If fire is a reaction limited to planets with oxygen in their atmosphere, what other reactions would you find on planets with different atmospheric composition?

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• If fire is a reaction limited to planets with oxygen in their atmosphere, what other reactions would you find on planets with different atmospheric composition?
• Why does snow making a crunching noise when stepping on it?
• When scientists suggest the universe may be a hologram, what do they mean?
• What IS a wavefunction?
• How in detail does CPU cooling work?
• What causes the moon to take on a blood orange colour as it climbs up from the horizon at certain times of the year?
• Why are the latest sunrises and earliest sunsets not aligned?
• How is the universe 93 billion light-years across if it has only existed for 13.4 billion years?
• What are quantum dots (in terms of quantum mechanics please), and why is the only place I see them in TVs?
• What exactly is a BEC?
• What caused the massive spike in oxygen content in Earth's atmosphere 300 Million years ago?
• Can someone explain why a wider aperture causes a decrease in depth of field in lenses in terms of light physics?
• When an adult gains or loses a significant amount of weight (either fat or muscle), does the total volume of blood in their body change proportionally?
• In a nuclear chain reaction, what happens when a neutron is absorbed by an atom of uranium-238 (U-238) ?
• How is my computer password (eg. log in) stored on my computer and how safe is it compared to how a website would store that password?
• Are there any known deposits of organic material that are expected to become fossil fuels over the next few hundred, thousand or million years?
• Are spaceship docks and doorways backwards compatible?
• How would the combination of multiple salts in a solution affect the freezing point depression of the liquid?
• How is a spinning black hole different from a static black hole, and how can you know it is spinning if you cannot see inside the event horizon?
• How Malagasy(Madagascar's language) belongs to Austronesian language family (Indonesian)?
• Why don't we know everything, just by looking at the fundamental laws?
• How do quantum effects apply to the singularity of a black hole?
• If Astatine and Francium have half-lives measured in minutes/hours, how on Earth are they naturally occurring?
• Do bacteriophage commonly contain genes encoding tRNAs?

If fire is a reaction limited to planets with oxygen in their atmosphere, what other reactions would you find on planets with different atmospheric composition? Posted: 14 Dec 2016 06:28 PM PST Additionally, are there other fire-like reactions that would occur using different gases? Edit: Thanks for all the great answers you guys! Appreciate you answering despite my mistake with the whole oxidisation deal submitted by /u/DodgeBungalow [link] [comments]

Why does snow making a crunching noise when stepping on it? Posted: 15 Dec 2016 05:07 AM PST submitted by /u/TONewbies [link] [comments]

When scientists suggest the universe may be a hologram, what do they mean? Posted: 15 Dec 2016 04:30 AM PST I'm currently reading The Holographic Universe by Michael Talbot. The book is foundational to a lot of new age conspiracy theorists, and attempts to link the work of quantum physicists with the idea that the entire universe is a hologram. It provides people like David Icke a justification for believing in supernatural phenomena. I'm struggling to understand how this link can be made. It seems like Talbot doesn't quite grasp what scientists like David Bohm were actually saying, but as a non-scientist I can't entirely understand it myself. Can someone explain in clear terms so I can separate fact from superstition? submitted by /u/MrCarcosa [link] [comments]

What IS a wavefunction? Posted: 14 Dec 2016 11:06 AM PST Engineering undergrad here who just finished his first course in introductory quantum mechanics. In my class, particles such as electrons were described as "being" probability amplitudes as described by the wavefunction. I'm aware that the particle isn't strictly a "particle" in the sense of a really tiny marble, but I'm having difficulty in conceptualizing what the wavefunction "is" when it's not being measured. From what I understand, under the Copenhagen interpretation of QM the wavefunction describes the probability of the particle existing or not existing at a given location in space (and time too I presume, although we didn't go into the time-dependent Schrödinger equation). When the system is observed (measured), a location is chosen at random according to the probability amplitude described by the wavefunction, and the probability becomes 1 for that location (while it is being observed) and 0 at all other locations. What I don't quite get is how the system behaves when it's not being observed. I'm not talking about human observation here; rather, wouldn't any interaction with any other particle count as a "measurement"? And whether or not this is the case, how does the "particle" (the wavefunction) behave when it's not being measured? The wave packet MUST exist SOMEWHERE inside the probability distribution, but it's impossible to know where specifically without measurement. But, for example, in a hydrogen atom, the electron and the proton are interacting with each other; wouldn't that affect the wavefunction of both (more significantly the electron)? We discussed Moseley's law in class, and while we would expect the Z-n term in the Lα transition to be Z-9, it's been measured to be Z-7.4 Is this because of inter-electron interference? I guess to summarize, my basic question is: What is the wavefunction when it's not being measured? submitted by /u/picardythird [link] [comments]

