and refraction, with the others being demonstrated in class.

Physics and Honors Physics delved deeper into the concept of sound today. Physics discussed Friday's speed of sound lab and began to explore specifics about the longitudinal, mechanical wave we call sound. Honors Physics ran through the Doppler effect, forced vibrations and resonance. Tomorrow's lab will allow students to compare pure tones and overtones and examine how a touch-tone phone dialer functions to use sound to signal phone numbers. As we move into the music zone, remember that our overview will, by necessity, be very cursory and simplified. Music acoustics (the sound of music - no pun intended) is a field of its own and students are encouraged to independently research the function of music instruments, the generation of sound by acoustic and electronic instruments and the role of standing wave production in sound and music. Here are a couple of videos illustrating the power of resonance:





Herre's an interesting video about a violin maker:

Phriday Phun

Physics experimented with factors affecting the speed of sound today. As with Honors Physics, the findings agreed with theory - more massive gas particles move with a lower velocity, so sound travels at a slower speed than for a lighter gas at the same temperature. Temperature of a single gas has a direct relationship with speed of sound and all groups found that the heated air sample was a faster medium for sound than the room-temperature air. We'll review the lab as we discuss basic sound properties on Monday.

Honors Physics stepped into the world of sound today with an overview of the physical features of sound waves and how sound is perceived by living organisms. The uses of ultrasound were discussed, as was the variation in sound production/reception by living creatures. Here are a couple of videos showing how much detail can be picked up by underwater sonar:







Physical Science began their discussion of light and concentrated on disentangling the wave and particle theories of light. The concept of the photon was introduced and the relationship between energy and frequency was explored. Although we will work mostly with the wave model of light in class, knowledge of the particle model of light is required to fully understand the complex nature of light and light phenomena. Here are a few resources to give you more information about the models of light:

Particle Model of Light


The Nature of Light - be sure to continue through the slide show and use the slider to scroll down to read all the text for each slide


How Light Works

For You TwitterHeads

18 Sci-Fi Twitter Feeds You Should Be Following (Courtesy of SciFi Wire)

Warren Ellis
23,987 followers
http://twitter.com/warrenellis

The brilliant, and occasionally warped, mind behind Freak Angels, Planetary and Transmetropolitan has a twitterfeed that's antagonistic, insulting, never safe for workand always entertaining.

"Apparently I just gave a guy an anxiety/heart attack simply by responding to his tweet. I believe I like this new power"

Greg Grunberg
41,035 followers
http://twitter.com/greggrunberg

Fans of Heroes' Greg Grunberg (psychic cop Matt Parkman) tweets about the show, Band from TV (his charity cover band) and real life. More importantly, unlike some of the other big names on Twitter, he makes a point to respond to those who are following him. Grunberg landed on Twitter thanks to Heroes castmate Brea Grant (@breagrant, speedster Daphne on the show) and in turn he's convinced James Kyson Lee (@jameskysonlee, who plays Ando) to join.

"Okay, one cliffhanger thing I can reveal is... well.. how do I put this? Uh, you see, Parkman... he, uh... well, he and uh... that guy with"

Wil Wheaton
294,062 followers
http://twitter.com/wilw

Some may always consider him the once and future Wesley Crusher, but Wheaton's moved beyond that, with several books (Just a Geek, The Happiest Days of Our Lives), acting gigs and his blog, Wil Wheaton Dot Net (in Exile). He's amassed an impressive legion of followers on Twitter and tweets about life, acting, parenting, writing and whatever catches his geeky eye.

"Today is GEEKTASTIC: Not only is it pi day, it's the 15th birthday of version 1.0 of the Linux Kernel. Also, I'm DMing tonight. *snort*"

Elizabeth Bear
780 followers
http://twitter.com/matociquala

Bear's a writer (Hammered, Undertow, Dust) who proudly proclaims she tells lies to strangers for money. Her tweets include word counts, misadventures in moving, occasional geekouts about movies, and technological ruminations.

"Ways to spot a writer: She has a mountain of baby name books in seven languages, and has never been pregnant."

David Hewlett
9,096 followers
http://twitter.com/dhewlett

Hewlett played the neurotic genius Dr. Meredith Rodney McKay on Stargate: Atlantis and when the series was in production, he used Twitter to update followers about scripts and on-set adventures. As big a geek in real life as he is on the show, he's used Twitter to promote his projects and random encounters with the real world.

