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Master Assassins
Hello once again audience! Today I'm going to talk about a duo of absolutely awesome government assassins from The Avengers, Black Widow and Hawkeye (also known as Natasha Romanov and Clint Barton). Now you might be thinking, what's so super about these two people? They are just people, no super powers or anything. Well I can tell you that they are in fact super with their accuracy.
Let's start with Hawkeye. Like his name says, his eyes are like a hawk's. But how precise is that?
Precise enough to shoot a flying alien space craft without even looking! Hawkeye's power is this excellent accuracy with his bow and arrow.
Next we'll move on to Black Widow. At first she seems like any other pretty girl. Wrong!
She learned super self defense techniques with, like Hawkeye, excellent accuracy.
Now, many superheroes seem completely unrealistic and could never be alive in real life. But Black Widow and Hawkeye are like real people. The government and other people have assassins just like the S.H.I.E.L.D. agents in Avengers. The CIA, FBI, SWAT, you name it. These super characters aren't as fictional as they seem. Lil' Bretz singing off.
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UIcim2FWhmk
Special request for Mr. Fullerton to recreate this magical performance in class.
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Physics is.. so gosh darn great
I feel like it and I... are fate.
With a Newton here, or a Pascal there,
These SI units we love and share.
Whenst look for a potential mate,
All emotions to physics, they equate.
If the air in the room feels perhaps electric,
Just know that physics isn't eclectic.
A standard mix of fun and function,
Studying physics fills one with compunction.
Alas, alack, it is time to go,
I'll need to do work, that's fo' sho'.
As Bernoulli said, just go with the flow.
So shine like a lumen and simply glow.
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Physics of a Toaster
This is completely random, but as I was pondering ideas for a blog I discovered that there is a lot of physics involved in toasters! 
Most appliances that heat up, such as hair dryers, irons, and toasters, work by changing electrical energy into heat energy. Toasters are plugged into a source of electricity. From that source, the electric current runs down the wire and into the toaster. The inside of each appliance contains loops of different metals. The electricity does not easily flow through the metals. The metals slow down the electrons and hold up the current, which is resistance. Resistance is a measure of the tendency of a material to resist the flow of an electrical current, in physics. The higher the resistance, the hotter the metal will get. This happens because of the friction of the electrons.
The wires begin to heat up and glow because they are so hot. This heat is what toasts the bread.
Overall this is very random, but its cool to see how everyday appliances like toasters relates to physics!
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Lalalalalalala
When your in the shower belting out songs so know one can hear you i bet you have never thought that singing would have anything to do with physics. Well youre wrong! It totally does! People can not only hear your singing but they can also feel it! By singing, your voice creates vibrations that form into waves. Sound can be represented in wave form. The amplitude of the wave (the height of the wave) is represented by how loud you are singing. The amplitude is the degree of displacement of teh vibrator. Singing at a louder pitch create more vibrations, while singing at a soft pitch doesnt create as much vibration. This can be heard and felt in a car also. Depending on what the volume and the bass in the car is set at a person sitting in the car can feel the vibrations. Usually you cant feel the wave vibrations of a voice that isnt amplified unless you are on a surface that can allow waves to pass through it easily. For example, you can feel vibrations through would very well.
