Theoretical Definition and 999 Threads

Hello; What is a theoretical physicist? Is it someone who studies theoretical physics? If so, what is theoretical physics? If I say I am a theoretical physicist, what do I do? Does this mean that I don't do any experimentation to test my hypotheses as that would make me an experimental...

Can you recommend a good book on the theoretical side of nuclear physics?

Hi i know there's been many threads on this but i looked at them and they don't answer my Q's Basiaclly I am doing an Mphys Physics Degree in the UK . My university is very experimental, basically all lab work and projects experimental and only theoretical research that is interesting is...

Hey, I found this site while studying for my physics midterm, but then I can across an interesting question in a video game. In Battlefield:Bad Company 2, there is a mission where you have to snipe somebody but do it so nobody hears a gunshot, you accomplish this by firing when you see...

Hi, I just found this great forum and I am hoping to get some advice. I am starting an ecology degree with the hope of, one day, getting into grad school. I don't know yet what type of research I would like to do but I want to keep the door to theoretical work open. As my math background is...

Hello everyone, been reading different articles on here for a while but finally decided to sign up as I needed some advice with regards to univesity. Im looking to study theoretical physics at Glasgow University starting fall 2012, however I am confused over my choice of courses. Glasgow...

So I'm currently a freshman at UPenn. I came in wanting to major in physics & math and go on to grad school in particle physics. However I've been a bit disillusioned since, by how esoteric the math required for it was and by the fact that there are barely any positions in academia for it. And...

I've recently been getting interested in physics and astronomy and have even thought about going to school and starting a career in physics. Of course, this is just consideration and I'm going to learn more about it and different jobs before I even think about taking any kind of step further. Of...

Hello Forum, I have a general interest in theoretical physics and my knowledge and understanding extends no further than what is presented in popular layman's texts. I have two questions which may be more philosophical - if this is the incorrect forum for these questions, please direct me...

I was just curious about this. Are humans counted in the mass of the Earth? If so as the population increases does the masss of the Earth also increase? I think it wouldn't due to humans technecally being made from the Earth. We are carbon, nitrogen, hydrogen, and oxygen from the Earth so when...

Question has been answered, thanks

Hello physicsforums community. I have recently learned about Lagrange multipliers and have been given three problems to solve. Could you guys please go over my work and see if I have the gist of it? One question, a theoretical one, I have no idea how to begin. Any advice regarding this would be...

I am asking for a sort of "artists rendition" of what the universe looked like from the Big Bang onward -- what our universe would have "looked like" over time to a theoretical observer. I've seen plenty of pics like http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:WMAP_2010.png and plenty of animations...

Homework Statement My rocket was angled at 79 degrees from the vertical, I calculated its maximum vertical height to be 60 meters, The total flight time was 7 seconds Experimental horiz distance is 40 yds (should be 36.6 meters) Homework Equations This is part of my problem, I am...

Hey guys. I am a final year high school student and have lately been researching a career in Mathematics/Theoretical physics. Most recently i have come to the conclusion that: 1. I am not as gifted in mathematics as i thought 2. I do not enjoy PURE mathematics as much as i once believed i did...

I would have to speculate they are: Albert Einstein Marie Curie Niels Bohr Erwin Schrodinger Wolfgang Pauli Paul Dirac Enrico Fermi Edwin Hubble Robert Oppenheimer Richard Feynman Julian Schwinger Sin-Itiro Tomonaga Chen Ning Yang Abdus Salam Steven Weinberg Sheldon Glashow...

Ok, i have come to a realisation that my interests revolve not around pure mathematics (as i once thought) and more around theoretical physics, some people would claim that they merge into one at times, and that leads on to my question. If i wanted to be a theoretical physicist (rather than an...

I am trying to portray a method of time travel on another thread. I have no maths. It's NOT helping. I was wondering if anyone would care to venture into the project? My idea is as such: Based on the fact that time is variable to gravity. (See link) I suggest that should gravity be...

Is there a Litmus test I could use to see if I'm cut out for theoretical physics? I'm a first year undergrad, and thus far things have been going well. The classes aren't hard, my grades are good, and I'm finding the time to read some more advanced texts. But there's also fifty other people...

Considering a "switch" to theoretical physics I'm a math major with 5 semesters left as an undergraduate. My math "profile" is very strong: lots of graduate classes (commutative algebra and algebraic geometry, homological algebra, higher homotopy theory and homology theory, representation...

First off, I'd like to introduce myself as this is my first post. My name is John, I'm 17, unemployed and science/technology has kept me entertained and happy for most of my life. With that said, I have a few questions. The first one is for the physicists (w/ a job) on this forum. What's a...

Tricky Theoretical Thinking Question Homework Statement Two equal-weight kids each hang from the ends of a rope passing over a weightless, frictionless pulley. If one child accelerates up the rope, what happens to the other? Homework Equations The Attempt at a Solution At...

I am very interested in theoretical physics and would like a careers in it. However, I'm not really sure about where to get a job in it or what kind of job. Can anyone help me figure this out? Thank you so much!.

we have y'=f(x)y+g(x) when f and g are continues on (a,b). and there is a point x_0 for which g(x_0) differs zero.suppose that u_1 and u_2 are solution to the equation on (a,b) .and if for some c,d d*u_1+c*u_2 is also a solution thn we cn conclude that : (we need to choose one of the options)...

a(x) is continues on R with cycle T ,a(x+T)=a(x) u(x) is non trivial soluion of y'=a(x)y \lambda=\int_{0}^{T}a(x)dx which of the following claims is correct: A. if \lambda>0 then \lim_{x\rightarrow\infty}u(x)=\infty B. if \lambda=0 then u(x) is a cyclic function i don't have...

