Classical Physics Forum

Post thread
Join expert classical physics discussion on the principles developed before the rise of relativity and quantum mechanics. Including mechanics, electrodynamics, thermodynamics, optics.

Mechanics

High School Mousetrap Car Energy efficiency

Optics

Undergrad How do I stretch a laser from a beam into a sheet?

Thermodynamics

Undergrad Using the "triple point of water" to produce ice -- How does that work?

Electromagnetism

Undergrad What determines if wave components are independent vs coherent?
High School Sinusoidal wave function of t and x
  • · Replies 2 ·
Replies
2
Views
2K
High School Maximizing Mechanical Advantage in Levers: Investigating Size and Shape
  • · Replies 16 ·
Replies
16
Views
2K
Undergrad Ball free fall 100m at equator, where is the landing spot?
  • · Replies 45 ·
2
Replies
45
Views
5K
Undergrad What is the purpose of the vector α in the rotational work integral?
  • · Replies 3 ·
Replies
3
Views
1K
Undergrad Steering a Car: Investigating the Forces of Rotation
  • · Replies 3 ·
Replies
3
Views
3K
Undergrad What Causes the Darkening of Metal Bucket Color at High Temperatures?
  • · Replies 35 ·
2
Replies
35
Views
4K
High School Direction of Electric Field & Field Due to a Dipole
  • · Replies 5 ·
Replies
5
Views
3K
Undergrad General expression of wind force on a sail....
  • · Replies 40 ·
2
Replies
40
Views
7K
Undergrad Lux & Lumens -- how do they work?
  • · Replies 34 ·
2
Replies
34
Views
5K
Undergrad Is it possible to "violate" momentum at the expense of more energy?
  • · Replies 2 ·
Replies
2
Views
1K
Undergrad Outright understanding L/R inductor time constant
  • · Replies 2 ·
Replies
2
Views
1K
Undergrad Question regarding finding the magnitude of Torque
  • · Replies 4 ·
Replies
4
Views
1K
Undergrad Can Magnets Provide Infinite Energy for Weight Training?
  • · Replies 16 ·
Replies
16
Views
4K
High School Why does a stiff boat rudder produce forward thrust when pumped left to right?
  • · Replies 117 ·
4
Replies
117
Views
7K
High School Harmonic oscillator and simple pendulum time period
  • · Replies 36 ·
2
Replies
36
Views
4K
High School Why doesn't static friction move the other object?
  • · Replies 9 ·
Replies
9
Views
2K
Graduate Displaying the dimensionless Radiation Transport Equation
  • · Replies 1 ·
Replies
1
Views
1K
High School Celestial mechanics: Why is my planet orbiting faster and faster?
  • · Replies 22 ·
Replies
22
Views
2K
Undergrad Energy of an electromagnetic wave
  • · Replies 15 ·
Replies
15
Views
2K
Undergrad Figuring out the torque required to rotate a dome
  • · Replies 16 ·
Replies
16
Views
2K
Undergrad Solving the Boat Crossing a River Problem using the Calculus of Variations
  • · Replies 33 ·
2
Replies
33
Views
4K
High School Proving the Existence of Particles: An Exploration
  • · Replies 94 ·
4
Replies
94
Views
6K
Graduate How Does External Pressure Affect Internal Pressure Variation in a Sphere?
  • · Replies 9 ·
Replies
9
Views
2K
Undergrad Torque required to prevent precession
  • · Replies 2 ·
Replies
2
Views
2K
Undergrad What is the Formula for Calculating the Length of a Hanging Spring?
  • · Replies 27 ·
Replies
27
Views
4K
Insights How Can We Jump When the Ground Does No Work?
  • · Replies 29 ·
Replies
29
Views
3K
Undergrad What is the minimum force required to lift an object?
  • · Replies 128 ·
5
Replies
128
Views
10K
Undergrad Radius of Gyration: Definition & Uses
  • · Replies 3 ·
Replies
3
Views
1K
Undergrad Laplace equation with irregular boundaries
  • · Replies 4 ·
Replies
4
Views
1K