How in detail does CPU cooling work? Posted: 15 Dec 2016 06:11 AM PST (sorry, english not first language) I thought that every cooling process, where something is cooled by (blowing) air (human body, human hair, cpu cooler etc) is done by evaporative cooling. I really don't know how it works in detail, but I assumed: Air blows past something and takes water particles with them. While they evaporate, they take energy from the cooled body with them. But how does it work in detail? (especially in a cpu cooler). I hope you guys can help me out here! submitted by /u/gameinfos [link] [comments]

What causes the moon to take on a blood orange colour as it climbs up from the horizon at certain times of the year? Posted: 14 Dec 2016 06:50 PM PST Tonight's moon was particularly large and orange as it rose tonight and prompted my 9 year old to ask a question that I couldn't answer. I thought that I'd reach out to Reddit rather than Google for this "Dad always finds the answer" info. submitted by /u/FrostyAce81 [link] [comments]

Why are the latest sunrises and earliest sunsets not aligned? Posted: 15 Dec 2016 05:54 AM PST Here in Boston the sun sets at 4:11 PM EST between December 3rd and Dec 13th. On Dec 21st the sun sets at 4:14 PM EST. I would naively expect that the sun would set the earliest on or about Dec 21st, not around Dec 8th. Likewise the latest sunrise is at 7:13 EST between Dec 30th and Jan 7th. This is done in such a way that the shortest days are around Dec 21st, particularly between the 18th and 24th the days are 9 hours and 4 minutes. In short, it seems the latest sunrise is around Dec 8th and earliest sunsets are around Jan 3rd. Why is this the case? Note: I'm using wunderground.com's astronomy data for Logan International Airport. submitted by /u/mc8675309 [link] [comments]

How is the universe 93 billion light-years across if it has only existed for 13.4 billion years? Posted: 14 Dec 2016 08:59 PM PST I've searched on google for this and found no answer so here I am. If the edges of the universe are expanding away from each other at the speed of light for 13.4 billion years you would think they would be 26.8 billion light-years apart by now. I know inflation was a period that where universe expanded much faster than the speed of light. Is that what made the universe so big? Did inflation (which according to google only lasted 32 seconds) cause the universe to expand 66.2 billion light-years? (93-26.8) Would love to understand this. submitted by /u/accelangel4 [link] [comments]

What are quantum dots (in terms of quantum mechanics please), and why is the only place I see them in TVs? Posted: 15 Dec 2016 12:08 AM PST submitted by /u/etothelnx [link] [comments]

What exactly is a BEC? Posted: 14 Dec 2016 03:21 PM PST (Advanced) (simple) The BEC is a abundance of material which is condensed down. The atoms lost its particles and compacted. We know things at absolute 0 stop moving. With the observed behavior of the elements (fast gas, fast liquid, slow solid, almost still BEC), you could assume the next step would be negative movement or the consumption/repulsion of energy, like a magnet. What about if the particles lose mass at absolute zero? Wouldn't all be able to fit in one place because they would then be massless? What about this in respect to the big bang theory? Wouldn't that explain why everything exploded 'in the beginning of time'? Everything somehow got energy and exploded? submitted by /u/Hydroque [link] [comments]

What caused the massive spike in oxygen content in Earth's atmosphere 300 Million years ago? Posted: 14 Dec 2016 01:17 PM PST submitted by /u/Crooked_Cricket [link] [comments]

Can someone explain why a wider aperture causes a decrease in depth of field in lenses in terms of light physics? Posted: 14 Dec 2016 07:05 PM PST This is a photography question, but I don't think most photographers understand why a wide aperture causes a decrease in depth of field, so I came here to ask you lovely people for a more scientific answer Bonus points: why would a bigger sensor create a smaller depth of field compared to a smaller, crop sensor? submitted by /u/bearpics16 [link] [comments]

When an adult gains or loses a significant amount of weight (either fat or muscle), does the total volume of blood in their body change proportionally? Posted: 14 Dec 2016 10:58 AM PST submitted by /u/maskeddingbat [link] [comments]

