• Question: What is your favorite physics related word

    Asked by 09austb1 to Becky, Robin, Usaid on 22 Mar 2012.
    • Photo: Robin Stafford Allen

      Robin Stafford Allen answered on 22 Mar 2012:

      @09austb1: Lovely question to think about. I’m going to think about this and come back to you. At the moment I can only of super-conductivity because I have worked with this fantastic wire all my life and still am amazed that when you cool super-conducting wire down, heavy electric current passes though it with absolutely no heating effect at all, as it has zero resistance to the flow or electricity. It is magic and unlike any other material in the world. I will come back with other words as they occur to me……

    • Photo: Usaid Rauf

      Usaid Rauf answered on 22 Mar 2012:

      My favourite word has to be “Bremsstrahlung”. This is a type of radiation given off by particles when they slow down.

      The effect given the name “Cherenkov” is cool too. This is when radioactive material gives off an eerie blue glow in water. That’s right, radioactive stuff does NOT glow green as shown in The Simpsons at Springfield Nuclear Power Plant. I think I’m one of the lucky few people who have actually seen this blue, glowing effect.

      Cool pic: http://spectrum.ieee.org/image/37182

Comments