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Monday, August 20, 2018

What is the smallest size a fire can be?

What is the smallest size a fire can be?


What is the smallest size a fire can be?

Posted: 19 Aug 2018 10:44 PM PDT

When someone is sight reading a piece of music, what is happening in their brain? Has anyone ever monitored brain activity during sight reading? If so, Is it similar to when someone reads a language?

Posted: 19 Aug 2018 09:56 AM PDT

How do seeds determine where's the surface when planted underground?

Posted: 20 Aug 2018 02:36 AM PDT

I recently planted pea and was wondering if seeds have some kind of gyroscope or gravity sensor to determine in which way they must grow roots and stem. In case of "on the ground" it would be easy to guess that there are some chemicals which reacts in the contact spot with the soil, but underground there is soil everywhere.

submitted by /u/maaboo
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Was the fifth force discovered or not?

Posted: 20 Aug 2018 03:36 AM PDT

Below is an article about a possible discovery of a particle responsible for soem kind of new force (?).

https://www.nature.com/news/has-a-hungarian-physics-lab-found-a-fifth-force-of-nature-1.19957

Article date is at about 2016 and says that in a year some other labs would come with confirmation or not.

I'm not sure how to find this out but has there been any development and if possibly what exactly could this 5th force be responsible for?

Thank you very much.

submitted by /u/viksl
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What is the standard used to measure elevation on other planets that don’t have a “sea level?”

Posted: 19 Aug 2018 11:09 AM PDT

Can a dead person left in the sun get a tan?

Posted: 19 Aug 2018 09:45 AM PDT

A spinning magnet can induce a current in a conductor, this is how a generator work. But what is the average rotational to electrical energy efficiency of these generator?

Posted: 19 Aug 2018 09:36 PM PDT

What exactly is the dark side of the moon?

Posted: 20 Aug 2018 04:06 AM PDT

I mean, doesn't it rotate and revolve so all sides get light at some point?

submitted by /u/CormacN
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Can I just put a magnet (or a bunch of little ones) on my induction stove to adapt it for all cookware?

Posted: 19 Aug 2018 07:21 PM PDT

They sell converter disks, but I'm wondering if I could just use magnets.

What you say you science folk?

submitted by /u/lapret
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Why is gasoline sold and measured by volume, not mass?

Posted: 19 Aug 2018 04:45 PM PDT

As far as I know, gasoline's volume varies with temperature and air pressure, much like pretty much everything else. So why do we buy gas and measure fuel efficiency by volume rather than by mass?

submitted by /u/18BPL
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What makes plutonium and uranium so special?

Posted: 19 Aug 2018 04:42 PM PDT

In reactors or bombs, why do we use these specific elements rather than others?

Could you make a fission reactor that worked on carbon or iron or titanium? If it is possible, why don't we?

submitted by /u/AJollyRogering
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Why is it that both the stratosphere and mesosphere are cold while they’re between the troposphere and thermosphere which are hot?

Posted: 19 Aug 2018 10:25 AM PDT

How do microwaves heat food up?

Posted: 19 Aug 2018 02:34 PM PDT

So if microwaves have longer wavelengths and less energy than visible light, how do they increase the temperature and thus average molecular kinetic energy of its target (food)?

submitted by /u/The_Septic_Shock
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Are bubbles airtight? Does it change with different types of bubbles like dish soap bubbles, water bubbles, etc.

Posted: 19 Aug 2018 09:25 AM PDT

Does the electromagnetic interaction in molecular bonds have a frequency in the electromagnetic spectrum?

Posted: 19 Aug 2018 12:14 PM PDT

The question that I want to ask is actually broader than the one in the title. Do all the interactions that the fundamental force of electromagnetism regulates have a frequency? If not,then how can the photons responsible for the force be emitted without a frequency? I'm sorry if this is somehow a stupid question

submitted by /u/omniscientboner
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Why do sleepers and rails from the railway track need to be removed and replaced with new ones?