"Meeting Flanigan for lunch...seeing Joe always makes me wish I had more hair...in the RIGHT places...have I just made lunch weird?!"

Felicia Day
251,873 followers
http://twitter.com/feliciaday

The Dr. Horrible alumna and writer/actor on The Guild tweets about her online comedy about a day in the life of a MMORPG-obsessed gamer and her dysfunctional guildmates. An avid gamer in real life, she also tweets about playing Fallout 3 and Dungeons & Dragons, what's on her SF/fantasy reading list and her trials upgrading WordPress.

"Read my #PHB2 on the plane, lady next to me spilled water on it. Wanted to kill her. Sorcerer is out of control want to roll one now please!"

John Scalzi
3,903 followers
http://twitter.com/scalzi

The author of Old Man's War and its sequels as well as the blog Whatever, Scalzi's demonstrated he's not afraid of trying new things by posting his first novel online, twittering and taping bacon to his cat.

"Staying off the computer for the whole day. Unless, you know, I get bored with real life. But what are the chances of THAT?"

Kevin J. Anderson
232 followers
http://twitter.com/TheKJA

Anderson, author of Star Wars and X-Files tie-in novels and the Dune prequels, twitters about the creation of his best-selling books, hiking in Colorado and the daily details of a writer's life.

"deaths, conspiracies, mayhem, poisonings, rampaging sandworms, just another day at the office on DUNE."

Agent M
222,521 followers
http://twitter.com/Agent_M

Agent M is a Marvel.com blogger who brought the company into the Twitterverse. You can thank him by following the official @Marvel twitter feed, as well as that of longtime Marvel editor Joe Queseda (@JoeQuesada).

"We have the Howard the Duck DVD on while cleaning. You can't recognize how far we've come unless you take a hard look back."

Levar Burton
192,666 followers
http://twitter.com/levarburton

Star Trek: The Next Generation's Levar Burton (Geordi La Forge) recently battled his online doppelganger, defeating him in single combat. Or at least managed to get the admins at Twitter to eject the imposter and give him the account. Since then he's been a prolific Twitterer.

"@MargoEve The inspiration for the VISOR was a Banana Clip. How much was the wager? Even more important, how much is my cut?"

Brent Spiner
110,034 followers
http://twitter.com/brentspiner

Nothing like his Data persona from Star Trek: TNG, Spiner's engaging, amusing and often chatty. It's great when Burton, Spiner and Wheaton go on a Star Trek jag riffing on the series and each other. Spiner's engaged with his fans, often replying to tweets, and recently ran a contest to give away his 500th tweet based on the funniest/smartest fan reply.

"Did the interview. Told them my idea for a set with DNA. They didn't seem to go for it but when I left I was missing my little finger tip."

Cory Doctorow
13,866 followers
http://twitter.com/doctorow

Writer, geek dad, co-editor at Boing Boing and Creative Commons advocate, Doctorow took a break from Twitter for a while, but he's back in force now, talking about new media, digital rights and his creative life.

"The baby just said her first word: Chewbacca. SRSLY!"
"She was having her bath with her Star Wars bath toy and staring intently at Chewy. I said, 'That's Chewbacca' & she said 'Joo-bak-ba!' Lots!"

Marvel
12,409 followers
http://twitter.com/Marvel

Marvel's a perfect example of a company that gets Twitter. Instead of a link dump of posts from Marvel.com, Marvel on Twitter regularly polls followers about their favorite comics and heroes, talks about new releases and generally engages their fan base. They're also following a fair number of people.

"Okay! #marvelasks votes are all tallied. Clearly, the Marvel Twitterverse thinks Spider-Man's better friend material than Human Torch. 76-48"

Neil Gaiman
89,335 followers
http://twitter.com/neilhimself

The author of Sandman, American Gods, Neverwhere, Stardust and Coraline tweets from the road, recounting inns, coffee shops and other destinations on his book and movie promotional tours. The release of Coraline in theaters saw him tweeting regularly about the movie.

"Good morning world. I am blinking and strange-haired today. Will be interviewed on Colbert Report tonight, the reality of which just hit me."

Bill Corbett
2,953 followers
http://twitter.com/Billcorbett

One of the writers on Mystery Science Theatre 3000, as well as the voice of the wisecracking Crow T. Robot, Corbett tweets about his new project, Rifftrax. Expect tweets about writing and random encounters with life, some of which include conversations with longtime collaborator Kevin Murphy (@kwmurphy).

