Modern and Theoretical Physics

I'm trying to think of an example of two fundamental particles that could coexist very close to each other and have no influence on each other. That is, out of the four forces, neither of the particles exerts any of the forces on the other (and visa-versa). For example, protons and electrons have mass and therefore exert gravitational force upon each other, and they also have charge so they exert an electromagnetic force upon each other. But are there any particles that exert no force on each other? I'm not asking if there are any particles that don't exert force period, just not on each other. For example, one particle may have mass but no charge, and another may have ch…

If you could accelerate two beams of protons in the same direction near the speed of light would the magnetic force created by the particles overcome the elecric repulsion, allowing the particles to collide?

god i still haven't finished that book, what i've read was interesting. someone told me it was outdated. This is pertaining to a subject which Martin started. beyond the afformented (mentioned?) fragmented thoughts, here is my issue : if the universes evolved it wouldn't really be natural selection would it? whethere a universe were reproductive or not would be irrelelavant to its 'survival', there would be not competition and what else that contitute selection from among others. I suppose inevitably reproductively successful universe would arise, but they really would be no more succesful than their 'primitive ancestors'. I see no reason why any of the universes…

I read this thing about strange matter I thought it was very interesting. strange matter if it exists, could actual survive away from 'strange stars' (unlike neutronium which would never be able to survive seperate from a neutron star) and would act like a giant nucleus attracting a electron cloud around it. what do SFN'ers think about it?

one of the big mystery's of the universe is why gravity is so weak... has anyone thought, if gravity wasn't weak we wouldn't be here? I believe that there are many universes and that we happen to live in one that can sustain life. If gravity were strong like the other forces, electrons would fall into nucleus's, there would be no matter = no stars no nothing If you take this sort of blunt force thinking to the universe, all the laws in a way were created to support a life form that could observe them. I know this view has been taken by other people before, I just want to hear your thoughts on it... makes sense in my mind. Goes along with evolution as well…

If gravity travels faster than light, couldn't it be used to send information at superluminal speeds? By measuring gravitational effect, can't you calculate mass of the object and its relative motion?

What are some ways that researchers are currently harnessing nuclear power for batteries? I know the RTGs and those using decay heat to heat water to generate electricity. I've heard of the Beta Voltaic way, what's that? Are there any other ways to create efficient nuclear batteries? And how do they get rid of the materials after the battery's exhausted after decades? Like the water from a decay heat battery? Thanks.

Ok two things, First off about black holes. Ok so go back to idea that space-time is a fabric and heavy objects make a dent in the fabric and distort it. So say you take something really heavy and drop it onto this fabric, It could fall straight through and the fabric would break (especially if its small and heavy), there would be a hole? Is the super massive and dense objects created by collapsing stars too much for space time to handle and therefore it just breaks a hole in the fabric, or in the p-brane we sit on? Is that an accurate conceptualization about black holes? So now onto string theory and such… The way I understand it is that there are strings that s…

If I raised a note, for instance an A note, it would quickly proceed through until its Gmajor, then repeating back again the same notes but on the next higher octave. Can anyone tell me the the result if i kept raising it to its infinite? would the high octaves EVENTUALLY repeat back to an extremely low octave, which would once again eventually come back to the earlier A note i spoke of? That could be a stupid question, as im not experienced with the physics of sound or science in general. Thankyou all.

I read in an amazon book review that the entanglement experiments have shown that reality is "non-local". I know that entangled particles seem to interact with each other no matter their distance but can anyone explain how can this have the above implication? What would it actually mean for physics if reality was indeed "non-local"?

someone I know slightly via internet has just now posted some reseach http://arxiv.org/abs/gr-qc/0511120 Clifford bundle formulation of BF gravity generalized to the standard model A. Garrett Lisi 24 pages "The structure and dynamics of the standard model and gravity are described by a Clifford valued connection and its curvature." congratulations if you see this (you wont) EDIT, ecoli I meant to say "congratulations" to Garrett on the paper, if he happens to see this thread, but it sounded foolish---like a general announcement :\ the topic is very interesting----a major goal is to combine gravity with the Std Model of particle physics so you have a …

