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Ua3/3/1 Proposed National Science Foundation Summer Institute, Ward Sumpter, Wku President's Office

WKU Administration Documents

Proposal for National Science Foundation summer institute to be held at WKU during the summer of 1959.

A Cell-Center Distribution Function For Liquid Argon, Arthur M. Soellner

Masters Theses

"A theoretical expression for a cell-center distribution function was developed using a fundamental statistical mechanics approach. A free volume picture of the liquid was used with each atom located in a spherical cell formed by its nearest neighbors. Cell-center density distribution curves were obtained for liquid argon for temperatures of 84.4°K, 91.8°K, 126.7°K, 144.1°K, and 149.3°K and for argon gas at 149.3°K, and a comparison made with the experimental atomic distribution curves obtained by Eisenstein. For the first two temperatures a sharper, more definite structure was predicted by the cell model. For the remaining four temperatures, with the assumptions made, …

A Preliminary Search For Subionizers, Joseph B. Hughes

Masters Theses

"A number of physicists of recent years have been attempting to explain the basic nature of the universe in terms of particles. A few particles have been predicted theoretically, and some of these, along with many others have appeared experimentally, Searches for them have presented some interesting experimental problems and brought forth some invaluable experimental apparatus. One of these devices is the Wilson cloud chamber, with which this thesis is concerned.

Of the particles that have been discovered thus far, only the electron and the proton appear to be stable. The rest ultimately decay by the emission of photons and …

Pulse Measurement Of The Velocity Of Light Using A Kerr Cell, Ralph Drake Mills

University of the Pacific Theses and Dissertations

The object of this research was to develop a technique that could measure the velocity of light indirectly, with some degree of accuracy; yet could be used to demonstrate the physical fact of this velocity of light to groups of students or interested observers.

Rocky Mountain Spectroscopy Conference

Rocky Mountain Conference on Magnetic Resonance

Program from the Rocky Mountain Spectroscopy Conference, sponsored by the Rocky Mountain Spectroscopy Society. Held in Denver, Colorado, August 11-12, 1958.

A Problem In Atmospheric Diffusion, Albert C. Giere

Physics & Astronomy ETDs

This study concerns the diffusion of atmospheric ozone through a one dimensional region, given certain initial and boundary conditions. As shown in Figure 1 the region is bounded by the planes x= -a and x=b. The plane x=0 divides the region into two parts, Region I and Region II. The solution to this type of problem consists in giving the concentration as a function of the time for any point x in both regions. A general analytic solution is obtained by means of the Laplace transformation using coefficients of diffusion which differ in Regions I and II, but which are …

On The Relation Between The Cosmic Ray Air Shower Spectrum And The Pulse Height Spectrum Of A Large Scintillator, Robert T. Barton

Physics & Astronomy ETDs

The purpose of this paper is to study other lateral distribution functions proposed by various authors, to select an alternative to the one used previously, to repeat the calculations of the required quantities using the alternative function, and to comment on the relative merits of the different choices. Since an empirical formula was used in the original work it seemed desirable to use a theoretical relation for comparison if a suitable one were available.

Structure Of Ch2, Gordon A. Gallup

Gordon Gallup Publications

Gray has criticized the calculation of the ground state multiplicity of the CH₂ fragment by the author. In answer, I would like to make two comments.
1. Regardless of the energies of ionization of a carbon atom, CH₂ may be considered as a system composed of two protons, a carbon kernel, and four electrons. The proper amount of configuration interaction should arise naturally and depend on relative energies of orbitals and overlap values. It appears that there is too much configuration interaction in the calculation in reference since the equilibrium angle arrived at is 160° instead of 140° …

A Rotating Ring Magnetometer Remote Position Indicator, Robert B. Foster Jr.

Physics & Astronomy ETDs

Many phases of present-day experimental physics require remote indicating devices where data must be transmitted either by wire or radio to a distant point. For example, when atmospheric parameters are measured by means of sounding balloons, it would be desirable to use a lightweight device which would accurately convert measured information into electrical data in a form which would allow easy transmission to a receiving station.

