What is Explain: Definition and 1000 Discussions

An explanation is a set of statements usually constructed to describe a set of facts which clarifies the causes, context, and consequences of those facts. This description may establish rules or laws, and may clarify the existing rules or laws in relation to any objects, or phenomena examined.Explanation, in philosophy, is a set of statements that makes intelligible the existence or occurrence of an object, event, or state of affairs. Among the most common forms of explanation are causal explanation; deductive-nomological explanation, which involves subsuming the explanandum under a generalization from which it may be derived in a deductive argument (e.g., “All gases expand when heated; this gas was heated; therefore, this gas expanded”); and statistical explanation, which involves subsuming the explanandum under a generalization that gives it inductive support (e.g., “Most people who use tobacco contract cancer; this person used tobacco; therefore, this person contracted cancer”). Explanations of human behaviour typically appeal to the subject’s beliefs and desires, as well as other facts about him, and proceed on the assumption that the behaviour in question is rational (at least to a minimum degree). Thus an explanation of why the subject removed his coat might cite the fact that the subject felt hot, that the subject desired to feel cooler, and that the subject believed that he would feel cooler if he took off his coat.

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  1. lonewolf219

    Limits with two variables, explain why limit DNE

    Homework Statement (Sorry, having problems with math symbols) lim f(x,y) [(x^4)y]/(x^8+y^4) (x,y)→(0,0)Homework Equations Compare limits when a.) y=x b.) y=x^4The Attempt at a Solution The solutions are a.) limit approaches 0 b.) limit approaches 1 I think I understand in...
  2. F

    Engineering Please explain Circuit resonance in a Crystal Radio?

    Homework Statement I'm in grade 11 working on a science fair project I found on this site: http://www.sciencebuddies.org/science-fair-projects/project_ideas/Elec_p014.shtml Grade 11 physics doesn't cover much so I'm confused about why the radio is set up the way it is... I know that...
  3. M

    Can anyone explain the Grashof Criterion ?

    Hi, I'm a university second year Mechanical Engineering student and I'm new to this module of Kinematics and Dynamics of Machinery and I've just learned the concept of the Grashof Criterion where "The sum of the shortest and longest link of a planar four-bar linkage cannot be greater than the...
  4. P

    Phylogenetic Trees: Understanding and Applications

    I only know that Phylogenetic tree is used as a data and graphical model for evolution. It looks nothing really special. Perhaps because my knowledge about it is still limited. Because distances between species are calculated using float numbers (right ?), the model is considered as approximate...
  5. J

    Please Explain to me this thought experiment

    Suppose a rocket is moving away from Earth at 0.5c. The rocket is moving towards a beam of light. There are two clocks on the rocket placed 1m apart. Each clock stops ticking when the beam of light hits it. The speed of light is then calculated as d/t = 1/(t1-t2). What effects occur for the...
  6. M

    I need someone to explain this vector question's answer

    Homework Statement Vectors A and B have equal magnitudes of 57. If the sum of A and B is the vector 16.3j , determine the angle? The Attempt at a Solution I have already gotten the answer 2•57cosθ = 16.3 cosθ = 0.143 θ = 81.8º twice that is the angle between them, or 163.6º but...
  7. P

    How Do Coulombs and Amperes Measure Electricity?

    What is exactly one Coulomb? Wikipedia says "One coulomb is the magnitude (absolute value) of electrical charge in 6.24150965(16)×10^18 protons or electrons." It also says " It is defined as the charge transported by a steady current of one ampere in one second" But also 1 proton has a charge...
  8. S

    How can I explain the mirage created from two parabolic mirrors?

    Hi. I would like to know where can I find detailed information on how is a mirage created when you place an object between two parabolic mirrors, with one of them opened. You must know about this device: http://www.optigone.com/mirage_images/hologramWhand.gif In other words, I would like...
  9. J

    Can Quantum Mechanics Explain True Randomness?

    not to be impolite, but i truly view randomness in reality as something you can trick your kids into accepting along with santa, the tooth fairy etc. when compared to causality the idea of true randomness existing in reality seems incredibly weak to me. is there any simple logic which can...
  10. T

    I can't believe the hint that is provided; can someone explain how it is true?

