Ep. 03 of The Stires Physics Podcast - Scientific Notation and Orders of Magnitude

Did you know that kilogram is a scientific term that means 1,000 grams? Did you know that there is more than one way to express very large numbers? In science we use scientific notation to express numbers and we use orders of magnitude to get a general sense of how much larger something is when compared to something else. Orders of magnitude refer to the powers of ten of a number that is in scientific notation. If an object is one order of magnitude larger than another object; then that means it is 10 times larger or 10 to the 1 power larger. If it is two orders of magnitude larger than the other object; then that object is 100 times larger or 10 to the 2 powers larger. It is important to understand different notations numbers can be written in science (standard notation, scientific notation, or e notation). These various notations will continually come up in physics and in our future discussions. If I tell you that a planet is three orders of magnitude more massive than another object; I am telling you that the planet is 1,000 times more massive, which is an immense difference. Please feel free to leave comments and questions that you would like for us to address in our next podcast! Remember, we must address this basic concepts in order to have a strong foundation and more easily comprehend larger popular science topics that we will delve into in our future podcasts.

Enchanted Learning (Mentioned in Podcast)
Wikipedia - Orders of Magnitude (A quick Reference to Clarify some things)

A Second Podcast is up!

In this, our second episode of The Stires Physics Podcast, we covered such topics as Mass, Matter, Speed, Velocity, Force, and Acceleration. We were able to address what each term means and what their proper units are. In order for you to gain a deeper understanding and have a greater appreciation for the major more popular physics topics; it is important for us to go through the terminologies and scientific language that we will be using in this blog and that you will undoubtedly come across in any general science text book. Below are some wikipedia links to clarify terms that were addressed in the podcast. Enjoy!

Mass
Matter
Speed
Velocity
Force
Acceleration

Our First Podcast!

Thank you for joining us on our very first podcast. I'm sure we didn't get everything right the first time, but we will be working hard to improve our podcast for our sake and for the sake of all our listeners. I know we briefly touched upon the topic of the Big Bang during the podcast and want to take some time now to delve deeper into the subject.

Before the Big Bang, there were no stars, no planets, no life forms. Everything was packed together in a small confined space, somewhat like a single point. These elements collided with each other, were heated, and caused immense pressure to build up. Because of the heat and immense pressure, everything exploded out into space, collided, and combined to create quarks, and eventually helium and heavier elements. These elements collided, gasses mixed, and planets formed after many years. Our Universe is expanding and has been for some time. We know that our universe is expanding because when we look at stars from earth we can tell they are moving away from us. Stars moving away from us look red, whereas stars that are moving toward us look like they are blue. This is because of something called a Doppler Shift. Even though our universe is expanding, we also know that it is slowing down. Sooner or later, we believe that the universe will stop its expansion and start to possibly contract. Once our universe starts to contract, we are not sure if it will go back to the way it was prior to the Big Bang or just stop all together. Not only is our universe expanding, but nearby galaxies seem to be moving further and further away from us. One would conclude that if these galaxies are moving away from us, then we must be at the center. Even though you may be tempted to believe this, don't. Imagine you are sitting on a raisin on a piece of rising yeast among other raisins. As the yeast rises the raisins around you seem to get further and further away from you. However, if you were sitting on one of the other raisins you would also see the same thing and believe you were at the center of the action as well. This is why we can only say that our sun is the center of our universe. The sun is at the center of our solar system, which is why we say our universe is heliocentric. These ideas of universe expansion, planetary formation, and more will be touched on in future podcasts so stay tuned and thank you for listening. Remember, this is, "For you, for me, and for the sake of understanding the world around us."

Purpose of the Blog

The purpose of this blog is to introduce and communicate to you current technology and physics happenings that have impacted and currently shape our lives. This series of blogs will be used to spark discussion and raise curiosity about physics in the world around us. These blog topics, along with the podcasts, will be touched on in class and on the wiki pages for this class. Make sure you stay up to date with these three platforms for opening discussion as it will be required for you to contribute to class postings and discussions on our wiki space.

Welcome!

Welcome! I am very excited you have joined us on this journey. We will be examining various topics within physics, explore physical relationships, and will try to better understand the world around us. This course is designed for you to explore physics through the use of technology combined with our classroom experiences. You will be asked on a weekly basis to respond and contribute to discussion boards, co-create wikis with your classmates, and collaborate on lab work and classroom material online. Podcasts, wikis, and blogs will be an important part of our class, class discussion, and will be factored into class participation. When communicating and contributing on these forms of technology, feel free to speak informally and use language that you are comfortable with. You will be required to contribute to the wikis, blogs, and subscribe to the podcast to ensure you stay up to date with the material for this class. Please follow the link at the bottom of this blog to this class's wiki page and listen to the first of many podcasts for this class. Thank you! I hope you are as excited as I am about this new upcoming school year in physics!


Stires Physics Wiki

If the link to Stires Physics Wiki doesn't work try typing in the link below:

http://stiresphysics.wikispaces.com/