"I like Twitter a lot, even if it does tend to make people write in some mashup of Rorschach's Journal and late 80s Seinfeld monologue."

Joe Quesada
6,208 followers
http://twitter.com/JoeQuesada

If you ever wanted to peek inside the mind of a comic-book editor, here's your chance. The big boss at Marvel tweets about ongoing projects, (like the Spider-Man musical) and responds to a surprising number of followers.

"Despite popular and conventional belief, simpler covers work best for grabbing the eye. White background covers even more so."

Brea Grant
17,079 followers
http://twitter.com/breagrant

Grant plays the speedster Daphne on Heroes and has a role in Rob Zombie's upcoming Halloween 2. The Halloween role has her researching horror films and tweeting about what she likes.

"Aliens = amazing sequel. I wish my name was Ripley."

Robert Llewellyn (aka Bobby Lew)
17,830 followers
http://twitter.com/bobbyllew

Bobby Lew is must-follow for Red Dwarf fans that want to keep up with news about the series' new BBC movies. His tweets feature updates on the project, insights into working on the set, and the TV business.

"It's just possible that my obsession with laundry and clean sheets was picked up by Rob and Doug and woven into Mr K's character. Possible?"

Sound

Physics took their exam on vibrations and waves today and will conduct a lab investigation tomorrow to determine how certain factors affect the speed of sound in a gas. Honors Physics conducted this investigation today, with good results. The measured speed of sound in air was close to the calculate (accepted) value for most groups. Further, the increase in speed with an increase in temperature was seen for most experiments, as was the anticipated decrease in speed in the CO₂ gas. The $64,000 question - can you explain these results? Consider that sound is a mechanical wave and reflect on the kinetic theory of matter and how it influences heat transfer. The motion of energy as sound will follow a similar pattern. We'll discuss this lab tomorrow and begin to dig into the basic properties and descriptors of sound.

Physical Science concluded their discussion of sound with an overview of ultrasonic waves and their uses. Tomorrow, we will start our unit on light and it will be more extensive than our discussion of sound. During this unit, we will take the time to further investigate the wave behaviors of reflection, refraction and diffraction, examine the electromagnetic spectrum, investigate color and dip our toes into the pool of optics.

Another Sound Comic

Sound is funny...

Intensity

Physics enjoyed an intense exam review, Honors Physics endured an intense exam (well, not that intense) and Physical Science investigated the inverse-square relationship associated with light intensity. Intensity of both sound and light decrease in proportion to 1/d², and your two graphs documented this relationship. The first graph (intensity vs. distance) demonstrated the rapid decrease in intensity with distance and the second graph (intensity vs. 1/distance² verfied the inverse-square relationship by producing a nice straight line that passed very close to the origin. We'll discuss the lab tomorrow and conclude our discussion of sound. Then, we turn our attention to light, its properties and behaviors. BTW, here's a good use for resonance:

WorldWide Telescope

NASA is going to throw some support behind Microsoft's virtual telescope to further enhance its coolness. The web client version is pretty good for viewing the cosmos and individual planets. The ability to rotate and move objects with the mouse is a nice touch. There is also a Window's version that offers more features, but I haven't tried that yet. Check it out if you like astronomy:

WorldWide Telescope

Do Your Ear What I Ear?

Physical Science continued their discussion of sound to day by adding the concepts of harmonics, resonance and ear function to their mental libraries. A couple of video clips illustrating resonance in action highlighted the class period. Tomorrow's lab will center around the idea of wave intensity and the inverse-square relationship between intensity and distance from source. Although the experiment will be conducted with light waves, the same relationship describes how sound intensity varies with source proximity. We should finish our discussion of sound on Thursday and begin to examine light and the electromagnetic spectrum.

Physics conducted a standing wave experiment and saw for themselves how specific must be the conditions for standing waves to form. They also got to view a video clip demonstrating Chladni figures to visualize how standing waves can form on plane surfaces. Honors Physics also watched this video as part of the review for tomorrow's exam. We will revisit standing waves and resonance in the next chapter, which covers sound. The Honors Physics lab on Thursday will allow students to measure the speed of sound using echoes.

The Standing Wave

Physical Science began to revisit the concept of standing waves today during their discussion of sound. Friday's lab was a good exploration of how the speed of sound can be measured using a pipe closed on one end and how the identity of the medium affects the sound's speed. If you could actually see the sound in the pipe, you would see that it formed a standing wave, as one would find for a wind-based musical instrument. We'll delve into this deeper tomorrow when we discuss musical instruments and harmonics.