So next time your mom or dad say stop singing you can tell them i am just practicing my physics
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10 pieces of advice for next year APC waseniors
1.) Don't catch senioritis too early
2.) Don't wait til last minute to do your blogs
3.) Watch the videos on Aplusphysics.com
4.) The book is your friend
5.) Try on the four minute drills
6.) Look at notes from AP-B
7.) Find a friend who knows what they're doing
or
8.) Teach your friends what to do
9.) Stay ahead on independent units
10.) Don't freak out and have fun
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Year in review and off to College
Our year has come to an end. College is in the near future and rapidly approaching with each passing hour. At the beginning of the year, I walked into physics c excited but not really sure what to expect nor was I sure how difficult the material would be. As the year progressed, I realized that the tests were hard and I needed to study harder than I ever needed to before. After I failed two out of the first four tests, I was motivated to do well on the next one. The first rotational exam came and I got the highest grade in the class. I proved to myself and my classmates that I could excel if I put the work in. The rest of the year I did decently on the remaining tests and spread my attention towards my other AP classes as well. Electrostatics and magnetism in the second half of the year was very difficult for me. I tried extremely hard to grasp the vague concepts; visualizing the actions of subatomic particles was difficult but by the time the AP exam came, I felt like I understood it better than I ever had. Going into college, I hope to take more physics courses because it intrigues me. But at the same time, I will also take the lessons I learned with me: don’t procrastinate, read the text book, ask a lot of questions, and take the initiative to study a little each night before each test so I don’t stress myself out and go into each test confident and prepared. College will be hard but I am ready to work hard in order to achieve the success I envision. I will discover the cure for cancer, buy my physics c teacher a silver Porsche, and I am ready to take the next step in education and in life.
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Physics of a clock
At this point I am so beyond tired that all I can think about is the time, hence the physics of a clock blog post idea. However just as i became so tired that this idea popped into my mind and I became outrageously enthused and will make this a wonderful thirtieth blog post!!
There are many methods of operation clocks utilize. These are the spring loaded, pendulum/weight powered and even more modern clock variations which i will explain later. Most of the modern clocks now utilize these next few methods for keeping time. All but the quartz watchs use a device known as an escape mechanism. This escape mechanism serves a very inportant purpose because it regulates the forces applied to turn the clock gears in such a way that they move only a certain amount per second. Regardless of its type, each click has this crucial escape mechanism. The escape mechanism works by transfering the force driving the gears to turn (whether it that force is caused by trasfering the gravitational force from a weight or the force transformed from battery power) into an oscillating mechanism which could be in the form of a pendulum, a spring, or a verge-and-foliot. The oscillating pieces work as the clock's counting mechanism and through the use of gears, the clock is able to keep accurate time.
A spring loaded clock utilizes the potential energy stored in a wound spring to turn gears that are then stopped and restarted by the escape mechanism which makes the movements of the watches hands move at a certain rate. The main disadvantage of this type of time keeping device is that the spring needs to be wound up periodically or else the resulting placement of the hands will be inaccurate.
The second type I will discuss is the pendulum, also known as the weight powered design. Unlike the spring loaded clock mentioned above this type utilizes the potential energy from a hanging weight to turn its gears and a pendulum assisted escape mechanism to give the clock a certain periodicity. The assisted escape wheel, similarly to the spring loaded clock, has a specific frequency at which it travels which aids in the accuracy of the clock. But unlike the spring loaded clock, a weight driven mechanism keeps more accurate time because it faces less error when the weight gets close to needing to be reset.
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Last blog post
So I was reserving my last blog post for my momentum video I made last year. Unfortunately I couldn't find it last night. I went to Mr. Powlin today to get the video but it wouldn’t upload to the site, or to my email or Google drive for some reason. I’ll try to find the video again tonight, but if I can’t just picture me getting shot bare skin with an airsoft gun.
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Black holes and white holes
I've always wondered about black holes. In the area of one, gravity prevents anything -even light- from escaping it.
How does something like this exist? Well, when gigantic stars collapse at the end of their 'life' black holes can form. Because the object is so dense, it sort of bends space and it's gravity attracts things close to it. The closer to a black hole, the more space-time is deformed. Theoretically, if someone could survive going to a black hole, while they get closer and time seems normal to them, anybody that could observe this happening would see the person slowing down considerably, possibly even looking as if they aren't moving (if you could see them at all.) Black holes are able to grow larger by taking in many stars and maybe even other black holes. When this happens, they are called supermassive black holes. There are 4 sizes of black holes. From smallest to largest: micro black hole, stellar black hole, intermediate-mass black hole, and supermassive black hole.
White holes, on the other hand, are only hypothetical. They are the opposite of black holes. They wouldn't be able to be entered from outside of it. However, light and matter could come out of it. This would essentially be like a worm hole if on the other side there was a black hole or entrance of some sort.