In a nuclear chain reaction, what happens when a neutron is absorbed by an atom of uranium-238 (U-238) ? Posted: 15 Dec 2016 04:12 AM PST I was reading this wiki link and it says this - "A possible nuclear fission chain reaction. 1. A uranium-235 atom absorbs a neutron, and fissions into two new atoms (fission fragments), releasing three new neutrons and a large amount of binding energy. 2. One of those neutrons is absorbed by an atom of uranium-238, and does not continue the reaction ........" What happens when this neutron is absorbed ? Does it lead to the formation of a heavier atom ? Is the product stable ? submitted by /u/Hitesh0630 [link] [comments]

How is my computer password (eg. log in) stored on my computer and how safe is it compared to how a website would store that password? Posted: 15 Dec 2016 12:15 AM PST I've seen videos on hashes and and the correct and safe ways for websites to store your username and password, but what about on my PC? Back when I had a macbook I used to be able to access pretty much every password I'd saved with a built in app called 'keychain access' or the likes I don't know if that's a thing with windows now but in hindsight that doesn't feel very safe. Whats stopping a hacker from say accessing that Application and seeing what my stored password is for my bank account or email? How securely are my saved passwords stored on my PC? Edit: this video by Computerphile is what I mean, also this one submitted by /u/MagratheanDawn [link] [comments]

Are there any known deposits of organic material that are expected to become fossil fuels over the next few hundred, thousand or million years? Posted: 14 Dec 2016 07:10 PM PST I know the coal production peaked in the carboniferous era, but have we found any coal/oil/natural gas deposits that are still 'in development'? submitted by /u/sacrelicious2 [link] [comments]

Are spaceship docks and doorways backwards compatible? Posted: 14 Dec 2016 10:50 AM PST Just curious if a standard has been developed and how recently? Could Apollo modules dock to the ISS? What about Vostok and other early craft? submitted by /u/dammitkarissa [link] [comments]

How would the combination of multiple salts in a solution affect the freezing point depression of the liquid? Posted: 14 Dec 2016 02:35 PM PST I have been doing some more work in my job to attempt to get a already quite saturated solution that freezes at about -2 degrees Celsius to freeze at approximately -20 degrees so that it can be used over a greater geographical area. I have been looking into and trying single salt brines (Currently Potassium formate) at varying concentrations of that to neat product however been having issues with the contents of the product crashing out of solution from the higher salt content). I have been looking into a mix of Sodium formate and Potassium formate. My question is which I haven't been able to find an explanation on is how does a multi salt brine compare to single salt brines with regards to the freezing point depression of the liquid. (As note we have tried the usual antifreeze chemicals (MPG, MEG, glycerine) which have caused the product to crash out again) submitted by /u/NatureLovingChemist [link] [comments]

How is a spinning black hole different from a static black hole, and how can you know it is spinning if you cannot see inside the event horizon? Posted: 14 Dec 2016 11:27 AM PST submitted by /u/Nergaal [link] [comments]

How Malagasy(Madagascar's language) belongs to Austronesian language family (Indonesian)? Posted: 14 Dec 2016 04:19 PM PST https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b4/Human_Language_Families_%28wikicolors%29.png Recently I saw this and I wonder, there is thousands kilometers between Madagascar and Indonesia. It looks impossible to belonging same language family, but it happened. I wonder how it is possible? submitted by /u/huseyin1345 [link] [comments]

Why don't we know everything, just by looking at the fundamental laws? Posted: 15 Dec 2016 12:45 AM PST Thanks for reading my question :) I've always wondered why we can't just make a computer simulation which strictly follows the most basic laws of physics and from there tell everything. Why is it necessary to derive special-case laws? Take Electromagnetism for example: as far as I've been told at my uni-course, the four Maxwell equations basically tell us everything we need to know. So how come there is still need for research? Another example would be aerodynamics of objects approaching supersonic speeds. I mean we know the most fundamental rules to which airmolecules must abide, so how is this still not a solved problem? The examples I came up with aren't perfect, but I don't know how to describe my question otherwise. I hope you can get the gist of it :) submitted by /u/The_Chosen_Pessimist [link] [comments]

How do quantum effects apply to the singularity of a black hole? Posted: 14 Dec 2016 01:56 PM PST I understand that general relativity breaks down at the singularity and then usually my professors say that "singularities probably don't really exist in nature and quantum effects become important and should be taken into account". But in which way is this being done? Should I for example imagine some kind of uncertainty principle applying to the singularity making it 'fuzzy' instead of 'point like'? I understand we have no complete theory of quantum gravity but are there any 'semiclassical' ideas that give some hint of what those quantum effects would do to a singularity? Thanks. submitted by /u/ultraking_x2 [link] [comments]

