Related papers: Dialogues about geometry and light
In this paper we explore how light propagates from thin elements into a volume for viewing. In particular, devices that are typically connected with geometric optics, like parallax barriers, differ in treatment with those that obey physical…
Borrowing methods and formulas from Prof. Goodman's classic Introduction to Fourier Optics textbook [1], I have developed a software package [2] that has been used in both industrial research and classroom teaching [3]. This paper briefly…
The analysis of symmetries is extremely useful across science. In Physics, symmetries are used to derive conservation laws and selection rules for transitions in interacting systems. In the early days of nonlinear optics (NLO), symmetries…
Cosmology differs in some respects significantly from other sciences, primarily because of its intimate association with issues of a conceptual and philosophical nature. Because cosmology in the broader sense relates to the world views held…
The human mind is endowed with innate primordial perceptions such as space, distance, motion, change, flow of time, matter. The field of cognitive science argues that the abstract concepts of mathematics are not Platonic, but are built in…
The nature of the existence, revealed through Human cognitive system, has been evolving since the development of the languages. Part of such revelations were the geometrical forms and the numbers, whose beauty and order, wondrous and…
We describe in detail an advanced project devised for outstanding High School (or undergraduate) students with appropriate abilities in physical reasoning (rather than with a good standard preparation), centered around the well-known…
Technology has helped to innovate in the teaching-learning process. Today's students are more demanding actors when it comes to the environment, they have at their disposal to learn, experiment and develop critical thinking. The area of…
The aim of this short lecture series is to expose the students to the beautiful theory of lattices by, on one hand, demonstrating various basic ideas that appear in this theory and, on the other hand, formulating some of the celebrated…
An introductory guide to mathematical cosmology is given focusing on the issue of the genericity of various important results which have been obtained during the last thirty or so years. Some of the unsolved problems along with certain new…
A goal of physics is to understand the greatest possible breadth of natural phenomena in terms of the most economical set of basic concepts. However, as the understanding of physics has developed historically, its pedagogy and language have…
Experimental activities are an essential part of physics education. In addition to conveying scientific knowledge, they play a significant role in developing scientific literacy, inquiry skills, and critical thinking. In today's world,…
In this article, we discuss the idea of gravitational lensing, from a systematic, historical and didactic point of view. We show how the basic lensing equation together with the concepts of geometrical optics opens a space of implications…
Geometric mechanics is usually studied in applied mathematics and most introductory texts are hence aimed at a mathematically minded audience. The present note tries to provide the intuition of geometric mechanics and to show the relevance…
One of the goals that physicists have been pursuing is to get the same explanation from different angles for the same phenomenon, so as to realize the unity of basic physical laws. Geometry, classical mechanics and classical thermodynamics…
Mathematical understanding is built in many ways. Among these, illustration has been a companion and tool for research for as long as research has taken place. We use the term illustration to encompass any way one might bring a mathematical…
We note that in general there exist two basic aspects in any branch of physics, including cosmology - one dealing with the attributes of basic constituents and forces of nature, the other dealing with how structures arise from them and how…
In this article, we present a fresh perspective on language, combining ideas from various sources, but mixed in a new synthesis. As in the minimalist program, the question is whether we can formulate an elegant formalism, a universal…
The question that guides our discussion is "how did the geometry and particles come into being?" To explore this query we suggest the theory of goyaks, which reveals the primordial deeper structures underlying fundamantal concepts of…
Observational cosmology is on the verge of new discoveries that will change the essence of our world-view. The matter concerns origin of initial conditions and physics of dark matter.