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Physics of Star Wars
We all know Star Wars right? A common theme is battles in space with big ships blasting at each other. However, if the movies were based on actual science, you wouldnt hear anything. There's always big booms and laser sound effects, but if you think about it, sound cannot travel through space. Sound is a longitudinal wave, and can be looked at as such:::: : : ::: : : ::::
Longitudinal waves need a medium to travel through, and since space is nothing more than a vacuum, there is no medium, and therefore no sound could travel. Then Star Wars would be really boring, huh? Good thing George Lucas neglected his physics class. You should't though!
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On a Lighter Note...
Just like how mirrors are colorless and have a color, black holes are TITLED black and do not have one. Fzx obviously didn't go to kindergarten.So I thought I'd just go through this black hole phenomenon real quick because I personally find it super interesting. And now: a brief summary of black holes and radiation...
Black holes are NOT black! Not in the least. They glow. Black holes glow slightly and give off light throughout the whole spectrum! This includes visible light.
This form of radiation is dubbed "Hawking radiation" after the famous professor Stephen Hawking. He was the first to propose this (legitimate) theory.
Black holes are constantly giving off this glow and therefore losing mass. Ergo, unless another source of mass (such as interstellar gas or light) sustains them, a black hole will eventually evaporate altogether! Smaller black holes, in theory, emit radiation a lot faster than larger ones...so as predicted, if the Large Hadron Collider creates miniscule holes through particle collisions...they should evaporate almost immediately!
In this way, scientists should be able to study a black holes' decay through radiation and learn much more about the how's, why's, and find answers to some of our most ominous, universal questions...
Leading us to a much...brighter...future(;
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Rollercoasters
Have you ever thought about the physics on a roller coaster? Well, its pretty simple. Once you are in the car of the roller coaster you build up potential energy as you go up the hill, which then is released as kinetic energy. Once you are going to the hill gravity takes over and all of the potential energy you built up is released into kinetic energy. Gravity applies a constant downward force on the cars. Since an object in motion tends to stay in motion, the coaster car will maintain a forward velocity even when it is moving up track. The potential energy and kinetic energy changes back and forth to one another.
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The Observer Effect
The observation of interactions is basically the foundation of science and physics, but often times this observation directly alters the phenomena being observed. This concept is aptly named the observer effect.
In circuits, the voltage and current can be measured by the use of voltmeters and ammeters, respectively. However, the placement of these devices into the current alter the actual voltages and currents of these circuits. This is why voltmeters are very high in resistance and wired in parallel, and ammeters are very low in resistance and wired in series. This is to minimize the essential error or alteration they are causing, and since there is really no "zero" or "infinite" resistance, these errors will just have to be diminished by improving technology, though obviously we have come very far in this respect.
There are other examples, such as measuring temperature with a thermometer. The thermometer slightly changes the temperature of the liquid it is placed in. Also, electrons are detected by using photons, and this interaction alters the path of the electron.
This is often confused with Heisenberg's uncertainty principle in quantum physics, so I'll mention that briefly. Basically, the precision of a pair of physical properties of a particle (complementary variables) can be expressed as an inequality.
Here, x and p are position and momentum. As the precision of one gets higher, the precision of the other gets lower, and this relationship can be expressed as a fundamental limit using inequalities.
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Quarter 4 and The End of Senior Year
Guys, we have just finished the hardest classes in the school. I think I speak for all of us that senior year was quite stressful, but a great relief as well. We gained knowledge that far surpassed any other year. With Physics and Calculus placed 2nd and 3rd period conveniently, I think we all became morning people! To be honest, I never expected leaving to really effect me the way that it is currently. I am truly going to miss all of my high school friends. We have all toughed out our years, pushing ourselves to new limits, and helping each other along the way. With heavy hearts, we all must say goodbye and move on to our next years of school. We will spread out across the country to take our education beyond that of what we have seen thus far. I will miss my teachers as well, who have helped me reach my potential and helped me to my current grades. I feel ready for college now and whatever life pushes my way. I wish you all the best of luck in your future careers, and I hope we will be able to stay in touch, if we don't see each other in the newspapers making a difference to the world. So long nerds of 2013!!