Posted: 19 Aug 2018 08:09 AM PDT

When people pass out from too much drinking, is that due to low heart rate or something else?

Posted: 19 Aug 2018 10:16 AM PDT

I ask because i had a drink tonight and after getting up to use the bathroom. I felt my heart rate slow down and my fitbit recorded it to be 25 to 30... i felt light headed and very dizzy. I had one drink lol

submitted by /u/Slayer_Tip
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Why does it take so long to name new elements?

Posted: 19 Aug 2018 05:30 PM PDT

Nihonium was first synthesized in 2003. Moscovium was first synthesized in 2003. Tennessine's synthesis was first announced in 2010. Oganesson was first synthesized in 2002.

They were given their present names in 2016. Why did the names take so long?

submitted by /u/Catty-Cat
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Pressure drops in Venturi's pipe vs Heat exchanger?

Posted: 19 Aug 2018 10:44 AM PDT

Hello to all,

my collegue recently came up with really interesting questions, which certainly seems like two chemical engineers should know by default, but we couldn't come up with definite answer...

so here it is, when Bernoullis equasion applies to Venturi's pipe, it says that when fluid flows throught narrower area its speed increase but pressure drops...but when it goes to wider area again, speed decreases and pressure increases.

If this is applied to heat exchanger ( with situation where there is some fouling in pipes of HE ), why doesn't pressure goes up again when fluid exits heat exchanger system into normal pipe again?

EDIT: in other words, shouldn't principle be the same in Venturi's pipe and pipe's in heat exchanger with some fouling?

Thank you very much

submitted by /u/dothakercro
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Sunday, August 19, 2018

Do plants receive a measureable amount of energy from starlight other than the Sun, versus if they were in total darkness?

Do plants receive a measureable amount of energy from starlight other than the Sun, versus if they were in total darkness?


Do plants receive a measureable amount of energy from starlight other than the Sun, versus if they were in total darkness?

Posted: 19 Aug 2018 05:57 AM PDT

Sub-question: is there measureable phototropism behavior towards starlight, if any?

submitted by /u/Letchworth
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Do magnetic and/or electric field have any influence on time and space?

Posted: 19 Aug 2018 06:22 AM PDT

According to Einstein, gravity has influence on space and time. Does magnetic field have influence on time and space? Does electric field have influence on time and space?

submitted by /u/timetravel369
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What's the difference between being knocked out and being unconcscious when you sleep?

Posted: 19 Aug 2018 07:15 AM PDT

How was the age at which the universe became transparent calculated?

Posted: 19 Aug 2018 01:01 AM PDT

I'd curious about the most accurate primary source regarding such data & calculations, thanks.

submitted by /u/Sitervain
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Why is the human heart located on our left side? Shouldn’t it be as centrally located possible?

Posted: 19 Aug 2018 05:07 AM PDT

How much of a problem is space debris for the ISS and shuttles?

Posted: 18 Aug 2018 03:08 PM PDT

Do large Earthquakes risk setting off other nearby faultlines?

Posted: 18 Aug 2018 06:47 PM PDT

For example, when the Cascadia Subduction Zone next goes, it's supposed to cause a truly massive earthquake... Will this increase the likelihood of a major earthquake in California? Or if there is a major Earthquake in Fiji, like just happened, does that impact the opposite side of the tectonic plate? Or am Imagining the plates as much too rigid?

submitted by /u/multiple_iterations
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How are old buildings built with asbestos demolished safely?

Posted: 18 Aug 2018 04:58 PM PDT

What is going on when you submerge a ball deep into a pool and then it jumps back in a random direction? Is there any way to predict the trajectory?

Posted: 18 Aug 2018 07:11 AM PDT

What chemical compound contributes to the classic "campfire smell?"

Posted: 18 Aug 2018 07:58 AM PDT

Referring to the smell that clothes sometimes take on when they're exposed to lots of campfire smoke.

submitted by /u/TimAnEnchanter
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Why are human eyeballs white?