    I'm working on a question for a problem set that has the following hint: For any function A: \frac{d^{2}A}{dr^{2}} + \frac{2}{r}\frac{dA}{dr} = \frac{1}{r^{2}}\frac{d}{dr}(r^{2} \frac{dA}{dr}) I don't understand how this is true; this is how I try to show that both sides are equal but...
  11. B

    Can Someone Please Explain Hermitian Conjugates To Me?

    Can Someone Please Explain Hermitian Conjugates To Me!? I'm working on some problems about the Hermitian of a Harmonic Oscillator - I keep coming across the Hermitian written in a form with A[dagger]A and similar things - when I've looked in textbooks and online I find it explained using...
  12. S

    Do we really need physical/real waves to explain single particle interference?

    in explaining the interference pattern that happens in double slit, single particle interference - some of the interpretations, for example De Broglie–Bohm interpretation: assumes that (some sort of) "waves" travel through both slits simultaneously and interfere with each other the...
  13. V

    Please explain this Kinematic Problem.

    How far do you travel if, starting from rest, you accelerate at 1.5 m/s2 for 4.0 s, then coast for 8.0 seconds, then decelerate to a standstill in 4.0 s? I am totally confused about the fact you accelerate and then coast, and then slow down. We have 3-t's in this problem and don't know what...
  14. F

    Which theory may explain paranormal phenonmena?

    To those who are open to PSI existing. Which theory do you believe may explain PSI (paranormal phenomena) such as telepathy, clairvoyance, psychokinesis, near-death experiences or apparitions etc? John Beloff a well known parapsychologist concluded that PSI occurs becuase of dualism ie the...
  15. O

    Can somebody better explain this than the book does?

    It's about GARCH(1,1) processes (mainly it's all statistics and probability). Anyway, there is the section of a book (link below) that is confusing me: Where does "E[ln⁡(β+αz_t^2)]" come from (on page 319, the "second" page)? My other question is why does it say that "ln⁡(β+αz_t^2) holds...
  16. F

    Can someone explain why a material that is supposed to be conductive imply?

    Source. Can someone explain what this means? It seems like it would be a big deal if something that should be a conductor, wasn't. But the word "measured" gets me confused. I start think of quantum mechanics, and maybe I am right to do so, but not sure so just a clarification of what's...
  17. P

    Can some one Fully explain reflection for me, because i am reading my

    Can some one Fully explain reflection for me, because i am reading my book and i read about wavelets and I DONT UNDERSTAND THAT, so can some one explain it all PLEASE
  18. Hunus

    How do you find the molecular mass and formula using gas densities?

    How does one use ratios of gas densities to estimate the molecular mass and find the molecular formulas?
  19. J

    Can gravity be destroyed explain

    can gravity be destroyed" explain "can gravity be destroyed" explain
  20. O

    Can someone please explain phase shifting?

    Hi guys & gals. I work as an electronics engineer in an R&D department, and a discussion with a colleague of mine left me a bit dumbfounded. Let's say I have a circuit where a high-frequency AC signal is lead to two different paths. In one path the signal remains unaltered, and in the...
  21. M

    Can someone explain the following terms such as inertia momentum

    hi i am not a newbie to physics but some terms are quite confusing such as inertia, momentum and many other similar ones can anyone explain what actually the momentum is so that my concept become more clear about it.. thank you
  22. E

    Transformation to explain

    Homework Statement Mathematica's calculation of ∫0Log(2)Sin[(\pi/2)e2x]exdx = -FresnelS[1] + FresnelS[2] Remembering that FresnelS[x] = ∫0tSin[(\pi/2)t2]dt, You announce that a transformation you can use to help explain Mathematica's output is that every time x goes up by one unit, t=...
  23. X

    Can someone help explain me a problem?