Physics and Honors Physics concluded their general survey of the properties of vibrations and waves. Honors Physics got to see first-hand how difficult it is to form standing waves and Physics will have this pleasure tomorrow. The requirement that a specific frequency be generated and maintained for standing wave formation is a hard one to satisfy with the human arm. We'll look at these in more detail when we cover sound in the next chapter. Gather up any and all questions for your exam review periods so that we can address any issues at that time for this week's test.

Not all standing waves form on strings. Air columns can vibrate and form standing waves and so can 2-dimensional planes, like the surface of a vibrating drum head. Ernst Chladni investigated this type of standing wave formation and found that lovely patterns were formed that could be seen by scattering small particles over the vibrating surface. For Chladni figures, the empty spaces represent areas of maximum displacement and the lines are areas where the displacement is cancelled out. For surfaces like a vibrating platform, antinodes are not necessarily loop-like in appearance and nodes appear as curves rather than points. Here's a video of Chladni figure formation. Note: playing this video with the sound on and a dog in the room will make for one weirded-out dog...

Onward with Waves

Physical Science took their introductory wave exam today and results were mixed. Some kickin' scores and some that will require further study on the part of the test-takers. Overall, the class average was good, so I'll give it a thumbs-up. Daily objective answers were better, on average, than past submissions, but some folks are still trying to do them all at once at the 11th hour. The purpose of the daily objectives is to give you some focused questions to use to review the day's lesson. They should be completed the day of the lesson or soon thereafter. They should not be put off until I am nice enough to give you warning that I will be collecting them. Tomorrow, you will get a chance to use the concept of resonance (introduced in the Mythbusters episode we watched in class) to assess the speed of sound in air and in carbon dioxide. Read over the lab sheet tonight to prepare for tomorrow's activity.

Honors Physics completed their pendulum lab and Physics completed their mass-spring lab. This has given each class the chance to explore the two classic SHM systems. We will debrief tomorrow and then continue on with our discussion about the basic properties of waves. Here's a nice video about SHM:

Still Wavin'

Physical Science completed their introduction to waves today with a general review and discussion of their standing wave lab. Tomorrow - exam. Have your worksheets, practice test and daily object answers (for wave chapter, only) ready to hand in before the test begins. On Friday, we begin exploring sound and light in detail and sound will lead the way. Friday's lab will allow students to measure the speed of sound in air and, if I remember to buy Alka Seltzer, carbon dioxide.

Physics reviewed their pendulum lab and began their discussion of wave properties. Tomorrow's lab will further investigate SHM by analyzing a mass-spring system. SHM can produce waves that have the properties of the vibrating source. The vocabulary and concepts that we develop with SHM will carry over when we begin to dig further into wave phenomena.

Honors Physics began their pendulum lab today. Data was collected and data analysis began. We'll finish up with the data analysis tomorrow and wrap up with a general discussion of this lab and the mass-spring lab. Keep in mind the wave ideas we've been been developing and see how they relate to objects oscillating with simple harmonic motion.

Non-Newtonian Fluids

Sound waves can produce some interesting effects in non-Newtonian fluids. Although we don't delve into this area of physics, no one can deny that oobleck videos are cool...

Vibrations and Waves

Well, Physics solved the mystery of the oscillating pendulum. The data clearly showed, as theory predicts, that length of the cord is the factor that affects pendulum period (provided location does not change). Mass and amplitude have little to no effect. Also, plotting T² versus cord length gave very good values for acceleration due to gravity. Values varied from 9.77 m/s² to 10.3 m/s². Since the accepted value is 9.81 m/s², a good job was done by all.

Honors Physics will conduct the pendulum experiment tomorrow and this will build on the wave introduction that we began in class today. It will be interesting to see how the data compares with the data collected yesterday. Read over the lab protocol tonight and be ready to get rolling when we get to class. Hopefully, we can get the data collected and analyzed during a single lab period. For those who like to think ahead, you will also conduct Extension #1 for the investigation - you might be puzzling out how you might perform that calculation with the data you will be collecting (Hint: the equations for pendulum period listed above the Extension will be a big help).

