I thought it’d be good to show my A-Level students how to model an electromagnetic wave using a sinusoidal wave function for the electric and magnetic fields, and how these can be substituted into Maxwell’s Equations to derive the speed of light. There are a few ways to derive the speed of light from Maxwell’sContinueContinue reading “Deriving the speed of light from Maxwell’s Equations”
Category Archives: Blog
The visit to CERN
Over the half term I ran a school trip to CERN in Geneva. I’ve run the trip many many times now. This time, however, I ran the trip whilst suffering from bronchitis! With fistfuls of cough sweets and antiinflammatories, I got through it. While I was there, I decided to do a few live streams.ContinueContinue reading “The visit to CERN”
The end of half term
Today’s the end of the half term, so I need a break. I won’t be blogging every day, but I’ll try to post some stuff during my school trip to CERN. As a parting gift before our short recess, here is the simple pendulum time period equation derived using Lagrangian mechanics. I’ve also managed (atContinueContinue reading “The end of half term”
The unboxing of my new HP 15c Collector’s Edition calculator
Happy Valentine’s day to me! I treated myself to a calculator I’ve wanted for many years, a HP 15c (well, the collector’s edition version. I cannot justify the price tag of the original) Screenshot from eBay, comparing the price of an original HP15c with an HP15c Limited Edition, 2024-02-14 20:20 Below I have embedded myContinueContinue reading “The unboxing of my new HP 15c Collector’s Edition calculator”
Doing the same thing
In a Year 12 lesson on Tuesday I realised that I was asking the students to perform a simple experiment they’d done twice before: once in Year 7 and once in Year 10. Of course, this time around it was to be more complex because we were going to use light gates, but still theContinueContinue reading “Doing the same thing”
A line of best fit can be curved to be straight
I’ve heard that teachers of mathematics tell their students that a line is always straight, and so a line of best fit is always straight. I’ve heard that teachers of mathematics say that there are also curves of best fit, but that these are not lines, because they are not straight. Consider a graph showingContinueContinue reading “A line of best fit can be curved to be straight”
Fun with Google Translate
A surprising conclusion after playing with Google Translate; or maybe it’s not that surprising.
Do you find these derivation videos helpful?
Do you find my derivation videos helpful? Please let me know what you think?
The Class That Doesn’t Care
Before the claxon, still pitch black,Despite the hour, duvet’s peeled back,And limping through the bathroom door,The silent mantra, “one day more.”The sun is hiding while teeth brushedAnd floss and rinse and toilet flushed,And keeping silent in the shower,Won’t wake my daughter at this hour.Dressing smartly, eating cornflakes,Cycling ‘fore anyone else wakes.Get to work and throughContinueContinue reading “The Class That Doesn’t Care”
Why sleep matters
Teenagers need 9-10 hours of sleep per night. Adults need 7-8 hours of sleep per night. That’s according to the Mayo Clinic. They also state that a lack of sleep increases the risk of illness after exposure to viruses. How much of an increased risk is it? According to Cohen et al (2010), the riskContinueContinue reading “Why sleep matters”
Physics with Keith 