Hi sorry if my questions are a bit fuzzy or if it's in the wrong part of the forum. In order to alter an atoms electromagnetic field would it be necessary for it to be a good conductor of electicity? If you alter the em field a substance (silicon for instance) by passing an electric current through it, does its ablility to bond with other atoms improve while it is being altered? thanks:-)

I just found that site: http://particleadventure.org/particleadventure/index.html I think that it might interest some people here;)

Correct me if i'm wrong but i have always understood the reason why we cannot reach the speed of light is because our energy is turned to mass to we become infinately heavy. If this is true then why cannot massless particals such as neutrinos reach the speed of light. Also how can massless particles be propeled as i thought kinetic energy required mass??

http://www.cs.auckland.ac.nz/~jas/one/freewill-theorem.html

Hi guys! From what I understand about the string theory: It is a theory that is trying to unifry the four fundamental forces of nature (electromagnetism, gravity, the weak force, and the strong force). The string theory tries to create a set of master equations that will unifry all those four forces. My question is, what will the equations actually tell us? What will they calculate?

Does anyone know what physical forces would cause a plasma to form a double helix on the output of a Tesla Coil? You can see the TC in question at the link below http://www.rmcybernetics.com/projects/DIY_Devices/homemade_tesla_coil.htm Cheers, DaveyJones

I recently had to do an experiment to show how aluminium absorbs β-particles from a strontium source. I was wondering, does the distance between the source and the aluminium sheet affect the absorption if the Geiger tube is the same distance from the strontium?

I am reserching Scanning Tunneling Electron Microscopes, what are pro's and con's of them? any help would be appreciated, thanks for any help.

Hi there all you physics fans! I have recently wondered about this question after watching a program on String Theory (It was great too ). How could string theory be used to explain a black hole? Would it be something like a large collection of closed strings forming lots of gravitons in one place? I also have another question. Why is the graviton massless? Is there a reason for this? Thanks for your help on these questions Ryan Jones

I'm starting this thread as a discussion space for the PBS series on string theory that can be found here. The general topic is String Theory, so anything related can go here, but it is more specifically intended for those who have watched this series and have questions/comments about it. I have tons of questions myself, and this is my primary motive in starting this thread. I hope there's some more knowledgeable people out there who can answer them. I intend to change the topic to other questions (as I scratch them off my list ) when I feel the discussion is getting old or dwindling down, but anyone can feel free to lead the discussion in any direction they want…

When a conductor moves in a magnetic field that is between the two poles- north and south, the Electro Motive Force is developed and current starts to flow in the conductor. (When the conductor moves in a magnetic field at the right angle to the magnetic lines the current in the coductor has its maximum value) Why the current starts to flow? This is my opinion. When the conductor moves in the magnet field there will be a circular magnet field developed around the conductor because of the movement through the magnetic lines. The faster the conductor moves the more circular the magnetic field will be formed around it. I think that it is the circular magnet…

Equations for the theories - Where to find them? Hi there everyone! Does anyone happen to know where I can find the equations used in theories like string theory? These will probably have to use what so ever too me (I do not yet understand them but someday I may ) - I'd just like to look at them fopr now and use them later. If anyone knows any internet sites that have them or any books that have them then please let me know Cheers, Ryan Jones

If we look at the atoms the orbtial arrangment of electrons is not simple a spherical. This implies that the nucleur protons are not just in some average random state. The distinct orbital variety suggests the nuclear protons forming their own distinct orbtial variety. This would allow magnetic addtion within the nucleus leading to fancier electron orbitals. Based on this theory, if one was to add many addtional electrons to an atom its should have an impact on the orbtial configuration of protons within the nucleus. Enough addtional orbital electrons should kick the protons into higher nuclear orbital states and maybe cause fission. Theoretically, one way one m…

Hi everyone! I've wondered about this for a long time... what is megnetism? I know its when all the atoms align up and form a field (Either that or they just simplified it to make it easier to understand in lower school science.). I also have another question: Why do only certain types of compounds and elements show it - is it caused by something to do with the nucleus? Also, how would this fit in with string theory, is there a particular particle assosicated with the transmission of a mangetic filed? Cheers, Ryan Jones