Physical Science found out that standing waves are not easy to form and maintain. The frequency has to be just such that a multiple of 0.5x wavelength will form perfectly in the medium. You were only able to get 0.5x, 1x and 1.5x wavelength to form on the rope. No other fraction/multiple would produce a standing wave. The inverse relationship between frequency and wavelength was evident and most groups were able to discern that using different ropes produced waves that traveled at different speeds. Since wave speed is dependent on the nature of the medium, this was the expected result. Complete your wave worksheets tonight so that we can go over them as part of the exam review tomorrow. Exam on Thursday and for Friday, your next lab block, you will conduct an experiment to determine the speed of sound in air.

Swingin'

Physics engaged in a lab investigation centered around factors that affect the period of a simple pendulum. The three suspects: amplitude, cord length, mass. The jury is out until tomorrow when the data can be graphically analyzed and conclusions drawn. I'll keep you posted.

Physical Science - due to losing the period today for the Internet safety assembly, we are pushing the exam to Thursday. Tomorrow will find the class working with standing waves and investigating how standing waves are generated and why they don't form at the drop of a hat. You'll find that it will take a bit of work to get a proper standing wave to form on your rope and if you remember back to Friday's discussion, you'll have an idea of why this is the case. I've glanced through your original experiments to test the relationship between light and heat absorption and there are some real winners in there! Nice job!

Honors Physics - C Block was taken up by the Internet safety assembly, but G block got to discuss physical features and descriptors of simple harmonic motion. C block will have this discussion tomorrow, in addition to the planned lecture on types of waves. The concepts we have been building for SHM will allow us to understand and describe both mechanical and electromagnetic waves.

On The Stupid Side - it was announced that the SciFi Channel will be changing its name. Here's the official press release and a "charming" comment from one of the network founders:

New York, NY - March 16, 2009 - Building upon sixteen years of water cooler programming and soaring ratings growth following its most-watched year ever, SCI FI Channel is evolving into Syfy on air and on-line beginning July 7th, it was announced today by Dave Howe, President, SCI FI.

By changing the name to Syfy, which remains phonetically identical, the new brand broadens perceptions and embraces a wider and more diverse range of imagination-based entertainment including fantasy, paranormal, reality, mystery, action and adventure, as well as science fiction. It also positions the brand for future growth by creating an ownable trademark that can travel easily with consumers across new media and non-linear digital platforms, new international channels and extend into new business ventures.

Imagine Greater will become the new brand message and tagline, inviting both consumers and advertisers into a new era of unlimited imagination, exceptional experiences and greater entertainment. Syfy more clearly captures the mainstream appeal of the world's biggest entertainment category, and reflects the network's ongoing strategy to create programming that's more accessible and relatable to new audiences. Syfy will continue to celebrate the traditional roots of the genre, while opening the brand aperture to accommodate a broader range of imagination-based entertainment.

"While continuing to embrace our legacy and our core audience, we needed to cultivate a distinct point of view with a name that we could own that invites more people in and reflects our broader range of programming," said Mr. Howe in making the announcement. "Syfy allows us to build on our 16 year heritage of success with a new brand built on the power that fuels our genre: the Imagination. Syfy ushers in a new era of unlimited imagination, exceptional experiences and greater entertainment that paves the way for us to truly become a global lifestyle brand."

Syfy -- unlike the generic entertainment category "sci-fi" - firmly establishes a uniquely ownable trademark that is portable across all non-linear digital platforms and beyond, from Hulu to iTunes. Syfy also creates an umbrella brand name that can extend into new adjacent businesses under the Syfy Ventures banner, such as Syfy Games, Syfy Films and Syfy Kids.

Additionally, as the Channel's footprint expands rapidly around the globe, aiming to reach more than 50 international channels by the end of next year, Syfy meets the need of a globally relevant, trademarkable brand that stands for something unique to the brand in each territory.

The new brand evolution will launch on air and on-line July 7th, in tandem with the premiere of the new scripted drama, Warehouse 13, and the return of breakout summer series Eureka. An aggressive trade marketing campaign will kick off this spring. scifi.com will assume the URL syfy.com at that time.

SCI FI Channel is a television network that fuels the imagination of viewers with original series and events, blockbuster movies and classic science fiction and fantasy programming, as well as a dynamic Web site (www.scifi.com) and magazine. Launched in 1992, and currently in 95 million homes, SCI FI Channel is a network of NBC Universal, one of the world's leading media and entertainment companies.

and

“The name Sci Fi has been associated with geeks and dysfunctional, antisocial boys in their basements with video games and stuff like that, as opposed to the general public and the female audience in particular,” said TV historian Tim Brooks, who helped launch Sci Fi Channel when he worked at USA Network.

