Special Problem 1
This figure appeared in the previous edition of your text.
- Is there anything wrong with the caption?
- Why is the standard mass in the shape of a cylinder?
- The diameter and height of the cylinder are equal - can you think of a reason for choosing these dimensions?
Fermi Problems
The following problems are the kind of problems physicsts like to refer to as "Fermi Problems" after the great physicist Enrico Fermi who made many contributions to theoretical and experimental nuclear physicist. He was born in Italy, came to the US and taught at the University of Chicago. To solve these problems, that apparently do not have enough information to find the solution, you need to make some reasonable starting assumptions.
Problem 2
A billion dollars is a lot of money. Suppose someone were to give you $500 billion in one-dollar bills - one bill at a time every second - 24 hours a day. ($500 billion is the projected US deficit)
- How long would it take you to collact that $500 billion?
- If much would the collection weigh?
- If you stacked the bills in a neat stack - how high would the stack be?
- If you placed the dollars end to end - how far would it extend?