Is it just me or have we had a lack of discoveries in our theoretical physics endeavors for some long time now? e.g. No WIMPs or other 'dark matter' particles detected with all those detectors, no Higgs particle at the LHC, no LIGO gravitational waves detected, no proofs of String theory or...

Hello, I have my first course in differential equations. So to solve a homogeneous linear differential equation of order n, you solve the characteristic polynome. Now say it has two complex roots z_1 = a_1 + b_1i and z_2 = a_2 - b_2i. These two roots give two independent solutions, namely y_1...

Hello, I am currently looking at some different degrees for undergrad. I would be very grateful if anyone could give me information. My interests are mostly theoretical physics (quantum, relativity), but I am also interested in nanomedicine, evolution, complex systems, and computer science...

Hi. I am currently a senior in highs chool and have already been accepted to a college [UMKC]. I was wondering if it would be beneficial for me to double major in Physics and Math. I am planning on going to grad school and getting a Ph.D in Astrophysics or theoretical physics. Would double...

Homework Statement The descending mass of the pulley system (atwood machine) is 60g and the ascending mass is 55g. Using DataStudio to measured the slope of the velocity over time (read by the spinning spokes of the pulley) the acceleration (constant) is experimentally given as 0.316m/s^2...

Let us take for granted for this discussion that we are clear by what we mean by macroscopic measurements: reading a number from a ruler, a scale, a gauge of any sort. Now suppose we perform a (macro) measurement of some aspect of a real laboratory system whose result, we presume, depends on...

Is there a known formula or method to find the linear coefficient of thermal expansion for all materials? I'm curious about what are the variables.

Are there any developed theories to explain why Muons and Taus decay so quickly, and why they don't stick around and leave us with x-ray emitting hydrogen atoms? It would be interesting if we could get them to last longer (I suppose relativistic speeds do, but that's still insignificant on the...

Hello I'm a spanish student, I'm finishing my 5th year in physics here in Madrid at UAM. I was planning on following the usual path here and start the Master in theoretical physics that we have here in Madrid at the same university, which is pretty good(2 year) and then it gives you access to a...

Howdy everyone, I'm at the point were I have to make the decision on my career well actually I'm a semester late but I need help with this. First, my main goal, is to be a theoretical physicist or something along those lines because that's where my interest is but I need a Ph.D. for that and...

Choosing modules for theoretical Physics from Math Graduate Diploma course: Hi forum members, I am studying Math Graduate Diploma at Kings College london. I am going to do M.Sc Theoretical Physics next year. I need your advice in choosing Math Grad Diploma modules closely related to the...

Hello. I am enrolled for this year in the theoretical physics master offered by ecole normal superieure in paris. It is an enormous task to pull off and so I need (and beg) some advise to speed up my progress from the most knowledgeable of the lot. So I completed a five year course in...

Hi , I want to Study Theoretical physics . I know The Mathematics required for this . I have lecture notes of these mathematical fields but I do not Know if they were written for Physics or mathematics students . The question is do i need to study all the material provided in these notes which...

Dear all, I want to be able to read and understand the basic concepts of Theoretical Physics (String Theory, LQG, Supersymmetry, AdS/CFT) at the level of: 1- A First Course in String Theory by Barton Zwiebach 2- Quantum Gravity by Carlo Rovelli. I plan to study the following textbooks (in...

The problem is with energy of electromagnetic field -\frac{d}{dt}\int_V\frac{1}{2}(\vec{E}\cdot\hat{\epsilon}\vec{E}+\vec{B}\hat{\mu^{-1}}\vec{B})dV=\oint(\vec{E}\times\vec{H})\cdot d\vec{S}+\int_V\vec{j}\cdot\vec{E}dV I have this relation \hat{\epsilon}, \hat{\mu}^{-1} are symmetric tensors...

Does anyone know the best colleges for theortical astrophysics Thank YOU

My name is Alex, and my dream is to become a theoretical physicist. I know that is probably very vague, so let me clear it up a bit. I love the universe. I think the universe is the most amazing place, just because of how weird it can be. I really can't get enough of it. I would spend hours...

Im new to college and I am majoring in Physics, how would i go about getting a degree in theoretical physics

Hi, I am an undergrad majoring in Physics. I want to be a theoretical physicist. What language would help me more (in any way)? German or Chinese? Thanks,

Hey, as you may have guessed I'm thinking of taking a Theoretical Physics course rather than just straight Physics, but that due to its maths-heavy nature I'm worried I might not cope all that well. I mean, I love the idea of theoretical - admittedly it's a rather romanticised view of it - but...

Hi I am going into the 4th year of Physics at Oxford this October and have been looking into PhDs etc. I'm quite keen on going into theoretical physics (Particle or condensed) and from reading various university websites it seems that places for this are relatively scarce. At Oxford for...

Hey guys, I know this is predominately an american centred forum but I was wondering if anyone could give me some advice. I've completed the first year of a Theoretical Physics 4 year course at Durham (in the UK). However with the modules that I chose I do still have the option to swap over to...

Many of the most fundamental physics problems that theoretical physicists work with are really cool, but they are so abstract that sometimes it just feels that you are sitting with huge tomes/books and looking at details. How do you stay motivated? How do you bring back the taste for maths...

Hanno Sahlmann has announced the formation of a new LQG group, at the APCTP in Korea. There are postdoc and PhD student positions to be filled and he indicates he would like to get them filled by this fall (which is fast approaching!) sahlmann@particle.skipthis.uni-karlsruhe.andthis.de...

Hello, I am lately looking for a theoretical physics master program taught in English, and I came across http://www.theorie.physik.uni-muenchen.de/TMP/courses/index.html" . It really looks like a complete program for those who seek a really mathematical-based courses; not to mention its hot...