High School How does the Paper Spiral work?
  • · Replies 6 ·
Replies
6
Views
2K
Undergrad What Happens to Ions Generated by a Destat Apparatus?
  • · Replies 9 ·
Replies
9
Views
2K
Undergrad What is the equation for calculating average gas flow in a compressed syringe?
  • · Replies 9 ·
Replies
9
Views
1K
Undergrad Angular momentum and turning a bicycle
  • · Replies 17 ·
Replies
17
Views
4K
Undergrad Understanding Sound Waves in Fluids: Pressure and Velocity Fields
  • · Replies 6 ·
Replies
6
Views
2K
Undergrad Is there an integral version of Newton's law of gravity?
  • · Replies 10 ·
Replies
10
Views
2K
High School How to use Refrigerators/AC in efficient manner so that it remains cool inside?
  • · Replies 29 ·
Replies
29
Views
2K
Undergrad Understanding Classical Mechanics: Acceleration
  • · Replies 2 ·
Replies
2
Views
1K
Undergrad Bernoulli's equation and the work energy theorem
  • · Replies 21 ·
Replies
21
Views
3K
Undergrad Does Ohm's Law work for Light Bulbs?
  • · Replies 57 ·
2
Replies
57
Views
12K
Undergrad Electromagnetic effects in the brain
  • · Replies 1 ·
Replies
1
Views
1K
Undergrad The Curious Case of The Impotent Magnets
  • · Replies 14 ·
Replies
14
Views
1K
Undergrad Can a Core-less Dynamo Really Achieve Double Efficiency?
  • · Replies 3 ·
Replies
3
Views
927
Undergrad Solar system simulation errors
  • · Replies 19 ·
Replies
19
Views
3K
Undergrad Hydrostatics: Pascal's principle and ocean depth
  • · Replies 13 ·
Replies
13
Views
2K
High School Question about collisions -- Knife point piercing a ball of clay
  • · Replies 14 ·
Replies
14
Views
2K
Undergrad How Does Non-Stretchy Mat Material Affect Trampoline Performance?
  • · Replies 2 ·
Replies
2
Views
2K
High School Proof of the existence of atoms
  • · Replies 53 ·
2
Replies
53
Views
6K
Undergrad How Does Centrifugal Force Affect Objects on a Rotating Disk?
  • · Replies 18 ·
Replies
18
Views
3K
Undergrad Kepler's second law derivation from angular momentum conservation
  • · Replies 6 ·
Replies
6
Views
2K
Undergrad Why do we still say “the speed of light” instead of “c”?
  • · Replies 12 ·
Replies
12
Views
2K
Undergrad Off center torque applied to a rotating body
  • · Replies 4 ·
Replies
4
Views
2K
High School Angled Rod w Float Attached -- Force of Float
  • · Replies 16 ·
Replies
16
Views
2K
Undergrad Understanding relative friction
  • · Replies 25 ·
Replies
25
Views
2K
Undergrad Friction of a rolling cylinder on an incline
  • · Replies 37 ·
2
Replies
37
Views
4K
Undergrad Does gravitational energy travel like electrical energy?
  • · Replies 1 ·
Replies
1
Views
1K
Undergrad "A system tries to minimize total potential energy"
  • · Replies 3 ·
Replies
3
Views
2K
Undergrad Does dividing maximum frequency by sound frequency give accurate velocity?
  • · Replies 17 ·
Replies
17
Views
2K
Undergrad Summing linear momentum in circular rotation
  • · Replies 26 ·
Replies
26
Views
2K
Undergrad Understanding the physics behind a Solenoid Valve
  • · Replies 3 ·
Replies
3
Views
2K
Undergrad Calculating Hydrostatic Force on valve cavity in a Solenoid Valve
  • · Replies 6 ·
Replies
6
Views
1K
High School A friend of mine sent me these pictures showing multiple shadows
  • · Replies 4 ·
Replies
4
Views
2K
Undergrad Propagation of Errors, Ohm's Law
  • · Replies 6 ·
Replies
6
Views
5K
Undergrad Demo of spinning object flipping its axis (intermediate axis theorem)
  • · Replies 1 ·
Replies
1
Views
1K
Undergrad What is the Order of Integration in a Double Integral?
  • · Replies 7 ·
Replies
7
Views
2K
Graduate Model the pressure of a zero-gravity simple fluid system
