Recent content by arul_k

Interesting. So, why come up with the concept of direction of the B field at all? There must be some reason why a test magnet aligns itself in the direction of the B field...

We also need to look at how we define certain quantities in science. Force is defined in terms of the accleration produced on a certain mass. So the equation F=ma indicates that if you double the force you would get twice the accleration, mass remaining constant and experiment proves this to...

I've already mentioned that in my question! I wish to know what this "direction" of B represents?

Yes, I guess that was implied in the first part of the question. So what does the direction of B indicate?

Magnetic flux density B is a vector quantity and thus represents a force. However most texts state that the magnetic force is perpendicular to the direction of B, which is tangential to the magnetic field line at any give point. I assume that this magnetic force refers to the Lorentz force. So...

Thanks for all the replies. I went thru the link posted by Hornbien and I quote a line from that link: In summary, we can account for the direction of the magnetic force on the test charge no matter which way it's moving, and this motivates us to introduce a magnetic field vector that points...

These equations are derived based on the observation / assumption that magnetic field lines form closed loops and therefore the equations cannot be used as proof of the same. Of course one could argue that the equations have stood the test of time, and that validates the basic assumption of...

Apart from the orientation of a compass needle and the pattern formed by iron filings, what other proof do we have of magnetic field lines forming loops?

Since you are so well read, I would once again request you to mention the the references that state "magnetic poles are imaginary" and poles of a magnet are located at "points" I have heard Feynmans talk, he dosen't object to "why" questions. You only need to type "Why" in PF search to find...

What about the fact that like poles repel and unlike poles attract. I haven't come across any text that states the magnetic poles of a permanant magnet are imaginary. Are you referring to magnetic monopoles? Since B filed lines are assumed to be continuous loops there can be no point of...

The difference is that the gravitational and electric field lines originate from the body causing the force, and thus represent the direction of accleration a body would experience in the presence of these fields. The compass needle experiences no accleration along a magnetic field line. Only...

Considering that magnetic field lines are imaginary, why would the compass needle align itself along an imaginary line? In the case of a bar magnet one could reason that the compass needle is influenced by the forces emanating from the north and south poles of the magnet, but in the case of...

Do you mean to say that there are only "experts" and "crackpots" and no one else in between. Thats a rather narrow view!

Thanks for your replies. What credentials did Galileo, Newton, Faraday ect have to begin with? No one is born with credentials. My point is you can't start off by being acknowledged by the scientific community and then put forward your ideas. I do agree that there is a remote possibility of...

If you were to come up with a new science theory how would you present it? Especially if its based only on logic and experiment, no math (like Faraday) and your experiments were conducted at home. Basically if one dosen't have the scientific credentials to be noticed what would one do?