The Archimedes’ screw, also known as the water screw, screw pump, Archimedean screw, or Egyptian screw, is a machine used to pull water from a low-lying water body. Water is pumped by turning a screw-shaped surface inside a pipe. Archimedes screws are also used for materials such as powders and grains. Further, Archimedes screws could …
Quantum computers are computers which uses quantum phenomena such as entanglement and superposition to perform computing functions. Where a traditional computer uses bits, which are strings of numbers (think of the binary system, with 0s and 1s), to store information, a quantum computer uses a qubit. One can imagine a qubit like storing 0s and …
The Maxwell-Boltzmann distribution is a type of probability distribution named after James Clark Maxwell and Ludwig Boltzmann. It is an integral part of statistical mechanics. The distribution was first proposed by the Scottish physicist Maxwell in 1859 to describe the distribution of velocities among the molecules in a gas. Later, in 1871, the German physicist …
The Wheatstone Bridge is a special kind of electrical circuit used to measure a resistor’s resistance whose value we do not know. The wheatstone bridge circuit diagram is as follows: In the diagram, the unknown resistance Rx is to be measured; resistances R1, R2 and R3 are known, where R2 is adjustable. When the measured …
Astronomers have found a new way to see the mysterious dark matter haloes that surround galaxies. They report that this new method is 10 times more accurate and precise than the previous-best method. A paper outlining the new technique appeared in the Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society. We all know that current approximations …
Coulomb’s Law is a basic equation of electrostatics that explains how charged particles interact. It established the beginnings of the study of electromagnetism, in a quantitative form. It is often the first piece of information that beginners to electrostatics learn. Its legacy is seen in some form or the other in most electrostatics problems. History …
The kinematic equations describe the motion of an object in classical mechanics. In the simple case of uniformly accelerated motion in one dimension, they provide us with useful results for relating the variables involved. These variables include velocity (v), time (t), acceleration (a) and displacements (s) of the object. So, let us look at the …
Parallel axis theorem and Perpendicular axis theorem are two very important theorems in the field of rigid body mechanics. They help us generalize results about moments of inertia of objects to a variety of situations. This helps us in many calculations that get simplified in the process. Moment of Inertia Moment of inertia is the …
Vlasov equation is a differential equation that is used to model how plasma behaves and evolves over time. The equation has applications in fields where we have to deal with hot, charged particles, which interact with each other. An example is in stars in outer space, which are hot gases of charged particles. Prerequisites To …
Quantum gravity is one of the burning field in theoretical physics that tries to describe gravity according to the principles of quantum mechanics, and where quantum effects cannot be ignored, such as in the vicinity of black holes. Our most comprehensive theory of gravity currently is General Relativity, that explains gravity as a natural result …
Poisson’s equation is a partial differential equation that has many applications in physics. It helps model various physical situations. Knowing how to solve it is an essential tool for mathematical physicists in many fields. The Mathematical Statement Mathematically, Poisson’s equation is as follows: Where Δ is the Laplacian, v and u are functions we wish …
The modern understanding of the atom emerged in the early 20th century. The Quantum Mechanical Model of the atom was a major breakthrough in this process. It was a radical shift in thinking and helped scientists gain a more comprehensive understanding of nature. It now explains not just microscopic systems, like atoms, but also large-scale …
The Helmholtz equation is an important differential equation. It has many applications in various fields of physics, such as optics, acoustics, electrostatics and quantum mechanics. A lot of other related differential equations also use the methods used in solving Helmholtz equation Mathematical Background The Equation Expressed simply, the Helmholtz equation is written as where c …
Black holes are curious bodies that occur in cosmological physics. They sound almost exotic, with their unreal properties and air of mystery. Scientists studying them learn a lot more about our universe, at the extreme scales. Understanding Black Holes Introduction As experience on the Earth shows, most objects tossed up come back down. There however …
Stefan Boltzmann Law or Stefan’s law is an important law in thermodynamics. It relates the energy radiated by a blackbody to its temperature. It is called the Stefan-Boltzmann law after the two scientists who had major roles in its development, Josef Stefan and Ludwig Boltzmann. The Law What is a Blackbody? A blackbody is an …
When we hear the phrase ‘time travel’, the first thing that we usually think of is travelling backwards into the past, perhaps to see our past selves. This version of time travel is the one that is popularized by science fiction movies. What we seek to discuss here is the feasibility of time travel, both …
Kirchhoff’s Circuit Laws are two laws that help us analyze electric circuits in terms of their voltage and current. The two corresponding laws are hence called Kirchhoff’s Current Law and Kirchhoff’s Voltage Law. They are applicable for most day-to-day usage of electric circuits, though they have their limitations. The Laws Gustav Kirchhoff arrived at these …
The Fermi Paradox is a paradox dealing with intelligent extraterrestrial life. Put simply, there is a reasonable chance that intelligent life could have evolved somewhere in the observable universe so far, yet there is no evidence of it. It raises questions about our understanding regarding the origins of life, and of the universe as well. …
The Compton effect is a physical phenomenon that describes how X-rays interact with electrons. It is one of the pieces of evidence that led to the establishment of quantum theory. The Experiment The Compton effect was observed when X-rays were made to interact with matter. The experiment involved a beam of X-rays made to scatter …
The Poiseuille equation (also called Hagen-Poiseuille equation) is a fluid mechanical equation that helps us understand how pressure varies in a flowing liquid. Specifically, it deals with pressure drops in viscous, Newtonian, incompressible fluids showing non-accelerated laminar flow (i.e. the flow is smooth and not turbulent like in a fast-moving river). It has specific limitations, …
The age of the Universe has been something that fascinated all of humanity from ancient history. We have, in each of our cultures, tried to find an answer to this. While different traditions and myths give the universe different ages, the scientific view of the matter emerged only last century. How Do We Know The …
Dirac equation is a fundamental cornerstone of quantum field theory. It helps us understand the behavior of all spin 1/2 particles with mass such as electrons, protons, and fermions (matter particles) in general. It is as important to the understanding of QFT as Schrodinger’s equation is for the understanding of quantum mechanics. Background The branch …
The Higgs Boson is an elementary particle in physics. In the Standard Model of physics, it is a reason that most particles have mass. It was predicted theoretically in the 1970s before experimental verification came in 2012. The proof of its existence gave further strength to the Standard Model of Physics. Theoretical Basis In the …
Arrhenius equation is an equation in chemistry that helps calculate how chemical reactions change their speed based on temperature. The Equation The equation states that Let us understand the terms involved: k is the rate constant, which tells how fast the reaction proceeds. A is the pre-exponential factor or probability factor or Arrhenius constant. In …
Fermat’s Last Theorem is one of the most intriguing problem of number theory. Legendary mathematician Pierre de Fermat stated it without any proof in 1637. In its earliest form, it turned up scribbled in the margin of a mathematics book that Fermat was reading. But what does it say? Fermat’s Last Theorem states that no …