Posted: 18 Aug 2018 07:22 AM PDT

Is it possible to have them black or some other color? (maybe for a fantastical humanoid if not for RL humans?)

submitted by /u/AoiMizune
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What is the status of the search for room temperature superconductors?

Posted: 18 Aug 2018 11:18 AM PDT

I know a few years ago there were some relatively promising advances using cuprates. I read something about gold and silver having room temperature superconductivity recently, but that seems implausible based on my experience with materials, and the noise patterns observed in their testing. What is currently the most promising path, and have there been much in advances since they reproduced a superconductor at 203 kelvin?

submitted by /u/GyrokCarns
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Why would animals share self-harming information?

Posted: 18 Aug 2018 08:09 AM PDT

I read that dogs have anal glands that release smells which give information to other dogs about their health. So other dogs can decide if they would want to make acquaintance but wouldn't natural selection make it so that all dogs would give out 'good' smells even if they were unhealthy just to get a chance to reproduce? Is there an evolutionary advantage to sharing honest information that reduces the individual's opportunity to pass on his genes? There must be similar examples in other animals as well.

submitted by /u/Collateral_awesome
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If the earth rotated at the same speed but in the opposite direction, how long would a day be?

Posted: 18 Aug 2018 08:36 AM PDT

How do electron 'standing waves' relate to the probability density cloud?

Posted: 18 Aug 2018 07:33 AM PDT

Let me try to explain what I've sort of understood thus far:

  1. In atomic spectra, we observe that instead of a continuous spectrum of light, a line spectrum is produced instead. This indicates some sort of discrete energy quantities that electrons can possess, such that photons of specific frequencies can be emitted to 'form' the line spectrum. Bohr's model sort of explains this, yet cannot account for the electromagnetic radiation of the electrons.
  2. de Broglie then suggests that perhaps electrons exist as circular standing waves, of which wavelength can only exist as integers of the orbital circumference. (If not, the electron cannot exist as it would interfere with itself). This explains the discrete energy levels, as the electrons can only absorb/release the exact amount of energy it requires to move from one 'harmonic' to another to form complete standing waves.

My first question might be a little dumb-sounding, but how does de Broglie's model account for the electromagnetic radiation of the electrons? I'm pretty sure the electrons still release electromagnetic radiation, but how does the 'standing wave' model make sense for how the electrons do not fall into the nucleus of the atom?

My second question at this point is, what are these 'standing waves'? I'm trying my best to think of these standing waves outside of its classical interpretation, but its getting kinda fuzzy in my mind. Are they mapping out the orbitals / probability clouds? (Which if I recall correctly, is described by the wave function as given by Schrodinger's equation.)

Please do correct me if there are any discrepancies in what I've typed out so far. Thank you for any help given.

submitted by /u/Xeldith
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Can regenerative animals keep regrowing the same limbs over and over without any loss?

Posted: 18 Aug 2018 02:52 AM PDT

For example, salamanders can regrow limbs/tails. What if that same limb gets chopped off again or multiple times, will it regrow back again perfectly or are there diminishing returns each regrowth?

submitted by /u/ram-ok
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[Physics] Can relativistic physics be adjusted to allow for switching between accelerating and non-accelerating frames of reference?

Posted: 18 Aug 2018 09:13 AM PDT

For example: say a spaceship accelerates away from a stationary observer. What would the observer's "world-line" look like from the spaceship's perspective and what would the spacetime diagram look like?

submitted by /u/Husky2490
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Why does driving by a parked car on the road make a different sound than driving by the ground or a sidewalk?

Posted: 18 Aug 2018 06:43 AM PDT

Saturday, August 18, 2018

The freezing point of carbon dioxide is -78.5C, while the coldest recorded air temperature on Earth has been as low as -92C, does this mean that it can/would snow carbon dioxide at these temperatures?

The freezing point of carbon dioxide is -78.5C, while the coldest recorded air temperature on Earth has been as low as -92C, does this mean that it can/would snow carbon dioxide at these temperatures?


