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Discussion Overview

The thread discusses various resources related to materials science, mathematical concepts, and wave mechanics. Participants share links to lecture notes, articles, and e-books, while also engaging in a mathematical problem regarding the fundamental group of a specific topological space.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory
  • Technical explanation
  • Homework-related

Main Points Raised

  • One participant shares a link to a site with potential resources for materials science.
  • Another participant presents a topological problem involving two 2-spheres and arcs, expressing uncertainty about applying the van Kampen theorem and the correct identification of open sets.
  • A participant mentions the relevance of dispersion relations in wave mechanics and provides links to related articles, indicating a desire for further contributions and insights.
  • One participant shares a link to a site that organizes various academic topics, although they express difficulty in finding specific information.
  • A participant provides a link to free e-books on algebraic structures and other mathematical topics.
  • Concerns are raised about the credibility of a site that presents unconventional physics hypotheses, with another participant agreeing about the site's usability issues.
  • A link to a teaching resource from Cambridge is shared, although no specific commentary is provided on its content.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants express differing views on the credibility of certain resources, with some expressing skepticism about unconventional physics claims. The mathematical problem remains unresolved, with no consensus on the application of the van Kampen theorem or the correct approach to the fundamental group.

Contextual Notes

The discussion includes various assumptions about the mathematical problem and the reliability of shared resources, which are not fully explored or resolved.

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Consider the following space [itex]X[/itex], consisting of two [itex]2[/itex]-spheres and two arcs glued together. Compute its fundamental group.

Since I can't draw a picture online, call the first sphere [itex]S_1[/itex] and call the second sphere [itex]S_2[/itex]. Then one arc connects [itex]x_1 \in S_1[/itex] to [itex]x_2 \in S_2[/itex] and another arc connects [itex]y_1\in S_1[/itex] to [itex]y_2 \in S_2[/itex], where all the points are distinct.

I thought about this problem and contracted the arcs (so it looks like two 2-spheres identified in two points), and I want to use van Kampen. But I'm having a hard time figuring out two open sets [itex]A[/itex] and [itex]B[/itex] so that [itex]A \cup B = X[/itex] and [itex]A\cap B[/itex] is path connected.

Thank you!

Actually, can I contract one of the arcs so that the two 2-spheres touch at one point, then move the points [itex]x_1, x_2, y_1, y_2[/itex] to the point of intersection? Then I have [itex]S^2 \vee S^1\vee S^2[/itex]. Then [itex]\Pi_1(X) = \mathbb{Z}[\itex]. Is this a correct analysis?[/itex]
 
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This subject seems to be coming up quite often, especially for those studying wave mechanics.

Here is a brief intro. I'll be looking for better articles and I hope others will contribute references or insight from personal experience.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dispersion_relation

and related topics
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Group_velocity
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phase_velocity

http://tosio.math.toronto.edu/wiki/index.php/Dispersion_relation - note that this is a wiki page from Department of Mathematics at U. Toronto

I also hope to address anharmonic and non-linear systems.

I think it important for students to understand the significance of the higher order spatial (and temporal) derivates with respect to the dependent variable, uxxx or [itex]\partial^3_x\phi[/itex] in the KdV equation.
 
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I was looking for a reference for something relating to something mentioned, and ran across a nice site for a lot of references. If there is a thread that it can be re-posted--let me know.

http://web.mit.edu/redingtn/www/netadv/


This site organizes topics from various sources including arXiv alphabetically for you.

---------------------------------------------
oh--and I still couldn't find what I was looking for though
 
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well i don't know how much you can trust a site where it says there something like:
"physics hypothesis that there is no speed barrier in the universe"

i would say quite unpopular approach is it not?
 
Agreed 'loop"...and if you nav to the home page it is filled with java errors that make looking frustrating and counterproductive.
 
http://www.msm.cam.ac.uk/Teaching/index.html
 
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