Science & Technology Quiz 2: The one with the catchy title.

[GoodGame]

Is gajillion a SI unit?

Yes

Liar...'tis not:

Giga is the closest similiar to a gajillion.

Factor Name Symbol
1024 yotta Y
1021 zetta Z
1018 exa E
1015 peta P
1012 tera T
109 giga G
106 mega M
103 kilo k
102 hecto h
101 deka da
Factor Name Symbol
10-1 deci d
10-2 centi c
10-3 milli m
10-6 micro µ
10-9 nano n
10-12 pico p
10-15 femto f
10-18 atto a
10-21 zepto z
10-24 yocto y

 

[Olav]

Explain (two/three sentences should be enough) why quick clay is so dangerous.

 

[ainwood]

Explain (two/three sentences should be enough) why quick clay is so dangerous.

Its a bingham fluid. That means, that it behaves like a solid until a sheer is applied. When you walk on it, that causes a sheer, which makes it behave like a fluid, which means that you sink into it.

 

[Olav]

Yeah, that's it. The clay is liquified very easily, due to the clay's weak skeleton structure. We got a sample of quick clay in class once, and it became just like mud after stiring in it. When pouring table salt into it, it became solid (since the salt acts like glue for the granule).

As far as I know, the only video recording of a slide caused by quick clay is from Rissa-raset in Norway in 1978. There's a short version of the recording here, for those who are interested: http://www.ngi.no/no/Utvalgte-tema/Skred-og-skredfare/Historiske-skred/1978---Rissa/

 

[ainwood]

Ok - can't think of anything, so open floor.

 

[Brighteye]

Why are magazines such as Hello! and OK! more radioactive than newspapers?

 

[Mise]

The glossy paper, ink used on glossy paper, and/or some other constituent part of the magazine is, compared with their equivalent parts, or taken as a whole, more radioactive than in a newspaper.

 

[Brighteye]

That's restating the question as a fact, not giving an answer.

 

[Perfection]

Radioactive exclamation marks?

 

[Brighteye]

It's a nice thought, but not true.

 

[Perfection]

Uranium in the clay coating?

 

[lovett]

Radioactive is being used as a metaphor for 'dangerous to humanity'?

 

[Brighteye]

Uranium in the clay coating?

You win.

Radioactive is being used as a metaphor for 'dangerous to humanity'?

Sadly I can't declare the wittiest to be the winner.

 

[Mise]

Well no cos otherwise I'd have won ages ago.

 

[peter grimes]

Open Floor, since it's been 72 hours since the question was answered, and the winner didn't post a new question.

I'll throw one out, unless someone has a more interesting question:

What does this formula estimate:

v = sqrt(20*h)

Spoiler hint :

v is in meters/second

 

[Mise]

Ahh I'm not falling into your cunning trap! If I answer that, I'll have to ask a question, which I can never think of!

 

[dutchfire]

1/2 m v^2 = m g h
v^2 = 2 g h
v = sqrt(2 g h), with g ~ 10
The speed of an object falling from height h.

 

[peter grimes]

Dutchfire got it

Now he's got to ask the question, instead of Mise

I really like estimation tricks like that. I remember 'discovering' for myself a quick and easy way to convert from Celsius to Fahrenheit, and the joy - yes, JOY - of not having to worry about what 5/9 or 9/5 was. If only my grade school science teachers had showed us the short-cut! I'm sure there are others out there that I'm not aware of.

 

[member66170]

Why bother convertine from Celsius to Fahrenheit?
In fact, I cant see a single reason why you would ever need or want to use Fahrenheit. The only temperature conversion you really need is celsius <-> kelvin, and thats just easy.

 

[dutchfire]

Now he's got to ask the question, instead of Mise

On the subject of estimations, what does pi * 10^7 s approximate?