Thinking Definition and 383 Threads

I'll give three subjects to work with please tell me any descriptive attributes to them: Thinking: If you think with the knowledge you have now but expand on it does it help yourself? Also, how does learning have to do with this Learning: How do you know when your learning at your limit...

I am operating under the assumption that one must engage in thinking when studying the nature of thought. Conclusions about the nature of thought are thus distorted by the process used to reach those conclusions. Are we prepared to state that thought is a tool which can be trusted to...

I'd like some help from builders - modellers or mechanical tinkerers. I'm trying to build the skeletons of some polyhedra - the vertices are intersections of rods - no faces. http://www.reed.edu/~mcphailb/puzzles/images/hex.bmp" I want to be able to telescope the rods by about 3x. So, I...

If the Earth was flat, and there were no such thing as gravity, and it, along with all the celestial bodies, accelerated upwards (so, parallel to normal) at 1g(9.8m/s^2), what would happen if I dropped a pen while I am on earth?

I have a TI-83 graphing calculator and am thinking about upgrading to the 89 because extra useful features. Is it worth it?

OK I'm a big fan of lateral thinking puzzles, logic puzzes are great for testing those little grey cells and I thoroughlly enjoy them too, but when you want to get:confused: and a little of the beaten track: lateral is the way to go, so I found some. Have fun...:smile: Ok these aren't that...

http://magazines.ivillage.com/cosmopolitan/sex/no/articles/0,,426367_699012-1,00.html Previously, i don t "understand" why so many women do this in front of me, and now, i do! So when woman does this behavior, she is actually into a guy! I always thought this was some weird thing women do...

Thinking about business, but after spending so much time in engineering/science... Hello everyone, This is a big step and I don't know if I want to do it or not. Heres how my changing of majors already occured. I went from being a Software Engineer then got hurt in a car accident and was...

As an undergraduate, did any of you know what you wanted to studied in graduate school. I have absolutely no idea what I want to studied once I begin graduate school. Was there something that caused you to go into a certain direction in a physics field. I guess most people get there...

So I've got an MSc in Engineering physics and I'm now deciding if I should go find a job in the industry, or stay in school to get a PhD, more specifically in Scientific computing and numerical analysis. Getting the PhD is very temping, but the main thing holding me back is that I don't know how...

Can anyone recommend some good 'introduction to critical thinking' books?

Hello everyone, another example in the book I'm wanting to make sure I'm seeing how they got their answer correctly. It says: Supppose the group pof 12 consists of 5 men and 7 women. How many 5 person teams contain at most one man? Solution: The set of teams containing at most one man...

Why do people think about extra dimensions to aide our knowledge of the universe, when we do not even know what forces control the elements? i mean what controls the properties of the photon, the electron, they are well known in the literature, but what gives them there properties, why should a...

It's the annual chili cook off at work, and based on the sorry, pathetic entries last year, someone needs to show these people what real chili is. Real chili is not soupy nor does it contain bell peppers. Bell peppers are not what they're referring to when a chili recipe calls for peppers...

I can't seem to understand this problem. Could someone give me a hint as to what I'm supposed to be thinking? Vectors A, B and C satisfy the vecotr equation A + B = C, and their magnitudes are related by the scalar equation A^2 + B^2 = C^2. How is vector A oriented with respect to vector B...

Hi all, Considering the nature of a water wave, how is the coconut going to move inland, say it is in the middle of the ocean(pacific)? Am i correct to say that the coconut bobs straight up and down. Thx! Any help will be appreciated

Should i be able to replace those large stationary "dee" magnets with electromagntes? (or would that be a grand misuse of the powersupply, as i know i will need to supply an ample amount to the electron gun, and the current which i need to accelerate the particles, rather than simply keep them...

Ive noticed something about myself when i try to solve a problem consciously i can't do it i'd be stuck there for hours and then i'd give up and like a nagging song the problem would surface again and my mind would solve the problem effortlessly and everything starts to 'fit' like a jigsaw...

Hey everyone. It's summer, and I'm thinking, mostly about superconductors for some reason, and I have a question. For this, I'm going to pretend we have a room temperature superconductor pulled into a wire (I know, doesn't exist, but just thinking here). If a DC voltage was applied to a...

The word dimesional may not be a good choice, but the idea is to consider how many thoughts [maybe levels of awareness] we can carry at once. The other day while driving down a long, straight, remote road that passes through the grass fields, I was playing a little mental game to see how many...

I don't know why, but lastly I can't control and stop my thinking. It's like my brain thinks against my will and I can't control it. I'm afraid that if I keep on like that, I will finally run out, and get some kind of brainy diesease like Alzhaimer or any others. I'm thinking even when I do...

Can you tell in a general sort of way what some is thinking ? this would be some what easier with a familly member or close friend, but what about a stranger ?

Can you elaborate on linear and picture thinking process. Linear as being a step-by-step process, and picture thinking processes multiples "pictures" simultaniously. Which thinking procecss might make the person smarter, successful?

We've all had those conversations... when you know you're right but the person you're arguing against is dead set against agreeing you no matter how manyc ontradictions you point out in their argument and they ignore or how illogical their views are. Now, feel free to contribue! Mind you, some...

Hello there, I'm by no means a philosophy student but I plan on majoring it in college :rolleyes:. Anyway, I was killing some time, waiting for my introductory books to arrive, by playing with my 8 year old little sister. Well, she asked me this very interesting question. "Phusicist, when a...