The freezing point of carbon dioxide is -78.5C, while the coldest recorded air temperature on Earth has been as low as -92C, does this mean that it can/would snow carbon dioxide at these temperatures?

Posted: 18 Aug 2018 05:03 AM PDT

For context, the lowest temperature ever recorded on earth was apparently -133.6F (-92C) by satellite in Antarctica. The lowest confirmed air temperature on the ground was -129F (-89C). Wiki link to sources.

So it seems that it's already possible for air temperatures to fall below the freezing point of carbon dioxide, so in these cases, would atmospheric CO2 have been freezing and snowing down at these times?

Thanks for any input!

submitted by /u/FloatingArk54
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How close could a machine get to the Sun?

Posted: 17 Aug 2018 08:31 AM PDT

I was reading about the Parker probe and it's amazing just how close that thing is going to get to the sun; but it of course made me wonder how much closer we could get. The Parker probe basically uses a big oriented shield to protect itself, and behind the shield it's more a normal spacecraft.

Is it conceivable that anything could be constructed that could survive passing through the corona? It seems stuff must be whipping around like crazy in there, plus the insane temperatures. To my knowledge the highest known melting points are in the thousands of degrees, but I figure there is also some kind of blast force or something going on there.

Edit and if the corona is so easy, can you conceive of a spacecraft passing through the photosphere and surviving?

Not that it is possible with any known technology, but is it even physically conceivable that something could survive a close approach towards the surface of the sun? What would be necessary (special materials? some kind of super-magnet?)?

edit 2 Thanks all for the entertaining and informative comments! I will let you all know when my machine is completed and ready for launch.

submitted by /u/aggasalk
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How does nuclear fusion produce energy?

Posted: 18 Aug 2018 03:12 AM PDT

From where does energy where two hydrogen atoms produce one helium atom come from?

How much mass is actually lost in the process?

Giving that helium atom is almost as four times heavier than hydrogen atom how is this even possible?

submitted by /u/Let_me_tug_it
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How are the atomic masses of the elements measured precisely?

Posted: 17 Aug 2018 02:08 PM PDT

I am an ib physics student and I was recently going through an unit on energy production. One of the topics was about fission reactions, in which a question involved the isotopic mass of Uranium-235 (and its reaction in reactors). I noticed that the mass was given all the way out to 6 significant figures. I looked up a reference table and it is reported out to 10 digits with a relative uncertainty of 8.5x10^-7% (!!). In the same table, I also see elements like Oxygen-16 (13 digits) or Sodium (12 digits). This is extremely precise. I was wondering what the process behind the measurement was and what sorts of instruments are used?

Also, as a follow up question. When and why are such precise measurements needed? Are there practical differences between this and slightly less precise measurements or are they just because we can? I assume its related to particle physics/quantum mechanics.

submitted by /u/backman_10
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What exactly is spin in quantum mechanics?

Posted: 17 Aug 2018 06:24 AM PDT

None of the explanations get traction in my head.

submitted by /u/GoodMerlinpeen
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How long before 2003 did scientist in the field know about element 115?

Posted: 17 Aug 2018 03:10 PM PDT

I'd love some information on this because I can only basically find the 2003 peer review for Moscovium

submitted by /u/LifebehindbarsHD
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Why is it so hard to predict earthquakes?

Posted: 17 Aug 2018 01:38 PM PDT

Always seemed weird to me how little progress we have made in predictions.

submitted by /u/kay_peele
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Do Earth Like Planets Have Vegetation?

Posted: 17 Aug 2018 10:57 AM PDT

If it is true that there could be as many as 40 billion Earth-sized planets orbiting in the habitable zones of Sun-like stars and red dwarf stars within the Milky Way galaxy would these planets contain some sort of vegetation for life like trees, plants, etc and can we see that?

td:dr do earth like planets have vegetation/a breathable atmosphere like our planet

submitted by /u/remag1373
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Friday, August 17, 2018

How where auroras explained before Eugene Parker's theory of solar winds?

