Astroparticle Physics Paper idea

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around a high school student's exploration of potential topics for a research paper in astroparticle physics. The student is considering various ideas related to dark matter, cosmic microwave background (CMB), dark energy, and the holographic principle, seeking guidance on the originality and feasibility of these topics.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory
  • Debate/contested
  • Homework-related
  • Technical explanation

Main Points Raised

  • The student expresses interest in the relationship between CMB and dark matter, as well as the relationship between the wave of the universe and dark energy, and the holographic principle applied to dark energy.
  • Some participants suggest that the relationship between CMB and dark matter may not constitute a novel research question, while still being suitable for a high school paper.
  • There is a discussion about the importance of understanding the questions being posed and the need to explore existing literature to identify open questions in the field.
  • One participant recommends using arxiv.org to explore current research topics and to better understand the field before formulating specific questions.
  • Another participant advises using Google Scholar to verify whether the proposed ideas have been studied extensively, emphasizing the importance of thorough literature searches.
  • The student expresses uncertainty about their ability to comprehend advanced research papers and questions the accessibility of certain topics.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants generally agree on the importance of understanding existing research and the need for the student to refine their questions. However, there is no consensus on the originality of the proposed topics, and the discussion reflects a mix of supportive guidance and uncertainty regarding the student's ideas.

Contextual Notes

The discussion highlights the student's intermediate background in differential equations and astronomy, which may limit their ability to engage with complex research topics. There is also a recognition of the potential difficulty in navigating academic literature for someone at the high school level.

Who May Find This Useful

This discussion may be useful for high school students interested in pursuing research in astroparticle physics or related fields, as well as educators or mentors guiding students in selecting research topics.

Gjmdp
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Hello, I'm doing this year (and the next one) a paper for Physics. I know you guys think is no big deal, because I'm in high school and so. But currently the level of my school is really high and most of the people are doing real research papers.

The thing is I have no idea what to be the topic. I'm reading some Dark matter papers and CMB too. I think it may be interesting to do it about the relationship between CMB and Dark matter, and maybe a fancy simulation will fit good too. Otherwise, I could do it about the relationship between the wave of the universe and dark energy. I've also consider the holographic principle applied to dark energy.

I have no idea what to do, whether I'm saying some nonsense ideas, whether this is too much hard... I'll appreciate your answers :)

My background is intermediate differential equations (partial included too) & 1st year of Astronomy.
 
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Hello. I'm confused, your profile says you're a professor with a PhD?
 
plasmon_shmasmon said:
Hello. I'm confused, your profile says you're a professor with a PhD?
Oh sorry my mistake, I'm working towards it.
 
How is it a mistake?
 
plasmon_shmasmon said:
How is it a mistake?
I don't know how it says I'm a professor, but if you actually had watched my last threads you would really realize I'm not PhD and that this is a mistake (;as I'm asking whether I should be an engineer, and some high school homework...)

Anyway it's now edited. Thanks for telling, though :)
 
Anyway, is this paper for HW or are you trying to do research, as you referenced? If it's HW, what is the assignment?
 
plasmon_shmasmon said:
Anyway, is this paper for HW or are you trying to do research, as you referenced? If it's HW, what is the assignment?
It's both. I'm in a program that requires me to do a research on my own, so it's homework. The thing is I want to make something worth and maybe bring it to some science fairs.
 
I understand. Well, astrophysics is not my specialty, but I can try to offer a strategy to help narrow your choices.

1) Find a question that has not been answered. The "relationship between CMB and dark matter" is not really a research question, but it could make a good high school paper, if that's what you want. However, if you want to do *new* research, start by figuring out what has already been done and try to see if there are any open questions.

2) Reach out to your local university for help. It would be beneficial for you to find someone with more expertise, who could guide you towards a doable project and keep you on track. This is not necessary, and I suppose guidance is what you are seeking from this forum, but it would help you a great deal. It would also help you in the future to have connections with someone outside of your high school, e.g. when you're applying to colleges.
 
plasmon_shmasmon said:
The "relationship between CMB and dark matter" is not really a research question, but it could make a good high school paper, if that's what you want. However, if you want to do *new* research, start by figuring out what has already been done and try to see if there are any open questions.
Sure, the thing is I don't know whether something is new or not. I mean, for example, some days ago I thought I had discovered something knew. But I didn't, the "chirp" function is alredy discovered, as my last post, yesterday, showed. So, could you any confirm those, the ideas of :"the relationship between the wave of the universe and dark energy" & "the holographic principle applied to dark energy" has not been alredy studied in great detail?
 
  • #10
When thinking of potential research directions, it is important to really understand the questions that you are asking. So what do you mean by "the wave of the universe"? Can you explain the holographic principle? The way you phrased your ideas may sound interesting, but what do they mean?

I suggest that instead of posing a question and seeing whether it has been addressed before, try to study a topic and learn more about the outstanding questions in that field.

So where to start? Well arxiv.org is a free repository of physics/astronomy/mathematics research papers. They are not necessarily peer-reviewed, meaning the research may not be valid, but you could peruse topics and see what people are writing about. Try to learn about a topic and then form your questions.
 
  • #11
plasmon_shmasmon said:
When thinking of potential research directions, it is important to really understand the questions that you are asking. So what do you mean by "the wave of the universe"? Can you explain the holographic principle? The way you phrased your ideas may sound interesting, but what do they mean?

I suggest that instead of posing a question and seeing whether it has been addressed before, try to study a topic and learn more about the outstanding questions in that field.

So where to start? Well arxiv.org is a free repository of physics/astronomy/mathematics research papers. They are not necessarily peer-reviewed, meaning the research may not be valid, but you could peruse topics and see what people are writing about. Try to learn about a topic and then form your questions.
Ok, thank you ! I'll try, but I don't know whether I'm going to understand anything about a research paper (I'm still in High School). Another query is that, for example "Plasma Constraints on the Cosmological Abundance of Magnetic Monopoles and the Origin of Cosmic Magnetic Fields" is not really going to tell me anything, is it? Thanks anyway, as hard job needs hard work :)
 
  • #12
I understand and empathize with your conundrum. The titles alone can be so esoteric that's it's hard to tell what they're talking about. Try posting other ideas and hopefully someone with an astrophysics background can give you more specific guidance. Good luck.
 
  • #13
Gjmdp said:
Sure, the thing is I don't know whether something is new or not. I mean, for example, some days ago I thought I had discovered something knew. But I didn't, the "chirp" function is alredy discovered, as my last post, yesterday, showed. So, could you any confirm those, the ideas of :"the relationship between the wave of the universe and dark energy" & "the holographic principle applied to dark energy" has not been alredy studied in great detail?

Google scholar is your friend. It takes some skill and practice in usage to develop a high level of confidence that something has really never been done and isn't buried deep in an obscure journal. But stuff that has been done thoroughly and well known is usually easy to find with a few well-directed searches. This is the kind of thing a research mentor can walk you through and help you gain confidence in.

I'd start simply by typing a phrase like

relationship between the wave of the universe and dark energy

into Google Scholar and reading the abstracts of the first 20 or so papers that pop up.

Then try again with a little bit of variation on your search terms.

Then try again ...
 
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