I won't go into how derogatory is that last statement, nor how condescending is the entire tone of the press release. Suffice it to say - EPIC FAIL!

A Rainbow of Colors

Physical Science explored the wonderful world of color today with a lab activity investigating the reflective properties of different colors. Total reflectivity was quantitatively measured with the light sensor and reflection spectrum was qualitatively studied using spectroscopes. Pretty quickly it was evident that light colors (especially white) displayed a high albedo and dark colors (especially black) displayed low albedo. Further, the different colors reflected different wavelengths of light, which produced their characteristic hues. Between the lab introduction, lab activity and lab debriefing, the design-you-own-experiment for investigating correlation between heat and light reflection. By Monday, have your design written up according to the guidelines we discussed in class. Think about the last experiment you designed (range of a water projectile) and how you might make this one even better. Remember, the exam and daily objective answers have been postponed until Wednesday.

Honors Physics and Physics discussed the concept of simple harmonic motion. We analyzed oscillating masses on springs and simple pendulums to demonstrate the basic characteristics of SHM. Tomorrow, Physics will look at how we measure and calculate physical descriptors of SHM and Honors Physics will conduct a lab investigation that will examine a mass-spring system and mathematically analyze the oscillation pattern.

Into the Wood Chipper

Physics and Honors Physics endured their Thermodynamics exams today and, luckily, most made it out alive. A few folks need to go through the material more thoroughly so that they are prepared when it appears on the final exam. Tomorrow, these courses will start their discussion of simple harmonic motion and the energy conversions involved in simple harmonic motion. Once we add some descriptors to SHM, like frequency and period, we will begin to connect SHM to the concept of waves. The lab for Honors Physics on Friday will permit students to mathematically model simple harmonic motion for a mass oscillating on a spring. The Physics lab for SHM on Monday will concern the motion of pendulums.

Physical Science was introduced to wave interactions. We discussed reflection, refraction, diffraction and started in on wave interference. Make sure you can define, differentiate and discuss an example of each of these. Although we will go into these concepts in more detail in the sound and light chapters, you should have a solid grounding in the general ideas before moving on to those chapters. Test is currently scheduled for next Tuesday, and I'll also be collecting this chapter's daily objective answers.

Toosday

Physics and Honors Physics were both honored with a screening of Standard Deviants - Thermodynamics. The cinematic quality of this DVD is such that one wonders how the Oscar committee overlooked this gem. Regardless, the DVD was an effective vehicle to review the thermodynamics chapter, as it covered all relevant concepts and calculations. Honors Physics also got some additional review work to cement the math and theory. Here's a hint for those having trouble on the last page of the ranking exercises packet - consider the ideal gas law (PV = nRT) and how you might rewrite the equation to lose the volume variable (since it is not provided). Yes, there will be substitution...

Physical Science got to review the mathematics and concepts behind wave speed and brought this information along into the discussion of the Doppler Effect. Tomorrow, we begin to examine what happens when something steps into a wave's path of travel. The concepts of reflection, refraction, diffraction, wave interference and standing waves will be introduced and then explored in more detail in the coming sound and light chapters. For now, here's a video about the Doppler Effect:

What a Day...

Talk about a roller coaster ride! Winter storm and no power to start the day. Then, continued storm and student anxiety over the girl's basketball championship game. 12:45 pm: 85% of the high school population leaves for the game and the rest of us hang out until the bell rings. Then, everyone in Essex County had to grab a shovel and get down to serious shoveling. Whew!

As for academics, Physics had a discussion about the concept of entropy. We related this to our previous study of the 2nd law of thermodynamics and the pattern of heat transfer between objects. One block of Honors Physics had their own entropy lecture and the other block had a class population of 4 students. We will conduct that discussion tomorrow for that class during the planned exam review period. Physical Science conducted a lab on light polarization and the function of polarizing filters. They then viewed several video clips to further examine and illustrate the concept of polarization. Tomorrow, our discussion of electromagnetic waves will touch again on polarization (since EM waves are modeled as transverse waves) and we will also dip our toes in the Doppler Effect.