How where auroras explained before Eugene Parker's theory of solar winds?


How where auroras explained before Eugene Parker's theory of solar winds?

Posted: 16 Aug 2018 02:29 PM PDT

I read that Parker's theory about the existence of solar winds was met with controversy since the predominant consensus back then was that space was a complete vacuum.

So how did they explain auroras (that are caused by charged particles carried by solar winds interacting with our magnetosphere)?

submitted by /u/Yrouel86
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Can something be too cold to burn?

Posted: 16 Aug 2018 09:34 PM PDT

If we want to put out a stack of sticks from our lawn, removing the fuel or oxygen is pretty easily done. Simply take away the unburned sticks or smother the fire with sand, a blanket, etc.

What about denying the fire heat, though? Without changing the amount or availability of the fuel or oxygen, like introducing compressed (and cooled) carbon dioxide, is it possible to steal enough heat from the fire to make it quit burning? If this is possible, I suspect it would have something to do with slowing the atoms to the point the fire can no longer sustain itself, but for some reason it doesn't coalesce into a consistent process in my mind.

Sorry if this is too elementary for this sub. I actually have a decent understanding of different sciences (physical science, physics, astronomy, a little chemistry, etc), but this explanation has always eluded me.

submitted by /u/JonSnoWight
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Why do electrons have discrete energy levels they can occupy, and jump from between orbitals, yet do not revolve around the nucleus in orbits?

Posted: 16 Aug 2018 11:59 PM PDT

In class, I learned about the Bohr's model, which introduces the concept of discrete energy levels that electrons can occupy. However, Bohr's model is not accurate anymore as it only applies to the Hydrogen atom, hence debunking the fact that electrons move around the nucleus in fixed orbits, and instead exists in probability clouds.

In this case, how do discrete energy levels exist when fixed orbits do not exist? How do electrons 'jump' from orbit to orbit during excitation/relaxation if there aren't fixed radii of orbits for them to jump to? How do electrons even revolve around the atom then?

I'm so confused, and I think I've got something misunderstood.

submitted by /u/Xeldith
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What do the amplitude and frequency of a single photon actually represent?

Posted: 17 Aug 2018 03:55 AM PDT

In the classical view, light is the combination of an electric wave and a magnetic wave going up and down in phase. Here, what is going up and down is the square root of intensity of the electric and magnetic wave. So we clearly know what the amplitude and frequency represent.

The photoelectric effect proves that the classical EM wave theory of light is incorrect. Light exists in the form of particles / wave-packets called photons. These photons also have wave-like properties. Unlike previously theorized, the energy carried by light isn't given by the intensity of its wave but by the frequency of individual photons.

From my understanding, this is what I infer:

If something is wave-like and has a frequency F, then something (X) is moving up and down at that frequency.

If something is moving up and down at a frequency, then there is obviously amplitude involved. This represents "by how much X has moved up or down at a certain point". Let's call this A.

In the classical view, X was a measure of energy or intensity. And A gives the value of X at a point in time. And F was a measure of how quickly this intensity went up and down.

Let's get to the quantum, modern view.

According to the double slit experiment's results, photons land on the screen at random positions forming an interference pattern. This pattern seems to be the result of two radial wavefronts starting from the two slits. Now, if the interference pattern is represented by a wave function, then this would give us that X for a photon is the probability of it landing at that point of space.

This would mean that the frequency F of a photon measures the speed at which this probability moves up and down, which makes no sense to me. How does a shifting probability value give rise to colors (since colors are just photons at different frequencies)?

Does this mean that when I see blue, it's because the probability of a photon hitting my eye is oscillating at 650Hz!?

Sorry if I seem dumb.

submitted by /u/MythDestructor
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Are bee populations STILL declining?

Posted: 17 Aug 2018 07:04 AM PDT

I've seen some mixed reports in the slog of mainstream media. Some say they're bouncing back a little, and some appear to just have learned of the epidemic and are entering panic mode. Are they still in trouble, or is there hope?

submitted by /u/WaggyTails
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Has Io ever been seriously considered a possible site for extraterrestrial life?