If Astatine and Francium have half-lives measured in minutes/hours, how on Earth are they naturally occurring? Posted: 15 Dec 2016 12:10 AM PST Sorry for the pun. submitted by /u/figurativelypam [link] [comments]

Do bacteriophage commonly contain genes encoding tRNAs? Posted: 15 Dec 2016 12:01 AM PST I was watching a lecture through about pathogenicity islands and the lecturer mentioned that they have a tendency to occur near tRNA genes due to them being highly conserved. I also know that when prophages excise themselves they can take some of the chromosomal DNA with them. Now if this was the case then surely lots of bacteriophage would contain tRNA due to them integrating near these sites? submitted by /u/SendMe5quid [link] [comments]

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When its said that stars orbit the center of galaxies too fast for gravity to hold them, and thus there must be dark matter, is the relativistic mass gained due to their speed accounted for?

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• When its said that stars orbit the center of galaxies too fast for gravity to hold them, and thus there must be dark matter, is the relativistic mass gained due to their speed accounted for?
• Why do lower frequencies seem to travel through materials easier?
• do we actually get vitamin D from the sun, or does sunlight just make it easier for our bodies to absorb the vit. D we get from food?
• Ask Anything Wednesday - Physics, Astronomy, Earth and Planetary Science
• Will we ever be able to send probes onto harsh condition planets?
• Whats going on in your brain while you sleep that makes sleep so important?
• How does gamma radiation effect specific elements, and how long does it linger in soil/air/water?
• Can we estimate what the highest surface air temperature could have been during the historically warmer periods, e.g. during Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum?
• What causes the rising bubbles in carbonated drinks and champagne?
• Why does NO (Nitrogen Monoixde) have nitrogen coming before oxygen in the compound? Why not name it Oxygen Mononitride?
• How does fasting affect cognitive functioning over time?
• Why does the wormhole theory exist at all?
• Why do complex numbers always come in pairs?
• How do credit card chips work?
• Are several copies of the same memory stored in the brain?
• The Intel Broadwell-EP Xeon is a processor with over 7.2 billion transistors. How is something with that many parts designed or manufactured?
• Can the fact that time only flows in one direction be derived from general relativity or is it a postulate in the theory?
• Can active noise cancellation damage hearing over time?
• How to Bubbles work? [More Details in Description]
• How long until the New Horizons spacecraft surpasses the Voyager and Mariner spacecraft? Will that happen in our lifetime?

When its said that stars orbit the center of galaxies too fast for gravity to hold them, and thus there must be dark matter, is the relativistic mass gained due to their speed accounted for? Posted: 14 Dec 2016 02:08 AM PST submitted by /u/avaslash [link] [comments]

Why do lower frequencies seem to travel through materials easier? Posted: 13 Dec 2016 08:00 PM PST You can hear the bass in a song throughout an entire house basically. Why is it that the higher frequencies seem to get lost? submitted by /u/Upshft [link] [comments]

do we actually get vitamin D from the sun, or does sunlight just make it easier for our bodies to absorb the vit. D we get from food? Posted: 13 Dec 2016 02:43 PM PST And if we get it from the sun then how does it work? submitted by /u/Eternasphere [link] [comments]

Ask Anything Wednesday - Physics, Astronomy, Earth and Planetary Science Posted: 14 Dec 2016 07:05 AM PST Welcome to our weekly feature, Ask Anything Wednesday - this week we are focusing on Physics, Astronomy, Earth and Planetary Science Do you have a question within these topics you weren't sure was worth submitting? Is something a bit too speculative for a typical /r/AskScience post? No question is too big or small for AAW. In this thread you can ask any science-related question! Things like: "What would happen if...", "How will the future...", "If all the rules for 'X' were different...", "Why does my...". Asking Questions: Please post your question as a top-level response to this, and our team of panellists will be here to answer and discuss your questions. The other topic areas will appear in future Ask Anything Wednesdays, so if you have other questions not covered by this weeks theme please either hold on to it until those topics come around, or go and post over in our sister subreddit /r/AskScienceDiscussion , where every day is Ask Anything Wednesday! Off-theme questions in this post will be removed to try and keep the thread a manageable size for both our readers and panellists. Answering Questions: Please only answer a posted question if you are an expert in the field. The full guidelines for posting responses in AskScience can be found here. In short, this is a moderated subreddit, and responses which do not meet our quality guidelines will be removed. Remember, peer reviewed sources are always appreciated, and anecdotes are absolutely not appropriate. In general if your answer begins with 'I think', or 'I've heard', then it's not suitable for /r/AskScience. If you would like to become a member of the AskScience panel, please refer to the information provided here. Past AskAnythingWednesday posts can be found here. Ask away! submitted by /u/AutoModerator [link] [comments]

