Photo Contest - Physics+Maths (12/23-1/5, win a book)

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Discussion Overview

The thread discusses a photo contest themed around "Physics+Maths," inviting participants to submit photographs that visually represent physical phenomena related to mathematical problems. The contest is linked to the publication of a new textbook and offers prizes, with specific rules and guidelines for submissions.

Discussion Character

  • Contest-related
  • Exploratory

Main Points Raised

  • The contest allows submissions of digital photos that illustrate a physical phenomenon related to a mathematical problem, with specific size and editing rules outlined by the organizer.
  • Some participants mention specific examples of phenomena, such as the catenary curve and standing waves, as potential subjects for their photographs.
  • One participant highlights the visualization of fluid dynamics, noting the transition from laminar to turbulent flow as an open problem in fluid mechanics.
  • Another participant references a mathematical equation related to the shape of "The Bean," suggesting a connection between the shape and mathematical concepts.
  • Reminders are given about the submission deadline and the existence of a parallel poetry contest.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants generally agree on the theme and rules of the contest, but there is no consensus on specific photographic subjects or interpretations of the theme, as various examples are proposed without resolution.

Contextual Notes

The discussion includes various interpretations of how to visualize mathematical concepts through photography, with some participants referencing complex ideas that may not be universally understood. The scope of the contest is limited to specific rules regarding submissions and themes.

Who May Find This Useful

Members interested in photography, physics, mathematics, and those looking to engage in community contests may find this thread useful.

Orodruin
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The photo contest of this week will have some additional stakes apart from the usual right to brag for a week.

In connection to the publication of my new textbook Mathematical Methods for Physics and Engineering, CRC Press has graciously offered Physics Forums three free copies of it to use as prizes in various competitions of which this will be the first. @ZapperZ has graciously allowed me to pick the theme and to run the competition myself.

Edit: If your photography skills are lacking, but you feel like writing some poetry. Check out the second contest thread: Describe your job as a haiku or limerick - contest

In connection to the theme of the book, the theme of the contest this week is

Physics+Maths

Your picture should show a physical phenomenon that visualises the solution to a mathematical problem encountered in the physical sciences. No equations in the pictures, but feel free to write down the corresponding equations in your submission post!

In order to give everyone a fair chance to snap a good physics picture over the holidays, this contest will run for two weeks rather than the usual one week.

Note! The book is aimed towards advanced undergraduate and graduate students in physics and the prerequisites for understanding the contents are therefore rather high. If for this or any other reason you feel that you do not want the book, you are still welcome to participate in the photo contest. Just send me a PM notifying me that your contribution is not competing for the book.

Note (2)! Due to shipping costs, we can offer free shipping within the United States only. If you want to compete for the book from another country, be aware that shipping costs may have to be imposed.

Apart from the above, the rules for the Photo Contest are the same as always:

Contest Rules:

1. Any digital photo or digitally-scanned photo relevant to the theme will be accepted within the contest period. In case there's a gray area, or you're not sure if the picture is suitable, check with me first.

2. Please resize your digital photo to no more than 800 x 600 or 600 x 800 pixels. You may also crop your picture if you wish. You are also allowed to adjust the brightness and contrast of your picture but these should not dramatically alter the look of the picture. But other than those, any form of picture editing or modification is not allowed. This is a photo contest, not a picture editing/special effect contest. You may add a watermark or your name/nickname to the photo for identification purposes.

3. Upload your photos to any of the photo servers such as imageshack or photobucket. Then post it the relevant contest thread and link your picture using the img command. PM me if you do not know how. Alternatively, you may simply upload your image file to PF, and then have the full image displayed in your post.

4. Only ONE picture per member per contest. Once a picture is posted, it cannot be changed other than a total withdrawl by that member from that week's photo contest. Exceptions will be made for modification to comply with the rules, such as resizing.

5. At the end of the contest period, I will open a poll and every PF member can vote for the picture they like best.

6. Note that in case we have a large number of entries, I will do the polling in more than one thread. If that's the case, you can vote in each of the polling threads. The photos will be assigned in the polling threads in the order they were submitted.

7. The photo of the subject must be something that you took directly, not via in intermediary medium, and not taken by someone else. Unless otherwise noted, a photo of another photo, painting, print, etc. does not qualify.

8. You can use a picture only once. Once it is used in a contest, it cannot be reused in another contest.

9. Please post only pictures meant for submission in this thread. Photos not meant for submission must not be posted in the contest thread. Posting of more than one photos by a member may result in an automatic disqualification from the week's contest.
 
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The Catenary is purrfect easy to demonstrate!
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Catenary
the catenary curve is the graph of the hyperbolic cosine function,
it's the solution to the problem of chain equilibrium:
sg_3l7Nvzt0.jpg
 

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Infinity.png


Infinity.
 

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Untitled1_zpsgzzrhb89.jpg


Fine smoke particles visualize part of a transition from laminar to turbulent flow. While the shape literally illustrates a solution to the mass, momentum, and energy balance equations, it is also a (notorious) open problem in fluid mechanics.
 

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I had to dig up a straight-on picture of "The Bean", because I'm using the quartic, 2D equation of the shape: (x2 + y2)2 = x3 + y3

IMG_1865.JPG

Zz.
 

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One day left to submit your contributions to the photo contest and have (this) chance for winning the book!

The haiku/limerick competition also ends tomorrow!
 

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