At Last I See the Light

We have been talking about light in Physics lately, and light, like pretty much everything else, is made up of waves. Light is just electromagnetic waves, which are produced by a vibrating charge. There are a lot of different kind of electromagnetic waves, and we classify them based on their frequencies. This list of waves based on frequencies is called the electromagnetic spectrum, shown below

As you can see, we can only see a tiny fraction of electromagnetic waves, called the visible spectrum. 

I think it would be cool if we could see all the waves though, Jah feel Blake?

The visible light spectrum has some rules. Black absorbs light, white reflects it. Black is the absence of light. The primary colors of light are red, blue, and green. When red and blue mix, we get magenta. When red and green are mixed, we get yellow. When blue and green are mixed, we get cyan. When all three are mixed we get white. 

The picture above shows some colored laser shining on a white board. We did this so we could see how colors mixed. 

Energy Project Update

For quite some time now, we have been working on an energy project in physics. The purpose of this project is to find ways to conserve energy at home and lower our monthly electricity bill. The big picture here isn’t just saving money; it is more about becoming sustainable in a world of decreasing resources and increasing energy prices.    Sup Blake.

For my project, I have been taking shorter, colder showers and using a power strip to charge my phone and laptop, instead of plugging them straight into the wall.

As far as results go, I have seen positive change, but very little. My monthly electricity bill has gone down by about 4 dollars in the past two months. This isn’t a lot of change, but it is change in the right direction. 

Sound (Doppler Effect)

This week in class we talked about sound waves. Sound is just waves, and like all waves it is just energy moving from one point to another. This blog in particular is focused on the phenomenon known as the Doppler effect. The Doppler effect is observed whenever the source of waves is moving with respect to an observer. This just means that things sound different when they are moving in relation to the person listening to the sound. The Doppler effect can be defined as the effect created by a moving source of waves in which there is an increase in frequency for observers who are being approached by the source and a decrease in frequency for observers from whom the source is receding. You reading this Blake?

The picture below is of my friend and I walking on the side of the road. Whenever a car drove by, the sound would change while it was coming towards us, while it was next to us, and while it was moving away. The frequency got higher as it came closer, and got lower as it drove away.

Everyone notices this, but it is cool to finally understand why this happens.

Science boi!

Ya feel me? 

Water Waves

Guess what? More waves!

This time, we are talking about water waves. Water waves, are waves that move through water, mind-blowing, I know. Water waves are mostly caused by the wind blowing over the surface of the ocean, transferring energy from the air into the water. The size of the wave depends on wind speed, duration, and area of water that the wind blows over. When waves move through water, only the energy moves through the water. The water itself is not moving; it is just the medium through which the energy moves. Does Blake read every blog? 

Waves move slower in shallow water, which is why when waves reach the shore or go over a shallow reef, the water on the bottom slows down while the water on top stays the same speed, causing the wave to break over themselves. 

The picture above is some of my friends surfing. The wave comes from a long ways away because of the wind, and travels through open ocean. When the wave reaches this shallower reef, it stands up and breaks, making it catchable. 

Waves are pretty cool.

You feel me?

Waves Rd. 2

We have been learning a lot about waves in class. Pretty much all energy is in the form of waves. When someone is talking to you, it isn’t the air coming out of their mouth that is going to your ear, but the “waves” of energy they are producing from their vocal chords. The air is just the medium the wave energy travels through. This past week we have been focusing on wave super position and how waves react when they hit each other, other stuff. The principle of super position states that two wave energies can be in the same place at the same time and interact with each other. When two waves are in the same place at the same time, it alters their amplitudes. When the waves have equal frequency, with opposite phase, it causes destructive interference (the waves flatten out while they are together). When the waves have equal frequency, with same phase, it causes constructive interference (2x the amplitude while they are together).

The picture above is the big guy himself, doin’ work at sandy’s. As one wave reflects (bounces back) off the shore and goes back out to sea, another wave comes in towards shore. The waves both have the same phase, so when they reach the same place at the same time, constructive interference happens. This means that for a moment, both wave’s amplitudes are added together, resulting in “super” wave.

You Feel Me?

Waves

In class this week we have been talking about waves. A wave is a disturbance that travels through a medium from one location to another location. Mediums are the materials that carry the wave (ex. air, water, metal, stuff). There are two types of waves: transverse and longitudinal. Transverse waves are defined as a wave vibrating at right angles to the direction of its propagation. This means that the particles go up and down in place, and the wave energy goes side to side. Longitudinal waves are described as a wave vibrating in the direction of propagation. This means that the particles go side to side, and the energy goes parallel.

The picture above is of me bodysurfing a wave at Sandy’s. Ocean waves are Transverse waves. This is because when waves are moving, it isn’t the individual water particles moving across the ocean, it is energy moving through water (the medium). If you actually could see the individual water particles of an ocean wave, you would see that they move in small circles, but more or less, the water particles stay in place.