Recent content by Alex_physics

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    High School Can negative roots of a quadratic equation for √E be physically acceptable?

    Thank you for your answer. The equation is truly for the square root of energy.
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    High School Can negative roots of a quadratic equation for √E be physically acceptable?

    In a certain type of problem, a quadratic equation is formed with the square root of energy being the variable to be found ex: (a*sqrt(E)^2+b*sqrt(E)+c=0). Then they claim since energy (E) is real and positive, only solutions to the quadratic equation in sqrt(E ) being real and positive are...
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    High School Why Is Binding Energy Subtracted in Nuclear Mass Calculations?

    The mass of the nucleus is calculated as follows: mass (nucleus) = [Number of protons * Mass of proton] + [Number of Neutrons * mass of neutron] - [Binding energy/c^2] Why is the contribution to mass from the binding energy subtracted from the mass of the nucleus rather than being added to...