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Galactic Tape Measure
Currently, we use a method called astronomical parallax to measure the distance from the Earth to various stars among our home galaxy and others. Well, we'll still be using it. Unfortunately, this post isn't about a literal tape measure from Earth to the stars.
The usual way of measuring distance has to do with observing angles as the Earth goes around the sun, as is illustrated below
But now, we have found a way to utilize the Hubble Space Telescope for yet another purpose: spacial scanning. With this new technique, we won't have to wait the half a year it takes for the Earth to move far enough around the sun to make these measurements. Instead, we can use the famous space telescope to make measurements that are correct within 5 billionths of a degree.
The hope is that the more precise measurements will allow us to delve deeper into the mystery of dark energy.
Read the article here
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Potato Battery
Building a potato (or lemon or apple) battery reveals a bit about the inner workings of electrical circuits. To do this simple science experiment, you insert two different metallic objects often a galvanized (zinc-coated) nail and a copper penny into the potato, and connect wires to each object with alligator clips. These wires can be attached either to the two terminals of a multimeter (which measures a circuit's voltage) or to something like a digital clock or lightbulb. (It may take two or three potatoes wired in series to generate enough voltage to power those devices.)
The potato acts like a battery, generating a current of electrons that flow through the wire. This happens because acid in the potato induces a chemical change in the zinc that coats the nail. The acid acts as an "electrolyte," ionizing the zinc atoms by stripping two electrons from each of them and leaving them positively charged. Those electrons are conducted away from the zinc ions through the wire and through whatever devices lie along the circuit and end up at the copper penny. From there, they join up with positive hydrogen ions in the potato starch that have been repelled there by the nearby zinc ions. The movement of these electrons is enough to power a toy clock or light bulb.
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Captian america physics
In the recent installments in the captain America movies, we see the captain using his shield to knock out the Nazi's during Wii but how doesn't it kill them. as we have seen in the movies when he throws his shield hard, newton's third law states that the amount of force is equal to the thing it transfers its energy to. so as the captain throws hard, the shield should have enough force to decapitate the enemy. also when Peggy shoots cap's shield, it makes a large vibrating sound. this is because the lognioitutional waves in the combustion form a mechanical wave, which is moving left and right in terms of the wave pattern. thank you for listening in the physics in captain America
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Music and waves and parties
Music is cool. speaking of music, listen to this for some ambiance.
Why is music so cool though?
Because waves.
A wave is pretty much the movement of energy. If thats so, than what is sound?
Sound is a type of wave caused by a vibration.
In the case of music an instrument, or ones own vocal chords, can produce vibrations which then travel through the air as waves eventually reaching your eardrum.
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physics of rain
physics can be found in everything, even the weather!! All precipitation contains elements of physics, however rain is perhaps the most interesting. Rain falls at what is called terminal velocity. this is when an object reaches a cirten speed and stops accelerating. The acceleration around earth is 9.81 meters per second^2. There is a very interesting physics consept as to why the rain water doesnt have a more devistating effect.
most rain drops fall at a velocity of about 18 mph. getting hit with a rock going this speed would be a much different experience than being hit with a rain drop. the reason rain drops arent painful is due to the fact that they have a smaller mass. getting hit with a 4kg rock is a greater force, this is because the force is equal to the mass multiplied by the acceleration (g). Because the rain drops have a next to negligable masses the force that they impact earth with is very little and therefore doesnt cause more damage when it impacts earth.
the shape of a rain drop is also an interesting and under studied phenominon. they are not tear drop shaped, but instead most of them look like small flattened hamburger buns. this is due to their size, bigger or smaller rain drops actually for different shapes depending on their air resistance due to their sizes. overall, rain is just an example of how almost every aspect of our world is determined by physics, even mother natures miracles!