On a high note - my grant proposal was accepted for funding by the Georgetown Education Foundation. This funding will allow me to purchase 6 Vernier Dynamics systems for the physics program. These tracks are used like the old-fashioned linear air tracks: they provide a very low-friction environment for studies of motion, collisions and energy conservation. Experiments we did this year with a cart rolling on the lab table will be done in the future with this system to provide far more accurate results. This will be a big help for MCAS preparation and for mathematical modeling for upper-division students. A HUGE shout of thanks to the GEF, Superintendent Carol Jacobs and HS Principal Peter Lucia for their support of physics education at GMHS and for promoting the use of classroom technology district wide. The kids are definitely going to benefit from this infusion of equipment into the program.

Almost a Perfect Shot

The results are in from all Physics and Honors Physics groups and one group stood out for determining the value for absolute zero. Congratulations to Brandon B., Devin F. and Joe S. for achieving a value of -270.2° C. Only three degrees off of the accepted value of -273.15° C. Nicely done!

Physics completed their lab investigations and some groups for Honors Physics also had to complete their lab from yesterday. Honors Physics also discussed their heat engine efficiency homework. Entropy lecture on Monday, review on Tuesday and exam on Wednesday for all physics folk.

Physical Science used the previous two labs to serve as examples during our lecture on wave properties. By Monday, have the light polarization lab read and make sure that the section review, chapter review and wave speed worksheet material is completed and ready to go for discussion. Ciao for now...

Ghost in the Lab

One of the lab stations was apparently haunted today as both groups who occupied that spot had the same problem with the experiment despite the equipment being switched out between classes! Changed the gas pressure sensor and even the LabPro and neither group could get the pressure in their pressure-temperature lab to change. Feel free to whistle the Twilight Zone theme right about now...

Honors Physics investigated pressure-temperature relationships in isovolumetric systems, modeling Gay-Lussac's law. The data was then extrapolated to predict the value for absolute zero. Data was pretty good, well within expectations. One drawback of this experiment is that the temperature probe is tracking the water bath temperature, not the temperature of the air in the Erlenmeyer flask. Not taking a reading until the system stabilizes helps, but it does introduce error into the experiment so I am not surprised that the absolute zero prediction varied from -293K to -317K. The pressure-temperature relationship graphs were nice and clearly illustrated an isovolumetric thermodynamic process - all internal energy changes were due to heat flow with a positive correlation between temperature and pressure.

Physics finished their discussion of heat the laws of thermodynamics and heat engines. You will complete the pressure-temperature lab tomorrow, so read over the lab sheet tonight. Monday, discussion of entropy and the basis of the 2^nd law of thermodynamics. Tuesday - review; Wednesday - exam.

Physical Science had time to complete their wave lab and worked practice problems for wave speed, frequency and period. Make sure you beat the wave types, basic wave features, their units and formulas into your heads. They always show up on the MCAS exam. Tomorrow, we will discuss the lab in light of the reading in the text and review the wave speed worksheet. This introduction to waves is usually a difficult bit of material for many students, so don't be upset if you are having a hard time getting the hang of the ideas. We'll spend time on this and make sure everyone has lots of practice with the concepts and problems.

Modern Art

As a result of the Physical Science experiment that used Slinkys to examine wave properties, this beautiful piece of modern art was born:



In addition to this masterpiece, students got more hands-on experience with longitudinal/transverse waves and wave features. The concepts of refraction, reflection and wave interference were introduced. We will have a bit of time at the start of class for groups to complete their lab write-ups before we discuss the lab activity.

Physics and Honors Physics discussed the 1^st and 2^nd laws of thermodynamics and the theory behind heat engines. Tomorrow's lab for Honors Physics will have students explore pressure-temperature relationships for a closed system (isovolumetric process). We will have to make a few adjustments to manage the scarcity of resources, but we'll make do fine. There will be an extra eye on safety, however, as hot plates will be in use.

Question

Why is it that when we get a day off because of snow, I wind up working more than if I had actually gone to work?



Shoveling made up the bulk of the day, although I did get a chance to finish off the new Larry Niven/Jerry Pournelle book - Escape from Hell. Next on the list, P.W. Singer's Wired for War

Tomorrow - Physical Science will discuss Friday's lab. We will roll that into the next section of your textbook (which you read for homework on Thursday) that explored physical features and properties of waves. Physics will conduct a lab investigation on Joule heating (using electric work to increase the internal energy of an object) and Honors Physics will discuss the 1st Law of Thermodynamics. YeeHah!