Will we ever be able to send probes onto harsh condition planets? Posted: 14 Dec 2016 05:09 AM PST Will it ever be possible for humans to send a probe into say Venus or Jupiter and be able to not only survive but relay video/photos of the event? It would be amazing to see what these extreme planets actually look like on the surface. submitted by /u/mrdoober [link] [comments]

Whats going on in your brain while you sleep that makes sleep so important? Posted: 13 Dec 2016 08:49 PM PST This is more of a neuroscience question, do specific physiological processes take place during sleep that only occur only in a unconscious state? submitted by /u/Lee_the_scientist [link] [comments]

How does gamma radiation effect specific elements, and how long does it linger in soil/air/water? Posted: 13 Dec 2016 08:55 PM PST Before I ask at r/chemhelp, thought I'd try here. Writing a science fiction story, that involves societies on Earth with helium-fueled fusion reactors powering virtually all of the giant cities around the globe, and am now researching what would happen if an advanced civilization would cope with a gamma ray burst. Was wondering - would the gamma radiation effect Helium-3 in any way? And while I'm asking that, how would it effect the state of deuterium? One last query on gamma radiation - how long does an effected area stay radioactive after exposure to gamma radiation? submitted by /u/mrjwr [link] [comments]

Can we estimate what the highest surface air temperature could have been during the historically warmer periods, e.g. during Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum? Posted: 14 Dec 2016 03:59 AM PST submitted by /u/daneelr_olivaw [link] [comments]

What causes the rising bubbles in carbonated drinks and champagne? Posted: 13 Dec 2016 11:45 PM PST submitted by /u/DEADSCOPED [link] [comments]

Why does NO (Nitrogen Monoixde) have nitrogen coming before oxygen in the compound? Why not name it Oxygen Mononitride? Posted: 13 Dec 2016 10:56 AM PST submitted by /u/Parzivelthegreat [link] [comments]

How does fasting affect cognitive functioning over time? Posted: 13 Dec 2016 09:46 AM PST I'm curious about fasting and it's affect on normal cognitive functioning? Evolutionarily wouldn't it be a disadvantage if fasting negatively affecting cognitive functioning significantly? Historically people didn't have as much access to food during winter months and I'm curious about how this affected their day to day lives. submitted by /u/popwinner [link] [comments]

Why does the wormhole theory exist at all? Posted: 13 Dec 2016 02:39 PM PST When two of my friends were talking about wormholes and i told them there is no evidence at all for wormholes they started talking about how multiple scientists claim they do exist. We all proceeded to look it up and I was correct however I do not understand where the theory even came from. Is the theory that black holes are wormholes and if so how would something that simply has an unimaginable mass in a small space make you transport to a different place in space. Also what made scientists think about such a theory was some anomaly in space observed that suggested the existence of them? Thank you for ur help! :) submitted by /u/Darth_Meme_Pepe [link] [comments]

Why do complex numbers always come in pairs? Posted: 13 Dec 2016 01:54 PM PST For example, if we discover the coefficient matrix of a system of differential equations has complex eigenvalues (say a±bi), why do the corresponding eigenvectors also come with conjugates (say {c±di, e})? submitted by /u/Static_Unit [link] [comments]

How do credit card chips work? Posted: 13 Dec 2016 02:14 PM PST How do credit card chips work differently than the magnetic strips? Why can the credit card chip not be intercepted by a scammer and be reproduced while the magnetic strip can? submitted by /u/der_dutchess [link] [comments]

Are several copies of the same memory stored in the brain? Posted: 13 Dec 2016 09:53 AM PST Is there just one single copy, or are there several. If so, are they all stored in the same hemisphere? submitted by /u/Fornaas [link] [comments]