Physics, Chapter 35: Electronics, Henry Semat, Robert Katz

Robert Katz Publications

The electrons of an atom occupy certain energy levels when the atom is far from other atoms. When a large number of atoms are assembled to form a conducting metallic solid, the energy levels of the valence electrons are displaced in position to form a conduction band, as discussed in Section 28-4. The valence electrons occupy energy levels within the conduction band and are relatively free to drift from atom to atom within the metal. In accordance with a fundamental physical principle, known as the Pauli exclusion principle, only 1 electron may occupy a particular energy level. The conduction electrons …

Physics, Chapter 30: Magnetic Fields Of Currents, Henry Semat, Robert Katz

Robert Katz Publications

The first evidence for the existence of a magnetic field around an electric current was observed in 1820 by Hans Christian Oersted (1777-1851). He found that a wire carrying current caused a freely pivoted compass needle in its vicinity to be deflected. If the current in a long straight wire is directed from C to D, as shown in Figure 30-1, a compass needle below it, whose initial orientation is shown in dotted lines, will have its north pole deflected to the left and its south pole deflected to the right. If the current in the wire is reversed and …

Physics, Appendix B, Henry Semat, Robert Katz

Robert Katz Publications

Appendix B

Physics, Chapter 16: Kinetic Theory Of Gases, Henry Semat, Robert Katz

Robert Katz Publications

The behavior of a gas under various conditions of temperature and pressure has already been studied in some detail. When the pressure of a constant mass of gas is not too great, say less than about 2 atm, we find that a gas obeys the following relationships to be discussed.

Physics, Chapter 33: Magnetic Properties Of Matter, Henry Semat, Robert Katz

Robert Katz Publications

Matter is composed of atoms consisting of positively charged nuclei and negative electrons. These electrons occur in shells, and the periodic nature of chemical properties of atoms as the atomic weight increases is a reflection of the fact that the chemical behavior of an atom depends largely upon the number of electrons in the outermost shell. In some parts of the periodic table (see Table 5 of Appendix A), electrons occupy places in an outer shell before an inner shell is completely filled; it is then observed that a number of different elements have very similar chemical properties. The same …

Physics, Chapter 36: Light And Its Measurement, Henry Semat, Robert Katz

Robert Katz Publications

The word light, as commonly used, refers to the radiant energy which produces a visual effect. It was first shown by Maxwell that light is an electromagnetic radiation, propagated with a speed whose value was numerically determined by the relationship between electric and magnetic units.

Physics, Chapter 28: Electrical Conduction In Liquids And Solids, Henry Semat, Robert Katz

Robert Katz Publications

We have seen that electrical conduction in solids is associated with the drift of free electrons in the solid, a process which will be examined in greater detail in Section 28-4. A similar mechanism may be used to account for the conduction of electricity in liquid metals. In other liquids electricity is conducted by the migration of positive and negative ions through the liquid.

Physics, Chapter 27: Direct-Current Circuits, Henry Semat, Robert Katz

Robert Katz Publications

When a charged particle traverses a closed path in an electrostatic field in space, the total work done on the particle is zero. The electric field is conservative. Associated with each point in the field, there is a fixed value of the electrical potential.

In a simple circuit consisting of a chemical cell and a resistor, as shown in Figure 27-1, we have seen that the current flows through the resistor from the positive terminal of the cell to the negative terminal of the cell. The positive terminal is at the higher potential, so that the current flows from the …

Physics, Chapter 5: Force And Motion, Henry Semat, Robert Katz

Robert Katz Publications

All of us have many times had the experience of setting a body in motion. If we analyze any of these experiences, we readily recall that in each case some force was required to start the object moving. In throwing a ball, moving a piece of furniture, or pulling a sled, the force needed to start the object moving is supplied by one's muscular effort as a push or a pull. In more complex cases, such as setting a car or an airplane in motion, the analysis, although more complicated, will also show that a force is required to start …

Physics, Chapter 34: Alternating Currents, Henry Semat, Robert Katz

Robert Katz Publications

If the current in a resistor varies sinusoidally, as shown in Figure 34-1, the potential difference across the terminals of the resistor will also vary sinusoidally in the same manner, in phase with the current, in accordance with Ohm's law. Writing i for the instantaneous value of the current and v for the instantaneous value of the potential difference, we have v = iR.

Physics, Chapter 26: The Electric Current, Henry Semat, Robert Katz

Robert Katz Publications

Electricity is the basis of our present highly technical civilization. It is the means whereby energy from various sources is delivered to the consumer in a form suitable for its conversion into the many kinds of energy demanded by him. It is through the intermediary of the electric circuit that energy is transmitted electrically from the primary source, no matter where it is situated, to the ultimate consumer wherever he desires it. A complete electric circuit contains some form of electric generator, which is essentially a device for converting other forms of energy to electrical energy, a set of conductors …

2. The Theory Of Special Relativity, Robert L. Bloom, Basil L. Crapster, Harold L. Dunkelberger, Charles H. Glatfelter, Richard T. Mara, Norman E. Richardson, W. Richard Schubart

Section XX: Meaning in the Physical Sciences

Albert Einstein (1879-1955) published his first work on relativity in 1905, the same year in which he published remarkable papers on Brownian motion and the photoelectric effect. At the time he did this work, he was a patent examiner in the Swiss Patent Office. He was awarded the Nobel Prize for physics in 1921 "for his services to the theory of physics, and especially for his discovery of the law of the photoelectric effect." He became a professor of physics at several German universities, and in 1916, he took a position at the Kaiser Wilhelm Institute in Berlin.

