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Showing posts from July, 2024

PHY 101: Vector Integration

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What is Integration? Integration can be thought of as a continuous analogue of sum (\(\sum_{ }^{ }\)). We integrate or simply add infinitesimal small quantities together to form a continuous chain. Integration can be of 3 kinds rather I would call it 3 ways of integration. Linear, Area and Volume way. To show what each of them looks like here is a visual representation: $$\begin{aligned}& Linear \hspace{1mm}integration:\int_{ }^{ }f(x)dx\\ \\ &Area\hspace{1mm}or\hspace{1mm} surface\hspace{1mm} integration: \iint_S f(x,y)dxdy \\ \\ & Volume \hspace{1mm} integration: \iiint_V f(x,y,z)dxdydz \end{aligned}$$ You might have already noticed that the number of integration symbols (\(\int_{ }^{ }\)) increases with the increase in the number of variables. Hence, most books adopt the notation of calling these single, double and triple integrations. We at physics are creatures of simplicity and thus have kept it easy to remember. Let us talk about each in some detail! Single or Linear...

Floating Rocks: A Quick read on space Rocks!

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  Asteroid V Meteoroid credit:  https://science.nasa.gov/gallery/asteroid-comets-and-meteors/ What is the difference? Asteroids: "Rocks" floating in space is the best description one can provide to define either of these objects. A layman's way of knowing which is which is based on the size of the rocks. credit:  https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/asteroid-watch If the chunk of rock is significantly larger or in the range of 500-1000 kilometers in diameter it is given the tag of an Asteroid. We have one such belt of asteroids in our Solar system between Mars and Jupiter called as Asteroid Belt (No Joke!). While these may seem extremely big boulders floating in space compared to the massive size of the planets, they seem quite small. But these are not just rocks wandering in the dark space, these are composed of minerals and silicates and based on the amount of the chemicals present in them they are classified as C, S and M type of Asteroid. According to the International Astronomi...