The Intel Broadwell-EP Xeon is a processor with over 7.2 billion transistors. How is something with that many parts designed or manufactured? Posted: 13 Dec 2016 10:44 AM PST So even if there is a machine that quickly place 7.2 billion parts, someone had to say where they go. Even if we accept that this happened over time, the number of transistors added to subsequent models has increased exponentially so designing new ones seems increasingly difficult. Code does quite a bit I'm sure, but then how are they placed? With some kind of template I'd assume, but of course the question is how long does it take to make the template? submitted by /u/TheFlying [link] [comments]

Can the fact that time only flows in one direction be derived from general relativity or is it a postulate in the theory? Posted: 13 Dec 2016 12:53 PM PST How does the minus sign in the metric result in time being unidirectional? I was never really satisfied with using the 'entropy always increases' argument in the context of GR. submitted by /u/ultraking_x2 [link] [comments]

Can active noise cancellation damage hearing over time? Posted: 13 Dec 2016 07:29 AM PST It's my understanding that active noise cancellation generates the inverse of an incoming audio wave to cancel out the incoming wave. That would create double the energy passing over the eardrum. However, because the the waves have been cancelled, the eardrum does not vibrate/absorb energy. If that is the case, then how is the energy in the two waves dissipated? submitted by /u/Coconut_Twister [link] [comments]

How to Bubbles work? [More Details in Description] Posted: 13 Dec 2016 06:35 PM PST I simply don't understand the physics of bubbles, why they float instead of immediately falling to the earth. How the bubble maintains its shape, along with why smaller bubbles always seem to be a sphere while larger ones are amorphous blobs. Also why do bubbles look like they collapse in on themselves when they pop instead of explode outward... I just don't understand bubbles, this stuff has been annoying me for a long time. Can someone please explain the inner workings of bubble physics? submitted by /u/BulbStar [link] [comments]

How long until the New Horizons spacecraft surpasses the Voyager and Mariner spacecraft? Will that happen in our lifetime? Posted: 13 Dec 2016 08:35 AM PST submitted by /u/Steveman180 [link] [comments]

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AskScience AMA Series: I'm David Biello, science curator for TED Talks. I just wrote a book about how people's impact are permanently altering our planet for the (geologic) long term. AMA!

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• AskScience AMA Series: I'm David Biello, science curator for TED Talks. I just wrote a book about how people's impact are permanently altering our planet for the (geologic) long term. AMA!
• Does the infinite series 1/1-1/2+1/3-1/4... converge?
• So on the front page is a post about oil being able to completely cover an area of water with a one molecule thick layer. For large industrial oil spills, how does this layer affect the absorption of carbon from the atmosphere?
• Can a potential difference between two plates strip away electrons from one of the plates?
• Are psychosomatic symptoms cultural? Regional?
• Why is SO2 possible, but not S2O?
• Is it possible to cool water down past 0C without it turning into ice?
• Why are the Maldives so flat?
• Is there a closed-form equation for this type of curve generated by connecting points on a graph?
• Why are so many basic Physics formulas in the form of 0.5ab^2?
• How are the two main definitions of entropy equivalent?
• How are fast nuclear reactor operated ?
• Is there an upper limit for the size of a star?
• What is the best book that describes current string theory (or how it's evolved)?
• What are the different ways to contain a magnetic field? Also, is there a magnet which self-contains it own field within a specified volume?
• What is the origin of the "fine" and "hyperfine" structures?
• What makes it ok for sea mammals to drink sea water?
• How dramatically does human behavior change when a person understands their actions won't be punished/have consequences?
• Why aren't there "snow thunderstorms?"
• What is a tensor and why should I care about one?

AskScience AMA Series: I'm David Biello, science curator for TED Talks. I just wrote a book about how people's impact are permanently altering our planet for the (geologic) long term. AMA! Posted: 13 Dec 2016 05:00 AM PST I am a science journalist who has been writing about the environment long enough to be cynical but not long enough to be completely depressed. I'm the science curator for TED Talks, a contributing editor at Scientific American, and just wrote a book about this idea that people's impacts have become so pervasive and permanent that we deserve our own epoch in the geologic time scale. Some people call it the Anthropocene, though that's not my favorite name for this new people's epoch, which will include everything from the potential de-extinction of animals like the passenger pigeon or woolly mammoth to big interventions to try to clean up the pollution from our long-term pyromania when it comes to fossil fuels. I live near a Superfund site (no, really) and I've been lucky enough to visit five out of seven continents to report on people, the environment, and energy. I'll be joining starting at 2 PM EST (18 UT). AMA. submitted by /u/AskScienceModerator [link] [comments]

