Recent content by Puffin

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    Why do some societies abandon/change their religion?

    I was having a discussion on another forum, and this question came up. When you look at major religions today, it seems incredible that 1500 years ago, it was reportedly possible for St Patrick to convert Ireland from their traditional beliefs to Christianity. How did he do it? Christian...
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    What's the maths equivalent of the Feynman Lectures?

    True. There was a great line from Hans Bethe in his obituary for Feynman which read "It was said that there were only two ways to solve the most difficult problems in Physics. One was to use Mathematics. The other was to ask Feynman." You forgot to mention his great skills as a bongo player.
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    What's the maths equivalent of the Feynman Lectures?

    Thanks. What Is Mathematics? certainly looks good. I'm looking forward to it.
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    What's the maths equivalent of the Feynman Lectures?

    Hi, I've got a Masters in Physics, but always feel that I'm missing out slightly by not knowing and appreciating the beauty that there is in all the maths I never had cause to study in my physics degree. Is there a book (or set of books) that does for maths what the Feynman Lectures do for...
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    Beta Threshold Energy: Electron vs Positron

    This has been annoying me since I read this somewhere. Beta decay is only possible if energetically allowed. For electron emission this means: [M(A,Z) - M(A,Z+1)]c^2 >0 For positron emission this is [M(A,Z) - M(A,Z-1) - 2m_e]c^2 >0 Why the asymmetry? I would naively think that...
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    Hawking Radiation: Does an Astronaut Ever Cross the Horizon?

    Something I've been wondering for a while, but haven't been convinced by the answers I've received. If an astronaut falls into a black hole, from the perspective of us outside he never actually reaches the horizon. From his perspective, he falls straight through and doesn't notice any...
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