  • · Replies 6 ·
Replies
6
Views
1K
High School Swimming at the Same Reynolds Number as Sperm: A Reflection on Purcell's Talk
  • · Replies 1 ·
Replies
1
Views
1K
Why do we assume harmonic time dependence in wave equation solutions?
  • · Replies 2 ·
Replies
2
Views
10K
Undergrad Time of flight measurement uncertainty
  • · Replies 3 ·
Replies
3
Views
2K
Undergrad Weak principle of equivalence (Galileo, Newton)
  • · Replies 5 ·
Replies
5
Views
1K
Undergrad Reasoning for circular/elliptical orbits
  • · Replies 58 ·
2
Replies
58
Views
4K
High School Confusion when considering pV=nRT in Two Balloon experiment
  • · Replies 7 ·
Replies
7
Views
2K
High School A flip of the Earth on its axis
  • · Replies 32 ·
2
Replies
32
Views
6K
Undergrad Blackbody radiation and the cosmic microwave background
  • · Replies 29 ·
Replies
29
Views
4K
Undergrad Effective weight vs distance to the point of attachment of the weight
  • · Replies 11 ·
Replies
11
Views
2K
High School Can nuclear bomb(s) change trajectory of small black hole?
  • · Replies 19 ·
Replies
19
Views
2K
Undergrad Which units is this conversion factor for (molar volume)? 0.023901488
  • · Replies 16 ·
Replies
16
Views
2K
Undergrad Formula for Doppler effect in moving medium?
  • · Replies 16 ·
Replies
16
Views
3K
Undergrad Shock Load on Rope: Weight Limit Analysis
  • · Replies 5 ·
Replies
5
Views
2K
Undergrad Does Space Curvature Account for Gravity Between Individual Atoms?
  • · Replies 2 ·
Replies
2
Views
1K
Undergrad Dust sticking to fan blade downstream of rivet head
  • · Replies 3 ·
Replies
3
Views
950
Undergrad Why does hot air have low pressure? (wind formation)
  • · Replies 16 ·
Replies
16
Views
3K
Undergrad Gravitational potential energy
  • · Replies 46 ·
2
Replies
46
Views
5K
Insights How to Model a Magnet Falling Through a Conducting Pipe
  • · Replies 10 ·
Replies
10
Views
3K
Undergrad The different generators of canonical transformations
  • · Replies 3 ·
Replies
3
Views
1K
Undergrad What Explains the Paradox of Mechanical Energy Conservation?
  • · Replies 9 ·
Replies
9
Views
2K
Undergrad Gravitational potential of an ellipsoid
  • · Replies 3 ·
Replies
3
Views
3K
Undergrad Calculating your weight in an elevator
  • · Replies 24 ·
Replies
24
Views
3K
Undergrad Why didn't the wrecking ball smash his head?
  • · Replies 9 ·
Replies
9
Views
2K
Undergrad Gas molecular attraction in the sense of Newton's law
  • · Replies 4 ·
Replies
4
Views
1K
Undergrad Brownian motion and continuity
  • · Replies 23 ·
Replies
23
Views
2K
High School Why is sea surface water relatively constant?
  • · Replies 3 ·
Replies
3
Views
1K
High School Newton's third law (equal and opposite force)
  • · Replies 40 ·
2
Replies
40
Views
4K
Undergrad How Does Angular Velocity Affect Instantaneous Acceleration in Rotating Systems?
  • · Replies 1 ·
Replies
1
Views
1K
Undergrad Acceleration as a Function of Time Using Constant Power
  • · Replies 27 ·
Replies
27
Views
4K
High School Resonance state - Alternating current
  • · Replies 23 ·
Replies
23
Views
2K
Undergrad Hamiltonian formalism and partition function
  • · Replies 1 ·
Replies
1
Views
1K
Undergrad Using Dimensional Analysis to derive an equation (Walter Lewin video)
  • · Replies 5 ·
Replies
5
Views
2K
Undergrad Damped oscillator with changing mass
  • · Replies 131 ·
5
Replies
131
Views
8K
Undergrad What Direction Do Sparks Travel from Steel-on-Steel Friction in Railroad Wheels?
  • · Replies 4 ·
Replies
4
Views
1K
Undergrad Designing an Invariant Lagrangian: Rules and Considerations
  • · Replies 2 ·
Replies
2
Views
943