Does the infinite series 1/1-1/2+1/3-1/4... converge? Posted: 13 Dec 2016 04:09 AM PST I know the series 1 + 1/2 + 1/3 ... diverges, but if the sign changes every entry, does it still diverge? submitted by /u/Awdrgyjilpnj [link] [comments]

So on the front page is a post about oil being able to completely cover an area of water with a one molecule thick layer. For large industrial oil spills, how does this layer affect the absorption of carbon from the atmosphere? Posted: 12 Dec 2016 08:08 PM PST I've got to imagine that a large oil spill would literally cover hundreds of square miles if the oil is distributed as a one-molecule layer. Considering how often this happens, does it contribute to climate change, or is the effect relatively neutral? submitted by /u/LostSoulsAlliance [link] [comments]

Can a potential difference between two plates strip away electrons from one of the plates? Posted: 12 Dec 2016 05:56 PM PST I have a feeling the answer is yes I would just like to know if I am correct/why it's correct. I understand how the photoelectric effect works and how if a photon has enough energy it can free an electron from a metal (the examples I always saw in class had a setup with two parallel plates, with the freed electrons crossing the space in between the plates). So could a high enough potential difference (say like between the two plates) strip the electrons from the metal of one of the plates similar to the photoelectric effect? Picture that may clear up what I mean submitted by /u/stars_bitch67 [link] [comments]

Are psychosomatic symptoms cultural? Regional? Posted: 13 Dec 2016 04:14 AM PST Somatization and psychosomatic symptoms (such as headaches, back pains, diarrhoea, stomach cramps, respiratory distress, chest tightenings, etc) are prevalent in most populations. But do those symptoms tend to be more prevalent in specific cultures? Does one group of people exhibit primarily psychosomatic gastrointestinal symptoms, whereas a different group of people will have mainly musculoskeletal symptoms? Do people in Japan somatize mostly in headaches whereas people of a middle upper-class income exhibit mainly backpain? Are these differences of a cultural or regional nature? Do they evolve over time? submitted by /u/EdwardGrey [link] [comments]

Why is SO2 possible, but not S2O? Posted: 13 Dec 2016 02:13 AM PST Or for example why is H2SO4 possible, but not H2OS4? This question may sound dumb, but I can't work it out. Sulphur and oxygen have the same amount of electrons in the valence shell, so shouldn't they be interchangeable in compounds? submitted by /u/GlaciaX [link] [comments]

Is it possible to cool water down past 0C without it turning into ice? Posted: 13 Dec 2016 02:43 AM PST submitted by /u/IAlreadyHaveTheKey [link] [comments]

Why are the Maldives so flat? Posted: 12 Dec 2016 03:45 PM PST I would have thought that, as islands, they would be the "peaks" of mountains/volcanoes sticking out of the water meaning they would be hardly flat at all. submitted by /u/marley88 [link] [comments]

Is there a closed-form equation for this type of curve generated by connecting points on a graph? Posted: 12 Dec 2016 04:11 PM PST This picture shows the curve which is generated by connecting the points (0, 0) to (10, 0), (0, 1) to (9, 0), and so on. Of course, the endpoints don't have to be (10, 0) and (0, 10), they can be (X, 0) and (0, X). My question is: as I increase the number of subdivisions, e.g. connecting (0, 0.1) to (9.9, 0), until the spacing between lines becomes an infinitesimal quantity, is there a closed-form equation for the resulting curve that bounds all the lines within, assuming I use the endpoints (10, 0) and (0, 10)? My guess, just from looking at the rough shape of the curve, is that it is the arc of a quarter-circle with the center at (10, 10). Or is it not as simple as that? submitted by /u/F21A577A1A5CF54951A9 [link] [comments]

Why are so many basic Physics formulas in the form of 0.5ab^2? Posted: 12 Dec 2016 07:03 PM PST The title pretty much sums up my question. To be more specific however, why are so many of the basic mechanics physics formulas all in the same general form of 0.5ab2. For example, Kinetic Energy is 0.5mv2, and spring potential is 0.5kx2. In the kinematic equation x=xit+0.5at2, the 0.5at2 shows up again. In the formula for energy of a particle in simple harmonic motion, the energy formula is once again 0.5kA2. It even shows up sometimes in some of the most basic electricity and magnetism formulas for potential energy. Obviously some constant times x, when integrated, gives 0.5cx2, but I was curious is there is some other reason this form for equations shows up so often, or if it just a product of integration. My apologies if this is a very basic question, or a meaningless one. I am still in high school physics and haven't reached anywhere close to a high level of understanding with regards to physics. Thanks! submitted by /u/teleknight [link] [comments]