As the …

Physics, Contents, Henry Semat, Robert Katz

Robert Katz Publications

Table of contents

Physics, Chapter 13: Properties Of Matter, Henry Semat, Robert Katz

Robert Katz Publications

When a system is subjected to external forces, it generally undergoes a change in size or shape or both. We have thus far touched very lightly on such changes; for example, we have considered the change in length of an elastic spring and the change in volume of a gas when such systems were subjected to varying pressures. The changes produced in a system by the action of external forces depend upon the physical properties of the material of which the system is composed. A study of the properties of matter leads to information which is of practical value to …

Physics, Chapter 4: Statics Of A Rigid Body, Henry Semat, Robert Katz

Robert Katz Publications

In the preceding chapter we observed that a particle would remain in equilibrium, in a state of rest, or in a state of uniform motion in a straight line when the resultant of all the forces acting on it was equal to zero. This condition for equilibrium was extended to larger bodies under either of two possible conditions: If the forces acting on the body were concurrent, that is, if they were directed toward a single point, the body could be treated as if it were a particle; or if the body moved with uniform translational motion in which every …

Physics, Chapter 3: The Equilibrium Of A Particle, Henry Semat, Robert Katz

Robert Katz Publications

A particle which remains at rest or in uniform motion with respect to its frame of reference is said to be in equilibrium in that frame. Centuries ago it was recognized that the state of rest was a natural state of things, for it was observed that objects set in motion on the surface of the earth tended to come to rest. The maintenance of any horizontal motion on earth was thought to require the continued exercise of a force, hence to be a violent motion, while vertical motion like that of a falling body was thought to be natural …

Physics, Chapter 2: Motion Of A Particle (Kinematics), Henry Semat, Robert Katz

Robert Katz Publications

Normally, when we say an object is at rest, we mean that it is at rest with respect to the surface of the earth; when we say a car is moving at a speed of 40 mi/hr, we imply that the motion is taking place at this speed relative to the road. A boat sailing on the river moves with respect to the river's banks, but it also moves with respect to the flowing water in the river. The lift on the wings of an airplane is generated by the motion of the airplane through the air, but it is …

Physics, Chapter 29: The Magnetic Field, Henry Semat, Robert Katz

Robert Katz Publications

Natural magnets, called lodestones, have been known since ancient times. The lodestone, a magnetic oxide of iron called magnetite (Fe₃O₄), was mentioned by Thales of Miletus. By the eleventh century the magnetic compass was known to the Chinese, and in the twelfth century references to the compass were made in Western Europe. The lodestone is capable of attracting pieces of iron and of imparting permanent magnetism to other pieces of iron so that these too could attract iron filings. If an iron bar is magnetized, as the result of being near a piece of lodestone, and …

Physics, Chapter 21: Vibrations And Sound, Henry Semat, Robert Katz

Robert Katz Publications

There are two aspects of sound: one is the physical aspect which involves the physics of the production, propagation, reception, and detection of sound; the other, which is the sensation of sound as perceived by the individual, depends upon physiological and psychological effects. It is not desirable to separate the two aspects of sound completely, but the main emphasis in this book must necessarily be on the physical aspect. In this chapter we shall consider mostly musical sounds. A vocabulary has been developed to describe the sensation experienced when a musical sound is heard. Such terms as the pitch of …

Physics, Chapter 37: Reflection And Refraction, Henry Semat, Robert Katz

Robert Katz Publications

In the passage of a beam of light through a medium, some of the radiant energy is absorbed and is transformed into internal energy, while some of it is scattered in all directions. The oscillating electric field associated with the light wave sets some of the electrons of the medium into oscillation, thus giving up some of its energy, and these oscillating electrons subsequently reradiate energy as scattered electromagnetic radiation. Scattering therefore takes place only in the presence of matter. The color of the sky is due to the small amount of scattering of sunlight by the molecules of the …

Physics, Chapter 32: Electromagnetic Induction, Henry Semat, Robert Katz

Robert Katz Publications

When a wire moves through a uniform magnetic field of induction B, in a direction at right angles to the field and to the wire itself, the electric charges within the conductor experience forces due to their motion through this magnetic field. The positive charges are held in place in the conductor by the action of interatomic forces, but the free electrons, usually one or two per atom, are caused to drift to one side of the conductor, thus setting up an electric field E within the conductor which opposes the further drift of electrons. The magnitude of this …