Hi, Does anyone have any exceptional music to recommend that they believe enhances their ability to concentrate or visualize highly abstract and/or complex math/physics problems? It's fun experimenting with stuff like this so if you have any recommendations let me know. [I do a lot of math &...

Hello, I want to show my class how tonic water will fluoresce under UV light. My UV sources are a couple of 12V UV bulbs, as designed to "pimp out" (don't ask) a PC. Here's the main problem: these also put out some visible wavelength, purplish light. I'd like filter this visible light...

I am trying to finish as soon as possible my master thesis, and at the same time working harder to earn more money to leave UK for US. I think I am taught enough. It's time I have to go...

Before I even venture into the maze, a question: what I'm meaning to do, is post a 'personal theory about relativity' that some guy told me. Now, it's quite ludicrous, even though the dear man tries to stick to the right principle. Which makes it hard for me, who is not really interested in...

Einstein stated that the laws of physics are the same in all inertial reference frames. Lets do the old thought experiment There are a pair of twins each with identical watches. One remains on Earth while the other travels out into space near the speed of light and back again. The...

Suppose u have a perfectly healthy individual. Is it possible for him to think himself to death? Some ideas i had: For example by meditating so intensively that one feels the ego dissolve and consciousness leave the body. Another example is this part in the matrix where they say: "if you...

The following is not intended as a definitive explanation of other dimensions, but a suggestion for other ways of looking at the idea of physical dimensions. Supporters of string theory occasionally remark that the reason we cannot "see" other dimensions is that they must be very small...

Right now, along with many other high school students in North America (and the rest of the world, I guess), I am faced with the dilemma of what I’m going to do after high school, and subsequently, the rest of my life. I know that with my limited knowledge of the world outside of high school...

Hi, A homework problem I ran across awhile ago asked me to determine if a set of of 2x2 Matrices were a basis for the set of aa 2x2 matrices. Am I going to run into any pitfalls by thinking about such 2x2 matrices as vectors of 4 components? Basically what I did was turn each 2x2 matrix into...

Thinking "out of the box" Hey guys, I'm currently doing A levels (UK EXAMS) and I've decided I want to do physics at Uni... I was wondering if anyone could recommend me any books or websites to help me think "outside the box", ie. applying current knowledge to new situations.. I can do it in my...

What next nomination for the Supreme Court would help provide bush with support? I have heard tha a conservative nominee will be met with a filibuster and I have heard that a moderate nominee will be frowned upon by the right. Bush has to know that this is an important decision. Who do...

Hey. So like my topic says, I am thinking about buying a microscope via eBay for home use. It's generally to run my biology experiments. I am looking at a microscope with around 1600x magnification so it's possible for me to be able to go further in my experiments. I have been looking...

I was wondering about what people consider good science based majors I want: A challenging degree(important) mostly based on independent work(pretty important too) Good job prospects and pay(not that important) analytical with theory and practice Logical and conceptual in nature. I...

I *think* I remember hearing something about a study that showed just thinking about working out was able to increase muscle mass.. was this true?

I am thinking about switching my double major from Applied Mathematics and Statistics (AMS) and Economics to AMS and Pure Mathematics with maybe a minor in economics. I want to keep my two career options open: Actuary or going to grad school However I have been hearing from some upper...

I know that a rocket flying through space can burn fuel, which has mass, at a constant rate, thus a constant forward force. But does the acceleration of the shuttle increase or decrease with time, or does it just stay the same?

I have heard a whisper that GD is in the doldrums, is it because there is nothing to talk about, or pure apathy? i know there are posters to GD that exhibit signs of intelligent conversation, and an inkling of wit, well two or three to be honest, are you one of them? :biggrin:

I was wondering about something today, I once heard a quote from Roger Penrose: a bar maid asked him what drink he wanted and he didn';t respond for a couple of seconds. When he did he said 'Sorry, I was thinking in about 12 different dimensino and I find it hard to come back to one' (or...

Which has contributed more to your life?

I have some questions, so if you like to joke or anything--offtopical points are also welcomed..:wink: In order to draw something, we need a pen and a paper, so if we don't use the pen, what can we use ? Second, when we draw something we can use crayons or color pens to add colors to the...

hi guys assistance in this area would be great just see what i have written and comment on them please thanks! all. im thinking about the errors in titration from doing a typical acid-base titration to talk about in my experiment and these are the errors i came up with. First of all my...

hey any 1 attended this course ... if so .. could u tell me about it .. what is it exactly and how do they evaluate u ... and what is the perfect way to score high level in it ... and if anyone has a site or an ebook or anything which would help 4 the course ... please give me regards no...

We adults usually think in concrete terms. Would you agree, however, that the majority of our mature abstract thought processes can be related directly to our imagination as a child? How can this association justify the seeming exclusivity of child and adult minds? What magical thinking do...

Suppose you want to take a photograph of yourself as you look at your image in a flat mirror 1.8 m away. For what distance should the camera lens be focused? You must be ½ the total distance away: since the angle of incidence is equal to the angle of reflection, the distance needed to get a...

For example, when you are doing an essay, you must get some idea to write. Thus you send an impulse through the nerve cell to the brain. But what send the impulse, and how is it controlled?