Size Matters

With last week question, a student commented about King Hector Died from Drinking Chocolate Milk. So lets develop this concept a little further. I'm going to give the name of the prefix for the SI Units and I would like to see the size and the symbol for the unit. I'll do one as an example:

Name               Symbol               Unit Size
Tera                       T                        10^12
Giga
Mega

kilo
hecto
deca

The unit of measurements meter, grams, ampere

deci
centi
milli

micro
nano
pico

femto                        f                      10^-12

An Annotated Thermometer

In your day to day life to measure temperature you probably use Fahrenheit(F)
or Celsius(C)but kelvin(K)is primarily used in physics. The Kelvin scale is a
thermal scale that uses absolute zero as its starting point. 0K, -273.15C,
and -459.67F all equal are absolute zero. Below I found a funny joke about
these scales.


AN ANNOTATED THERMOMETER
60F 15C 289K
Californians put on sweaters (if they can find one in their wardrobe)

50F 10C 283K
Miami residents turn on the heat (if they have a heating system)

40F 4C 277K
* You can see your breath
* Californians shiver uncontrollably
* Minnesotans go swimming

35F 2C 275K
Italian cars don't start

32F 0C 273K
Water freezes

30F -1C 272K
* You plan your vacation to Australia
* Minnesotans put on T-shirts
* Politicians begin to worry about the homeless
* British cars don't start
* Your boogers freeze

25F -4C 269K
* Boston water freezes
* Californians weep pitiably
* Minnesotans eat ice cream
* Canadians go swimming

20F -7C 266K
* You can hear your breath
* Politicians begin to talk about the homeless
* New York City water freezes
* Miami residents plan vacation further south

15F -9C 264K
* French cars don't start
* You plan a vacation in Mexico
* Cat insists on sleeping in bed with you

10F -12C 261K
* Too cold to ski
* You need jumper cables to get the car going

5F -15C 258K
* You plan your vacation in Houston
* American cars don't start

0F -18C 255K
* Alaskans put on T-shirts
* Too cold to skate

-10F -23C 250K
* German cars don't start
* Eyes freeze shut when you blink

-15F -26C 247K
* You can cut your breath and use it to build an igloo
* Arkansas stick tongue on metal objects
* Miami residents cease to exist

-20F -29C 244K
* Cat insists on sleeping in your pajamas with you
* Politicians actually do something about the homeless
* Minnesotans shovel snow off roof
* Japanese cars don't start

-25F -32C 241K
* Too cold to think
* You need jumper cables to get the driver going

-30F -34C 239K
* You plan a two week hot bath
* The Mighty Mongahela freezes
* Sweedish cars don't start

-40F -40C 233K
* Californians disappear
* Minnesotan button top button
* Canadians put on sweaters
* Your car helps you plan your trip South

-50F -46C 237K
* Congressional hot air freezes
* Alaskans close the bathroom window

-80F -62C 211K
* Hell freezes over
* Polar bears move south


http://jcdverha.home.xs4all.nl/scijokes/2.html#subindex

The Metric System

The International System of Units or SI is the modern form of the metric system and is generally a system of units of measurement devised around the seven base units and the convenience of the base ten number system. It forms part of the world's most widely used system of measurement, which is used in both in everyday commerce and in science.


Can you name the seven base units of the metric system:


1.)
2.)
3.)
4.)
5.)
6.)
7.)

Late for Class!

Ever been late to class because your class was two minutes off?

Being a student can be stressful at times, but managing your time is a specific skill that we all will learn throughout our times in college.

If you're looking to get an edge with time management and keeping that extra minute, Britain's National Physical laboratory (NPL) contains the world's most accurate atomic clock, which is guaranteed your on time* to every class.

Based upon ideas in atomic physics, this "caesium fountain clock" is so accurate that it will not stray more than one second in 138 million years; this nearly doubled the accuracy measured in 2010.

How does it work you ask? Well, "the "tick" is provided by the measurement of the energy required to change the caesium atoms' spin. Caesium atoms are placed into a cavity, and exposed to electromagnetic radiation of different wavelengths. Once the spin "flips", the waves are at the right frequency to define what a second is."

Recall that frequency is measured in the unit hertz, Hz. In this case, the frequency was measured at 9.2GHz or written out, 9,192,631,770 Hz! "When the spin flips, the clock operators can set the frequency at that point, and work backward to determine the exact length of a second."

So, the next time you go to set your watch, feel free to set it according to the British Atomic Clock: http://wwp.greenwichmeantime.com/world-clock/ . You will never be late to class again!

*on time is five minutes early

Resources:

Meet a blogger!

My name is Ashley August. I am a senior Physics major here at JU. I am from Wauconda, Illinois and I am part of the volleyball and sand volleyball teams.

Over my career, I have grown particularly interested in theoretical physics, such as electromagnetic theory. I find it extremely difficult, but oh so satisfying once accomplished.

I am hopeful that this blog will become a useful tool for you throughout your semester during your 'trip to the moon'!

I will be meeting you in class on Tuesday, at that time I would like you to tell me what your biggest concern is in regards to the topics you will cover in this course. See you soon!

Welcome to Physics 100

Hello! My name is Alejandro Madariaga, but everyone around here calls me Alex. I am a Junior at Jacksonville University. I been here all three years working hard on getting my Phyiscs Major with my Math Minor. I am from Miami, Fl but grew up in a small place called Cape Coral, Fl. When I finish, I hope to go to UF or Columbia University. If that doesn't work out then I will start working in the private sector.

We will be seeing your class soon to properly introduce ourself. I wanted to know what got you interested to go to JU and what is your Major/Minor? Have a wonderful weekend and be seeing you on Monday.

Welcome!

Hi, my name is Jasmine Green and I am a second semester freshman here at JU. I'm a Physics major, but I also plan to minor in ballet. When I finish here in Jacksonville, I plan to go on to FIT to become an Astrophysicist.

I am originally from Newport News, Va but I have lived in central Florida for about eight years now. My current home being in a little suburb about 20 minutes outside of Orlando. My interest in physics is to learn how the biggest and smallest things in the universe function and move. I love to look up to the sky on a dark night and wonder how and why the universe works. I believe with the help of the great professors here at JU I will not have to wonder for much longer. And with there help neither will you. With that said, what interests you most about our universe? I look forward to meeting in person with you all on Monday.