Category Archives: General Science

Mississippi River and Its Distance from the Center of the Earth

Posted on 18-January-2015 by mathscinotes

In a recent post, I discussed how to compute the distance of mountaintops from the center of the Earth. This computation was interesting because we had to take into account the oblate shape of the Earth. Continue reading →

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Cat Litter and Radioactivity

Posted on 13-January-2015 by mathscinotes

I am not a cat person – the only time that cats come up in my family is in regards to Schrodinger's cat (Figure 1). However, I just came across an interesting web page by the Oak Ridge Associated Universities that discusses cat litter and the fact that it is slightly radioactive. Some cat litter is slightly radioactive because the contain bentonite clay, which contains small amounts of radioactive uranium (238U), thorium (232U), and potassium (40K). I find this web page interesting because it includes measured radiation data and an estimate of the heavy metals (uranium and thorium) that are contained in cat litter. Continue reading →

Posted in General Mathematics, General Science | 4 Comments

Pepper Math

Posted on 9-January-2015 by mathscinotes

Quote of the Day The ultimate test of a moral society is the kind of world that it leaves to its children. — Dietrich Bonhoeffer Introduction A friend of mine loves the heat of peppers – I only ate one … Continue reading →

Posted in Baking, General Science | 2 Comments

The Farthest Mountaintops from the Center of the Earth

Posted on 2-January-2015 by mathscinotes

I have a boring task that requires that I be able to access a geographic database to gather a large amount of information. There are numerous databases out there, but the Wikipedia Geonames database is the one I would really like to learn how to use – it is large and free. I am not particularly skilled at web scraping and I have been procrastinating on my task for a while. I need a interesting problem to drive my interest. Continue reading →

Posted in General Science, Geology | 37 Comments

Best Fiber Optics Tutorial I Have Seen

Posted on 23-December-2014 by mathscinotes

Quote of the Day It's a Baptist school where atheist professors teach Jewish students St. Thomas Aquinas. — David Brooks on the University of Chicago If you are wondering about how fiber optics works, this is the best tutorial I … Continue reading →

Posted in Fiber Optics, General Science | 1 Comment

Submarine Fuel Math

Posted on 26-November-2014 by mathscinotes

Introduction I just read an interesting article about an arctic environmental problem being presented by a Soviet-era nuclear submarine that had been scuttled back in 1982 (Figure 1). Apparently, scientists are now concerned that the submarine's reactor could leak dangerous … Continue reading →

Posted in General Science, Military History, Naval History | 3 Comments

An Estimate of the Heart's Chemical to Mechanical Efficiency

Posted on 22-November-2014 by mathscinotes

Quote of the Day I like opera, I just don't want to be around the people who like opera. — Justice Clarence Thomas, during a discussion of Justice Scalia and Scalia's love of opera. I also have experienced being around … Continue reading →

Posted in General Science, Health | 3 Comments

Heart Energy Per Day Versus Truck Energy Consumed Over 20 Miles

Posted on 18-November-2014 by mathscinotes

During my web browsing, I sometimes encounter a statement that just seems too incredible to believe. Figure 1 contains such a statement. It states that the human heart "creates" daily an energy equivalent to driving a truck for 20 miles. I thought about this statement for a minute and it makes no sense. Continue reading →

Posted in General Science, Health | 28 Comments

The Limits of Human-Generated Power

Posted on 15-November-2014 by mathscinotes

Quote of the Day I will do nothing, but I will do it very well. - Campaign slogan of an Italian politician Introduction My wife and I attend a card club of former neighbors once a month and last night … Continue reading →

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Cow Productivity

Posted on 7-November-2014 by mathscinotes

Quote of the Day The good thing about science is that it is true whether or not you believe in it. — Neil deGrasse Tyson Many of my blog posts are motivated by lunch-time conversations with our engineering staff. During … Continue reading →

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