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Kaleidoscopes Explained
Kaleidoscopes use light and mirrors to reflect objects that create patterns. There are multitudes of different varieties and types, but they all follow the same basic principles of physics. To make a kaleidoscope, you would need some type of round, hollow material and two to four mirrors to put inside of it. Aluminum foil can also be used as a reflector.
On one end of a kaleidoscope, there is an object container that holds the objects to be reflected. Then this can be closed off with plastic or glass. This layer of clear material not only holds the objects in, but also filters light through to reflect off of the objects. Some versions of the kaleidoscope toy rotate to easier change the position of the objects located inside.
When you look through the hole of a kaleidoscope, light filters through the glass or plastic on the end of the device and then illuminates the objects and reflects them off of the mirrors or other reflective material. Your eye then sees these bouncing reflections, which creates the patterns that you see. This simple, but fascinating toy has brought joy and wonder into the lives of people for hundreds of years.
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The last...
It's rather crazy to be writing my last ever physics C blog post... I feel as though this day has always seemed so far away.
Now that I'm all reminiscent and whatnot, what better to blog about than a reflection on the course?
First and foremost, it was hard. At least for me. I felt as though all year I was struggling to grasp everything that everyone seemed to get so easily and had to fight ten times harder to get to the same point. The course frustrated me countless times, and I've never done so poorly on so many exams before in my life.
With that in mind, I have absolutely no regrets. Despite poor exams, I learned so much in this class. From how to deal with frustration, to how to develop better studying habits and techniques. I have a far better understanding of what does and doesn't work for me to do well, and taking Physics C has made me feel more ready for college than any other class I've taken, hands down.
What's more, that class constantly has me thinking about physics. ALL the time. In all honesty, everything can be related to physics, it's just a matter of whether or not you take the time to notice it.
I wish I had tried just a little bit harder sometimes, and done better on my tests, but I'm happy with all that I've learned both about physics and myself. Shout out to the fantastic teacher, Mr. Fullerton. I couldn't have done it without you!
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My Ladder Idea
Everyday at school we have to climb all of those stairs to get to the upper levels of the school and I get exhausted from it, and so I came up with a brilliant solution that no one really thinks is a good idea. You just get rid of the stairs and we have ladders, and some of them can just sit still and other ones can be like moving up or down so you just grab on and you are changing floors. The physics here is that right when you grab on, you accelerate either up or down, like when you are on an elevator. So, if people felt bad about their weight they could weigh themselves right when the grab on the ones going down which accelerates them downward so they would weigh less than they would when standing on the ground normally.
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Optical illusions
Many of us enjoy looking at optical illusions, but why do our eyes lie to us?????
Although each illusion has it's own reason, and scientists still don't know all the reasons, it comes down to one thing. Our brain makes assumptions.
Our brain uses context of our surroundings to make split second assumptions. This is helpful in everyday life and back when we were hunters and gatherers and needed to make split second decisions in the wild. Our eyes don't show us what's really there just what we need to see. It uses the surrounding environment to make conclusions. This is done by using shadows, surrounding colors, and past experiences.
optical illusions are just a case of your brain telling you what you should be seeing, not what is actually there.
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the end
i thought because i started my bloggery with a prediction and outlook of the course, that i should end it all with an analysis of the year. my thoughts on Mr. Fullerton as a teacher are that he is great at explaining things, and teaching in general. the course is very difficult, and he makes it easier to handle. i also think independent units are a good thing, and that they should be continued. as for blogs, i definitely think writing can help cement understanding of physics concepts, however my opinion is that there are less painful ways of doing so than writing blogs. although I only took half a year of calc, i found the material i learned in that half was more than enough to carry me through this course, yet a whole year would have probably provided me with an even better understanding of this material. i think there should be more projects, contests at the end of the year, and less kerbal, although the kerbal program was extremely educational and interesting, so the best thing may be a balance of the two. all in all, its over and im looking forward to college.
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