View Profile: Grey - Cosmoquest Forum

2013-May-17, 08:43 PM

grapes replied to a thread Really trivial stuff that bugs you in Off-Topic Babbling

Spouse -- Spice Trousers -- Taser Douse -- Dice Souse -- Sots

2500 replies | 76454 view(s)

2013-May-17, 02:47 PM

Grey replied to a thread What is the Average Distance Between Earth and Sun? in Astronomy

I've taught university-level introductory physics labs, and I'm sad to report that very few of the students I worked with had a decent understanding...

23 replies | 410 view(s)

2013-May-16, 06:43 PM

grapes replied to a thread What is the Average Distance Between Earth and Sun? in Astronomy

If it is given as 93,000,000 miles, there are two significant digits--it's been rounded to 93 million. Of course, it's 91.5-94.5 million over the...

23 replies | 410 view(s)

2013-May-16, 10:08 AM

grapes replied to a thread Really trivial stuff that bugs you in Off-Topic Babbling

Interesting. The wiki says it is folk etymology. From http://www.navy.mil/submit/display.asp?story_id=11795 That ship may have sailed! :)

2500 replies | 76454 view(s)

2013-May-15, 04:20 PM

grapes replied to a thread About Venus in Astronomy

OK, that clears that up. The phrase "null hypothesis" is too general and actually controversial. Why not just say, Hypothesis A, Hypothesis B,...

18 replies | 308 view(s)

2013-May-15, 04:11 PM

grapes replied to a thread What is the Average Distance Between Earth and Sun? in Astronomy

I think that was their point! :) There is some justification for using the semi-major axis as the average distance, as we've said, and the...

23 replies | 410 view(s)

2013-May-15, 12:39 PM

grapes replied to a thread About Venus in Astronomy

Not just superficial resemblances, either, but as Shaula mentions, in the DNA as well. Too? What are you calling the null hypothesis? :)

18 replies | 308 view(s)

2013-May-15, 03:36 AM

grapes replied to a thread What is the Average Distance Between Earth and Sun? in Astronomy

Like Glom, I'd say yes. Aphelion plus perihelion equals major axis, so half of that is the semi-major axis, and Kepler's laws depend upon the...

23 replies | 410 view(s)

2013-May-14, 04:25 PM

grapes replied to a thread Lagrange point with a mass, does it create baby L-points? in Space/Astronomy Questions and Answers

But isn't the moon of appreciable size? Or, going back to the OP, substantial enough? The moon is large enough, relative to the earth, that some...

14 replies | 261 view(s)

2013-May-14, 02:21 PM

grapes replied to a thread Really trivial stuff that amuses you... in Off-Topic Babbling

Yesterday, some kids asked which languages I knew. I claimed an additional ability to speak British, and they were impressed, until I admitted it...

1559 replies | 53432 view(s)

2013-May-14, 10:23 AM

grapes replied to a thread Lagrange point with a mass, does it create baby L-points? in Space/Astronomy Questions and Answers

Putting in a second moon into the earth/moon system would not put you over the 1/25 limit.

14 replies | 261 view(s)

2013-May-12, 07:53 PM

grapes replied to a thread Lagrange point with a mass, does it create baby L-points? in Space/Astronomy Questions and Answers

L4/L5 are stabile when the large mass is 25 times as massive as the smaller mass. The earth is 80 times the mass of the moon. So, when you say...

14 replies | 261 view(s)

2013-May-12, 05:47 PM

grapes replied to a thread Really trivial stuff that bugs you in Off-Topic Babbling

Only in the last hundred years http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cootie_(game)

2500 replies | 76454 view(s)

2013-May-11, 07:58 PM

Grey replied to a thread Measuring the Gravitational Constant in Astronomy

You can choose your objects as Jupiter, Saturn, and the Sun, which all have measurable accelerations on each other. And you can then add in the...

126 replies | 2266 view(s)

2013-May-10, 09:42 PM

Grey replied to a thread Measuring the Gravitational Constant in Astronomy

Yep, that was my point. Note that even though this only gives you the relative masses of objects, as soon as you introduce a known mass into the...

126 replies | 2266 view(s)

2013-May-10, 09:23 PM

grapes replied to a thread Which CQ rule, or combo of rules, say "No Trolls Allowed"? in Forum Introductions and Feedback

Uh-oh Jim, we've hurt his feelings again. Whose turn is it to accompany him to the tiki bar?

9 replies | 227 view(s)

2013-May-10, 09:17 PM

Grey replied to a thread Measuring the Gravitational Constant in Astronomy

As always, in the real world the math is much more complex. You can't just pick three bodies out of all of the objects in the solar system and see...

126 replies | 2266 view(s)

2013-May-10, 08:12 PM

Grey replied to a thread Measuring the Gravitational Constant in Astronomy

If you'd like to work this out and try to convince yourself whether or not this is the case, here's a little exercise that I recommend you try. I'd...

126 replies | 2266 view(s)

2013-May-10, 06:49 PM

Grey replied to a thread Measuring the Gravitational Constant in Astronomy

As I posted above, it's not hard at all to do that. This post in particular gives a rough quantitative explanation for exactly how we can isolate G...

126 replies | 2266 view(s)

2013-May-09, 07:13 PM

Grey replied to a thread Measuring the Gravitational Constant in Astronomy

Strange is doing a pretty good job of explaining it. If you only had two masses to work with, it's true that you'd never be able to tell the...

126 replies | 2266 view(s)

2013-May-09, 03:44 PM

Grey replied to a thread Measuring the Gravitational Constant in Astronomy

We do use G in that part of the problem. Mkline55 was imagining that G could be different for different types of objects (specifically implying that...

126 replies | 2266 view(s)

2013-May-09, 01:46 PM

Grey replied to a thread Measuring the Gravitational Constant in Astronomy

I think you're missing the point. I'm saying that, for objects in the solar system, we've essentially done the same kind of experiment as Cavendish...

126 replies | 2266 view(s)

2013-May-08, 07:55 PM

Grey replied to a thread Measuring the Gravitational Constant in Astronomy

It's true that it's very hard to do a directly measure the gravitational constant, largely because it takes so much mass to impart a large force. ...

126 replies | 2266 view(s)

2013-May-08, 10:20 AM

grapes replied to a thread Proving one's bravery in Off-Topic Babbling

I'm not just being ironic when I say that that's hard to believe. :) Why would they kick you off? Did tempers flare, and insults fly?

61 replies | 1104 view(s)

2013-May-08, 10:08 AM

grapes replied to a thread "High Quality Research Act" in Astronomy Activism

What about roadblocks put up against nuclear power? How do we analyze those? Who gets the "credit"?

37 replies | 1349 view(s)

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