The Fourier Transform emerged from Joseph Fourier’s Analytic Theory of Heat (1822). Back then, of course, the focus was not on the behavior of electricity. Fourier’s insights pertained to non-electrical wave motion as in acoustics and propagation of energy in bodies of water. At present, Fourier analysis/synthesis has become applicable to electrical and electromagnetic fluctuation […]
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Kirchoff’s Circuit Laws
Gustav Kirchhoff formulated a number of principles or laws, which fall into three basic categories: electrical circuits, spectroscopy and thermochemistry. Kirchhoff proposed two electrical circuit laws. His current law states that in a network of conductors meeting at a single point (called a “node”) the algebraic sum of the currents is zero. The voltage law […]
The arrow of time and the 2nd law of thermodynamics
First mention of the Arrow of Time was by Sir Arthur Eddington. He was the noted British astrophysicist who in May, 1919 conducted an expedition to an island off the coast of West Africa where he photographed a solar eclipse showing bending of light and providing the first confirmation of Albert Einstein’s Theory of Relativity. […]
Heinrich Hertz and Maxwell’s theory of wave propagation
Heinrich Hertz, who demonstrated the existence of electromagnetic waves predicted by James Clerk Maxwell, died after a long illness in 1864 at the age of 36. In 1930 the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) established the hertz (Hz) as the unit of frequency. Along with other SI units, the Hertz replaced cycles per second in the […]
The Standard Model, a Theory of Almost Everything
The Standard Model is a remarkably successful synthesis of much that we know about electromagnetic, weak and strong nuclear forces. It also classifies all known subatomic particles. As new experimental data emerges, the Standard Model continues to evolve and its view of the subatomic domain expands. In the 1970s, experiments confirmed the existence, as predicted, […]
Basics of quantum entanglement
Erwin Schrödinger was the first to use the word “entanglement” (Verschränkung), in a letter to Albert Einstein. His intent was to describe the connection between two particles that first interact and then separate. When physical properties such as position, momentum, spin and polarization are measured for one member of the pair, in accordance with quantum […]
Paul Dirac and his wave equation
It has been said of Paul Dirac (1902-1984) that he was able to conjure laws of nature from pure thought. His method was not experimental, but instead theoretical. He conceived the existence of the positron, the antiparticle of the electron. He also predicted antimatter, purely on the basis of certain equations and on the need […]
Lightning and its myths
In many ancient mythologies, lightning and the associated thunder crash were seen as mechanisms for divine retribution. Though we are well beyond that view, the public still has many misconceptions about lightning. In fact, there is much that is not known about lightning initiation. It begins abruptly and is over in an instant, so for […]
Wolfgang Pauli and the exclusion principle
Simply stated, the elementary particles that constitute matter are fermions and the elementary particles that constitute energy are bosons. Fermions have half-integer (1/2, 3/2, 5/2 …) spin while bosons have integer (0, 1, 2 . . .) spin. Spin, or angular momentum, characterizes elementary particles, composite particles (known as hadrons) and atomic nuclei. Each type […]
Heisenberg and the uncertainty principle
Werner Heisenberg (1901-1976) propounded (as applicable to quantum mechanics) his Uncertainty principle in 1927. It stated that there is a fundamental limit to the precision with which certain paired properties of subatomic particles can be known simultaneously. Two such properties are position and momentum. In the original formulation, Heisenberg seemed to be saying that the […]