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Munroe follows the international standards of the scientific community by primarily using the modern metric International System of Units, from the French Système international d’unités (SI). This coherent system has seven base units to measure different quantities and numerous derived units and prefixes. The seven SI base units are second for time; meter for length; kilogram for mass; ampere for electric current; kelvin for thermodynamic temperature; mole for amount of substance; and candela for luminous intensity. As an American writer, Munroe also uses some Imperial units such as pounds and stones to measure weight and uses miles and inches to measure distance. Using a combination of different units depending on the amounts measured and the context of the question allows him to choose the most apt system of measurement on a case-by-case basis and thus more effectively and clearly convey scale and size to his audience.
A branch of physics, thermodynamics deals primarily with heat, entropy, and energy. The name of the field was coined in the 19th century from the ancient Greek prefix “thermos,” meaning “warm/hot,” and the ancient Greek word dunamikos via the French dynamique, meaning “powerful,” to refer to a general theory of the relationship between mechanical energy and heat. Scientists have been studying thermodynamics for hundreds of years, and it has applications in chemistry and engineering as well as in fields like astronomy and meteorology. Thermodynamic laws define how energy transfers within systems and describe the properties of thermal energy. Munroe frequently applies the principles of thermodynamics when answering submitted questions like those in Chapter 19 and Chapter 41.
Einstein first proposed his two interconnected theories of relativity—general relativity and special relativity—in the early 20th century. These physical theories challenged and overthrew prior assumptions about underlying processes in fundamental concepts such as time, space, energy, and matter, and are now central to modern physics. General relativity deals with gravity, one of the universe’s fundamental forces. Special relativity applies to objects that are in states of uniform motion relative to each other and covers topics such as the speed of light and nuclear radiation. Gravity is central to a number of Munroe’s answers, including those in Chapter 44 and Chapter 58, while topics under the purview of special relativity are relevant to many others, such as the answers in Chapter 21 and Chapter 28.
Estimation provides a usable but approximate answer to a question based on the best or most-usable data available. Munroe frequently makes estimates when answering questions in order to simplify calculations, both for the sake of his audience’s understanding and because precision is rarely necessary to answer the proposed questions. Estimation can involve rounding values (to the nearest whole number for example) or using values taken from the nearest possible equivalent in place of an unknown variable. Chapter 14 heavily features fermi estimation, which uses a formula to round values to the nearest order of magnitude so that they can then be used to produce a ballpark figure.
Machines used to conduct research in particle physics, particle accelerators increase the energy of atomic and subatomic particles so that they can be studied as they pass through sensory machines. The first particle accelerators were built during the 1930s, and they function by using magnetic and electric fields to accelerate, focus, and control particle beams.
The Large Hadron Collider (LHC), the world’s largest and most famous particle accelerator, is located in the CERN accelerator complex in Geneva, Switzerland. Opened in 2008, the LHC consists of a 27-kilometer subterranean loop of magnets, cooling systems, and other mechanisms. It is capable of propelling high-energy particles—mainly protons and lead ions—through controlled vacuums at close to the speed of light.
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