Class Project

Physics 1010-400
Summer 2016 Signature Assignment and Semester Project
The Signature Assignment Parts
Part 1: Star Identification:
The photo below is of the Lyra region of the milky way.
Pick 4 of the stars in the photograph below. Label each of these stars on the photo.

Above: photo of the Constellation Lyra

Star chart of the constellation Lyra (bigger start size on chart means brighter as it
appears to us in our sky)
The four stars I picked from the Lyra Region of the Milky Way are: Gamma Lyrae, Vega, Epsilon
Lyra and Beta Lyra.
Gamma Lyrae is 620 light years away so light that had left this star in 1396 would now be visible
from Earth, it is 15 times larger than the sun with a luminosity of 3.261.
Vega is 25.04 light years away so light that left this star in 1990 would now be visible from
Earth. It is 2.1 times larger than the sun with a luminosity of 0.3

Epsilon lyra is 162 light years away so light that left this star in 1854 would now be visible from
Earth. It is 1.9 times larger than the sun with a luminosity ranging between 4.7- 6.2 since it is
also comprised of 2 stars.
Beta Lyra is 960 light years away so light that left this star in 1056 would now be visible from
Earth. Since it is composed of 2 stars, the information i could find on size compared to the sun
were between 14 and 6 times its radius with a luminosity ranging between 3.4-4.3.

Part 2: Equation Analysis:

These equations are in your textbook so that should be a good source of accurate
information about them.
Equation 1: E = mc2

In the equation E = mc2, E is energy, m is mass, and c is the speed

of light in a vacuum. Energy and mass are both variables in the
equation, and the speed of light in a vacuum is a constant.
Question 2: What is the size of c2? c is the speed of light in a vacuum so c2 equals
8.98755179 1016 m2 / s2 which is the speed of light in a vacuum squared.
Question 3: Are mass and energy related? Yep, mass and energy are related. Energy
is something that matter with any mass possesses and as the mass of the object
increases, the energy of that object also increases.
Question 4: Analyze the statement: if it is possible to change mass into energy a little
bit of mass could produce a lot of energy. Is it true or not? Provide a brief explanation
based on your analysis of the equation. It doesnt have to be super complex and you
dont need to solve the equation; just use the equation in a straightforward way (for
help, consult me or the tutorial files in the learning from equations module in canvas.
The equation E = mc2 comes from the relativistic energy/momentum equation in Albert
Einsteins Special Theory of Relativity (the book has a chapter on that theory). The full
relativistic energy/momentum equation is:
E2 = p2c2 + m2c4
where the new variable p is the relativistic momentum (momentum at very high
speed). If an object is not moving its momentum is zero and the equation reduces to:

E2 = m2c4
If we want the energy E instead of the energy squared we can take the square root of
this equation to get:
E = mc2
Since this involves an object that is not moving this energy is sometimes called the rest
energy or energy of existence of an object.
Now this equation is technically not complete because when you take a square root you
get positive and negative solutions so it should really look like this:
E = mc2
This is a curious result as we will see from the following series of questions. Your book
on the chapter on Special Relativity may be of some help here and the internet definitely
will be useful.
The equation:
E = mc2
can actually be split into:
E = mc2
and:
E = -mc2
Its this second equation we want to look at now, especially that negative sign. There is
something rather odd going on here. Lets try to find out what it is!
Question 5. Is the mass m ever negative? According to the equation E = -mc 2 the mass
m can be negative.
Question 6. Is c ever negative (hint: remember that c is a velocity and as such has a
magnitude and a direction. Positive and negative can be used to designate direction)?
Question 7. Can c2 ever be negative? I dont think it can, I dont think you can have a
negative speed.

Question 8. Given your previous answers, can mc2 ever be negative? Yes I think it
could since math teaches that a negative and a positive number multiplied gives you a
negative number.
We could multiply the equation by -1 and get:
E = mc2
Question 9. Is energy ever actually negative (can something have a negative energy of
existence)? If you multiplied the above equation by one you could have negative and
positive energy. Just as you cant save power you cannot save energy, you must use
the energy that is generated or you will lose it.
Question 10. Does energy ever have a direction (is it scalar or vector)? Energy does
not have a direction and it is scalar quantity.
Question 11. Can the negative on the left hand side of the equation ever mean a
direction for energy? No, because energy has no direction.
Question 12. Some scientists thought that this negative sign was just a mathematical
oddity or scrap that had no physical meaning. Why might they think that? (use your
previous answers) I think that they thought this because they werent aware that energy
could in fact be negative but they were aware that energy has no direction which is why
they thought it was a mathematical oddity.
Question 13. Is the negative sign actually meaningless or does this mathematical
peculiarity actually mean something? If so, what? Negative sign is not meaningless as
Ive explained before as it represents negative energy.
Part 3: Learning about a Law of Physics
Pick any Law or Principle of Physics in your textbook and explain it:
Newtons Third Law of Motion States that Whenever one object exerts a force on
a second object, the second object exerts an equal and opposite force on the
first. Also stated as To every action there is always and opposed equal
reaction. I feel no further explanation of this law is needed since we understand
this law because of the phrase To every action there is an equal and opposite
reaction which is fairly straightforward.
Three examples of this law are:

1. When you sit down you are exerting force downward whereas the chair
isnt smashed by your weight because of the opposite force being exerted
upon your posterior.
2. When you walk through the woods your foot pushes down on the ground
as the ground pushes up on your foot causing you to move forward.
3. When you drive your car the wheels push on the road while the road
pushes back propelling your car forward.
Part 4: Explanation of Fermis Paradox and possible resolution
Fermis Paradox is the conclusion about how there is no intelligent life in the
universe because if there were alien life we would have been contacted by now.
Fermi Fermi realized that any civilization with a modest amount of
rocket technology and an immodest amount of imperial incentive
could rapidly colonize the entire Galaxy. Within ten million years,
every star system could be brought under the wing of empire. Ten
million years may sound long, but in fact it's quite short compared
with the age of the Galaxy, which is roughly ten thousand million
years. Colonization of the Milky Way should be a quick exercise.
(http://www.seti.org/seti-institute/project/details/fermi-paradox)
Here are 4 possible reasons that we have not yet been contacted by
alien life:
1. Maybe we have not been listening long enough or perhaps even listening
during the wrong times? What if they had reached out with radio waves
during the Jurassic period? (last I checked Dinosaurs didnt have radios).
2. What if we happen to live in the armpit of the galaxy? What if Aliens have
not bothered to communicate with or venture out this way because of our
location in the galaxy? Maybe their Government has told its people that
there is nothing here or that it is not worth venturing out this way because
the planets are nothing but wastelands?
3. It is also possible that there was in fact life forms that ventured out this
way but chose not to continue on since the first few planets did not have
intelligent life inhabiting the surface?
4. Another possible scenario is that there are life forms out there that do
know we exist but they dont reach out to us because we have not yet
learned how to treat all we meet in a good way. Maybe they fear that we
cannot be spoken to without being attacked or examined in some way.
Maybe there is a Federation of Planets that is observing us but they do
not interact with us because we all act like children even though we are full
grown adults?