    Homework Statement A sphere of radius R has a charge Q distributed uniformly over its surface. How large a sphere contains 90 percent of the energy stored in the electrostatic field of this charge distribution? Homework Equations U= 1/8pi integral E^2dv. The Attempt at a...
  24. J

    Can Someone Explain the Ac Stark Shift in Layman's Terms

    Can someone explain how the Stark Effect works in Layman's terms? I'm trying to understand how an electric field can cool down atoms. What is the electric field doing exactly to the atoms? How is it lowering the atomic energy levels? Is there a difference between Stark Shifting and Stark...
  25. K

    Can someone explain these 2 linear algebra proofs

    Homework Statement The proofs: show (A')^-1 = (A^-1)' and (AB)^-1 = B^-1A^-1Homework Equations The Attempt at a Solution for the first one: (A^-1*A) = I (A^-1*A)' = I' = I A'(A^-1)' = I but I am not sure how this proves that a transpose inverse = a inverse transpose... the second i have...
  26. M

    Help explain different types of Grad Physics programs

    I have a BS in Economics and Physics, I've been out of school for a year now and I really want to get a PhD in physics but I'm having trouble narrowing it down to a particular area (i.e. particle, material, astro, experimental, theoretical, etc. ), which in turn is slowing me down in my search...
  27. J

    Could someone explain the point of this?

    Homework Statement Homework Equations MATLAB functoins: isosurface, linspace, meshgrid The Attempt at a Solution I think I have a grip on what is happening in the script below, but I'm not sure why. I'm given a 20 x 64^3 (I think M is like 160,000 or something), each row being...
  28. DryRun

    Exploring the Graph of y=√x: Understanding Reflections and Values in Quadrants

    Homework Statement Explain graph of y=√x The attempt at a solution I've done the graph on an online graphing calculator: http://s2.ipicture.ru/uploads/20120117/7JtQ5VD2.png But i don't understand why there is no equivalent reflection below the x-axis, in the 4th quadrant. From y=√x, if x=4...
  29. S

    How does de broglie-bohm explain obstruction in path?

    In de Broglie–Bohm theory (or should we say hypothesis): the wavefunction travels through both slits, but each particle has a well-defined trajectory and passes through exactly one of the slits. The wave function interferes with itself and guides the particles in such a way that the particles...
  30. M

    Thermal radiation question. Please help me explain the theory

    Thermal radiation question. Please help me explain the theory! I want to delete this post.
  31. B

    Explain why long wave radio does not cut out in tunnel.

    Homework Statement Explain why if your car is tuned to FM, it cuts out when you enter a tunnel but doesn’t if you are tuned to long wave reception. (λ of FM: 3m, λ of long wave: 1500m) Homework Equations The Attempt at a Solution Well, what I think is that.. As the λ of the long...
  32. nukeman

    Can someone please explain this simple harmonic motion equation for me?

    Homework Statement This is not a homework question, as we just started getting into SHM, and I want to be 100% clear what this equation means. Can someone please all the parts, or have a site that really explains this formula? Homework Equations The Attempt at a Solution
  33. G

    Explain solution to me(Gravitation)

    first thing, that you might want to know is, that i am not from an english-speaking country, so please, excuse my grammar...;-) Homework Statement hi i have a problem here and i already know the solution, but the thing is, that i do not understand it. let's see: the first question was: the...
  34. S

    What is BCD subtraction and how is it used in digital electronics?

    Hello guys! I am new here, I have one question, I have in my mind, I want to knw the description as well as want to understand that how we can use BCD Adder, in our digital electonics. topic. can anyone explain this thing for me??
  35. M

    Why explain with both vectors and functions

    Why when explaining/introducing QM things get explained with the <bra|ket> complex vectors... then somewhere in between they start using functions (psi).. It gets confusing when epxlanation start switching between them back and forth... My understanding is they are the same thing... Is...
  36. I

    Can someone explain to me what a function arrow is?

    Can someone explain to me what a "function arrow" is? In particular, what this may mean: I = [a, b] f : I --> R I'm just trying to understand what the arrow means. Or if we have R --> R what that would mean. Thank you!
  37. Ahmed Abdullah

    Can you explain how vigorous vortex-ing can damage DNA?