Posted: 16 Aug 2018 05:37 PM PDT

In Arthur C. Clarke's "2010", humanity finds extraterrestrial life for the first time on Jupiter's moon Io. In the years since, I can't recall any "real" cases for Io being a likely spot to find life in our solar system other than Earth.

Has Io ever been a serious candidate for finding life? If not, why did Clarke choose it for his novel?

submitted by /u/TrogdorLLC
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Why does light bend when it refracts?

Posted: 16 Aug 2018 01:57 PM PDT

I've looked everywhere and this is driving me crazy, so hopefully someone here can help me.

I'm curious as to why light bends during refraction. I understand that when it travels from one medium to another, its speed changes, which is responsible for the refraction. What I don't understand is why this change in speed causes the light to change directions. Why wouldn't the light just pass through the medium, heading in the same direction, but at a slower (or faster) speed?

Wikipedia gives the following analogy: "Imagine a marching band as it marches at an oblique angle from a pavement (a fast medium) into mud (a slower medium). The marchers on the side that runs into the mud first will slow down first. This causes the whole band to pivot slightly toward the normal (make a smaller angle from the normal)."

In this case, why must light (the marching band) change it's course of motion because of the new angle cause by the slowing down of one side? Why doesn't the light just keep heading straight, but have a weird slant in the front instead of a straight line?

I hope this makes sense, please ask if I need to clarify anything. Thanks for the help in advance.

submitted by /u/ArmandLegGames
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Why/How does heavy doping cause a thinning of quantum tunneling barrier in semiconductors?

Posted: 16 Aug 2018 08:26 PM PDT

I know that heavy doping causes the barrier between a metal contact and a semiconductor (say silicon) to become thinner. But, I am not clear on the details of how or why this should happen....

Is it because there is some number of electrons that have to move to the metal side to balance out the junction, and the heavy doping allows this number to be reached in a thinner area?

Any light you can shed on this problem would help me out!

submitted by /u/WarlordBeagle
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If the universe is 13,7 bilion years old, stars burn for 4-5 billion years and supernovae birth new stars along with most elements, how is it that the atoms in our bodies (for instance) have been through many stars, as opposed to just 2 or 3?

Posted: 17 Aug 2018 03:38 AM PDT

Are our pinky and ring fingers mechanically linked?

Posted: 16 Aug 2018 06:33 PM PDT

I can put my ring finger down by itself, no problem. But whenever I try to put my pinky down, the ring finger wants to come along with it. Why is that? How come it doesn't work vice versa?

submitted by /u/Uncle151
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Could a satellite gather molecular gases from orbit to maintain its orbit?

Posted: 16 Aug 2018 01:37 PM PDT

Assuming the power and technology to actually do it, are there enough gas molecules in the various orbit distances to be collected, compressed, and used as thrust to maintain speed and attitude to continuously hold orbit forever? I know the satellite's orbit and mass would matter a lot, but is it even possible at any scale?

submitted by /u/Ashandrik
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Can someone explain the channel polarization in polar codes?

Posted: 16 Aug 2018 08:58 PM PDT

I am currently studying Polar Codes in 5G, but I do not quite understand how the algorithms work except from the concept that it aims to approach Shannon capacity by using N copies of a channel to seperate them into either complete noise or noise free. Thank you

submitted by /u/howleeshits
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Are tritium illuminated watches truly safe to wear when bremsstrahlung is considered?

Posted: 16 Aug 2018 10:26 AM PDT

Manufacturers of these GTLS (gaseous tritium light source) watches love to claim that they are completely harmless because the beta decay of Tritium cannot penetrate intact skin. They never mention the X-ray emission caused by bremsstrahlung - the reaction between the phosphorus and tritium.

Having an always-on low energy x-ray source strapped to your wrist can't be safe... can it?

submitted by /u/topsyandpip56
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