How are the two main definitions of entropy equivalent? Posted: 12 Dec 2016 03:40 PM PST I've heard two definitions of entropy that seem slightly different, one from the thermodynamic perspective and one from stat mech. How are the two equivalent or consistent? Mathematical proofs are fine and appreciated. submitted by /u/wanker75 [link] [comments]

How are fast nuclear reactor operated ? Posted: 13 Dec 2016 05:40 AM PST Hi there, I am looking for fellow nuclear engineers working on fast reactors as a question popped in my mind. If the neutron spectrum is fast (e.g. around 400 keV for SFR) in a fast nuclear reactor , then how do control rods work ? After a little research, I found that control rods are made in boron-10 (B4C), which is well known for having a big capture cross section. But how is that enough for fast reactors ? Your rods are only going to "eat up" the thermal tail of the spectrum, but the "hard" part will still remain and contribute to the reactivity, which by definition for a fast reactor is the main part ? Am I missing something ? submitted by /u/GoBackToTheKitchen [link] [comments]

Is there an upper limit for the size of a star? Posted: 12 Dec 2016 10:59 AM PST So, I know that when a star dies, its size dictates its final fate - from going supernova and ending up as a black hole to fading into a white dwarf. I also know that a star's size roughly dictates the length of its lifespan, with larger stars burning out more quickly. I also do know that there is a lower limit to the size of a star - a minimum mass before fusion can be achieved. So, is there any maximum mass for a star? Like a point where the star just instantly goes supernova, or just is unstable? I'm not sure if I'm phrasing the question well, but I hope it is understandable. If there is an upper limit, what is the calculation or theory used to derive this value? Thank you! submitted by /u/blackspidey2099 [link] [comments]

What is the best book that describes current string theory (or how it's evolved)? Posted: 12 Dec 2016 08:19 PM PST Something along the lines of "The Elegant Universe" - which as a layperson I could understand (mostly, I think...). But that book came out years ago and I'd to stick my beak back into things and read about what some really smart people thing the universe actually is. I really enjoy this stuff, but I'm not in the know on what books really talk about the bleeding edge stuff and what are the "good" ones (so far google searches haven't been a huge amount of help, because they bring up so many books from years and years ago...and I don't know who the really respected authors are). Thanks in advance!! submitted by /u/noo8 [link] [comments]

What are the different ways to contain a magnetic field? Also, is there a magnet which self-contains it own field within a specified volume? Posted: 13 Dec 2016 04:52 AM PST I'm trying to engineer a mechanism that uses magnets in vehicles for power transmission. However, I don't want the magnet to interfere with any other component in the vehicle. Any idea on how to contain its magnetic field under my desired volume? Alternatively, is there any type of magnet that self-contains its field so I don't have to end up using more parts? submitted by /u/YellowJalapa [link] [comments]

What is the origin of the "fine" and "hyperfine" structures? Posted: 12 Dec 2016 03:12 PM PST I know it's to do with angular momenta coupling, but I don't understand what this physically means. If the electronic and nuclear angular momenta couple together, why does this result in a splitting of states? submitted by /u/Ajaac [link] [comments]

What makes it ok for sea mammals to drink sea water? Posted: 12 Dec 2016 08:11 PM PST For us land bearing folk, drinking too much salt water is bad. But whales and sea lions don't have much of a choice, right? submitted by /u/MechBearded [link] [comments]

How dramatically does human behavior change when a person understands their actions won't be punished/have consequences? Posted: 12 Dec 2016 07:53 PM PST Or if there are any prominent studies performed in this area I could read up on, that would also be incredibly helpful submitted by /u/dothesports [link] [comments]

Why aren't there "snow thunderstorms?" Posted: 12 Dec 2016 09:00 AM PST We all know about rain thunderstorms, but I don't ever remember experiencing a snow thunderstorm. Do they not exist? If so, why? submitted by /u/UNoahGuy [link] [comments]

What is a tensor and why should I care about one? Posted: 12 Dec 2016 08:13 AM PST We are learning about tensors in EM but all we got were a list of axioms instead of an explanation of what one is. As if we were introduced to vectors by being given the abstract definition of a vector space without being told its something with a magnitude and direction. submitted by /u/gatherinfer [link] [comments]

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