Scale of the Universe

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marinyork

Resting in suspended Animation
Location
Logopolis
I like that. Nice graphics :thumbsup:. I think it's really hard explaining scales to people below about a mm, unless they are really into biology, physics or chemistry. Similarly beyond solar system scales I think it's becomes difficult to portray.

There isn't a centre of the universe though.
 

brockers

Senior Member
Like it! I did a physics degree and yet this stuff still boggles my mind!

Lots of similar 'powers of ten' videos on Youtube too. Does anybody remember that video (probably the first of the kind) using the guy in the rowing boat as the start reference?
 
Size does matter. As does matter!

Those neutrinos are interesting: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neutrino#Speed
 

Pubert

New Member
Mind. Blowing.

Love it, awesome link. I wish I'd done physics at school
rolleyes.gif
 

Arch

Married to Night Train
Location
Salford, UK
Like it! I did a physics degree and yet this stuff still boggles my mind!

Lots of similar 'powers of ten' videos on Youtube too. Does anybody remember that video (probably the first of the kind) using the guy in the rowing boat as the start reference?

This one?


View: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0fKBhvDjuy0


I remembered a rowing boat too though, and no commentary, so perhaps that's a different one.

Interesting on that cool site in the OP, how we had plenty of things to fill the gaps as we got larger, but a huge gap between the smallest thing and the next smallest.
 

Mad Doug Biker

Just a damaged guy.
Location
Craggy Island
I did physics at school and college, although I was never amazing at it.
What gets me though is this attitude that we 'normal' people aren't able to grasp large numbers and ideas.
Hence, I utterly despise type of presentation where it goes something along the lines of

'If I have a piece of sting..... and if this is a year..... and that is a million years..... then a billion years will be out in the car park....'

GO AWAY AND STOP BEING SO PATRONISING!!

Oh yes, and don't get me started on things measured in either football fields or doubledecker feckin' busses!! :rolleyes::evil:
 

vernon

Harder than Ronnie Pickering
Location
Meanwood, Leeds
I did physics at school and college, although I was never amazing at it.
What gets me though is this attitude that we 'normal' people aren't able to grasp large numbers and ideas.
Hence, I utterly despise type of presentation where it goes something along the lines of

'If I have a piece of sting..... and if this is a year..... and that is a million years..... then a billion years will be out in the car park....'

GO AWAY AND STOP BEING SO PATRONISING!!

Oh yes, and don't get me started on things measured in either football fields or doubledecker feckin' busses!! :rolleyes::evil:

It's not patronising. A lot of folk need some familiar benchmarks to get a grasp of magnitude and relative magnitude. Some folk have an innate ability to make sense of large and small numbers but in my experience as a physics and maths teacher in the past, the majority of folk that I've taught have no idea.
 
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