    I want to know what is happening at micro-level, how macroscopic tumbling of the solution can actually break a chemical bond?
  38. Darth Frodo

    Good books that explain the Why element.

    Good books that explain the "Why" element. Hi there, I'm in a bit of a pickle. I'm currently in what I think is the equivilent to the American Senior year. I am kind of angry with my maths teacher. While she is good she "Teaches to the exam". It really nettles me. Does anyone know any good...
  39. D

    How relativity could explain this engineering problem.

    This is a thought experiment but not very academic. Assume a satellite solar panel was critically designed in such a way that even 10% increase in mass would result in hinge attachment failure. Assume some inertial frame (A) in a distant planet or space ship, at some part of its course it...
  40. T

    Please explain Dopler effect of light

    How can there be any shifting of light frequency due to dopler effect? Frequency is just a fancy way of stating 'wave' or, as depicted on all explanitory diagrams, a sinusoidal wave. Each cycle of the wave represents one part of the total waves measured in a given amount of time which is the...
  41. P

    I am in first year can anyone explain about internship ?

    i am in first year can anyone explain about internship ?? i am in engineering physics first year can anyone explain me about internship
  42. H

    Brian Cox explain Pauli exclusion principle

    Watching Brian Cox "BBC - Professor.Brian.Cox.A.Night.With.The.Stars - 2011" After 34 min he starts to talk about Pauli exclusion principle No electron can be in the same energy state he says. This is not just true for an atom a molecule or the diamond he is showing. No this goes for...
  43. M

    Can someone explain why this works?

    This sounds very hokey (in a metaphysical way), and I am sorry for that. It isn't, it is a very serious question... A number of years ago a friend gave me a "healing wand." It is nothing more than hard copper (water) pipe(maybe a foot long?), and a natural quartz crystal "point". But...
  44. B

    Please explain - total electic field Ec + En within the coils must be zero

    Please explain -- total electic field Ec + En within the coils must be zero Hi This is from the text University Physics. In pg. 1035, chap 10, in order to justify the use of Kirchoff's rule to analyze circuits containing inductors it is written : Let's assume we are dealing with an inductor...
  45. J

    How can Higgs field explain proton's inertial resistance to acceleration?

    If most of the mass/energy of a proton is due to the kinetic energy of its quarks and gluons, rather than interaction with the Higgs field, then how can we explain its inertial mass, i.e. its resistance to acceleration, as being due to a drag induced by the Higgs field? Alternatively imagine...
  46. S

    Can some one please explain this phenomenon

    I boiled the milk in milk cooker and i opened once to take some milk out. Remaining milk was there in the cooker and cooker is tightly closed. I placed the cooker over the stove and stove is switched off. when i get up in the morning, i can see that cooker has fallen down from the stove..is...
  47. P

    C/C++ Can someone explain why this isn't an infinite loop? (C++)

    This was a question from my C++ midterm. I see an infinite loop, but the correct answer is 12. Can anyone explain this? Question: What is the value of i after the loop exits? int i; for(i=0; i < 10; i++) i+=3; i=1;
  48. N

    Does General Relativity actually explain gravity?

    So the principle of equivalence states that any effects due to acceleration must also occur with gravity, as it's impossible to tell the two apart. I get that, but it assumes that gravity exists and you know how much it accelerates objects. But that explanation just predicts what will happen...
  49. N

    Can someone explain this proccess for expressing limits as an integral?

    Homework Statement My professor gave us this problem: Convert the limit to an integral: \lim_{n\rightarrow inf} \frac{1}{n}(\sin(\pi/2) + \sin(\pi/2) + ... + \sin(\pi)) he said it was right endpoint from [0,π] then he set Δx = \frac{\pi}{n} then \lim_{n\rightarrow inf}...
  50. C

    How Does Temperature Affect the Bounce of Squash Balls?

    Dear forum I have set AS physics (in england) coursework where the students drop squash balls at different temperatures and measure the bounce height. Yes, I know it is mentioned a lot but haven't so far found a good explanation. Their results will show that the higher temperature...
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