Term Paper Topics Spring 2018 Physics W1001 Physics for Poets Version 0.

0 4/5/2018 10:01 AM

Preliminary Version! Please note that this note can and will
change based on the input of the class. For example, our
collective brainstorming will undoubtedly add more exciting
topics to this list.

Topic for the Term Paper and Final Exam

Note 1 (Term Paper): Please select any one out of the many topics and work it out in detail in the format
of a short scientific paper. I believe that it is difficult to give a great answer in less than 4 pages. Please e-
mail us (physics.class@gmail.com) the pdf version of the term-paper any time before April 29th.

Note 2 (Final Exam): You will receive five questions on the final exam that are intimately related to the
topics listed below. Naturally, they will be significantly easier than any of these topics. You will have to
choose any one of the five questions and write a nice answer shorter than a page. You will be able to use
all the reminder sheets you used during the Midterms and you can create one extra sheet for the final.

Note 3: Please do not hesitate to ask me if you have any questions or suggest additional topics that fit the
class.

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1. Had you designed the Fukushima reactor, what would have you done differently?
What are the main safety concerns about a nuclear reactor?

2. What kind of radiations are out there, what are their dangers and what are their
benefits? Please analyze both medical and non-medical applications.

3. What else is out there besides nuclear power? What are their environmental
hazards? Please have a thorough survey and analyze the pros and cons for each
“solution”.

4. How would your life be different had there been no diffraction? Describe a few
major examples.
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5. The physics Nobel prize winner Richard Feynman once said that "I think I can
safely say that nobody understands quantum mechanics". That is true, but... What
is so complicated about it? Write a few examples of what is completely different in
quantum mechanics than in our every-day lives?

6. Imagine you finish at Columbia and you head off to Washington to work for the
government on something not related to physics. In what situations, if any, will you
need to use your "physics" skills? (Besides playing soccer or billiard. ;-)

7. The Theory of General Relativity changed how people started to think of space
and time in the early 20th century. How would you describe what has changed?

8. Please explain how sophisticated speakers work. Please cover topics from
electromagnetism, through frequency spectrum, to acoustics.

9. What is the difference between gas-turbines, steam turbines, diesel engines,

Otto engines, and Stirling engines? What makes each suitable for its niche? How
many tanker-ship load of oil is wasted every day due to energy conversion through
engines? What would be your vision for the future?

10. Assume that we want to have only solar cells by 2050, supplying the total energy
need of the Earth. Please make a realistic estimate -taking into account factors from
population growth, through night storage, to infrastructure needs- on the area
necessary for this (dis)utopia? Please be careful, the devil is in the details.

11. How wind farms work? How much total energy does it take to produce a wind-
turbine tower? Please be careful, the devil is in the details. (e.g., how much energy
and fallen people does it take to mine the coal used to smelt the iron ore used to
make the steel for the tower?) Does a wind turbine make more electricity than
the energy cost of its manufacturing? Some claim that wind farms are simply
exporting pollution to the country of their manufacturing, is that true?

12. How long can you, your car, an airplane, and your bicycle go on the energy
contained in a can of sugary soft drink? Which has more energy, hydrogen fuel,
gasoline, or a sugary drink for the same volume? Does bio-diesel make sense?
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13. Assume that you want to supply the Earth in 2050 by Nuclear power only. How
much cement would you have to produce to make these power stations (please
assume that the technology available today will not improve significantly)?
Estimate the average number of casualties for the period for 2050-2150,
extrapolating the casualties caused by past accidents. Compare it to the number of
coal/coal-mining causalities that would happen to produce the same amount of
electrical energy from coal alone.

14. Compare the size of paved surfaces in the US and the area that should be
covered by solar panels to satisfy the US energy needs.

15. How many trees one has to grow to eliminate 40% of the CO2 gas from Earth's
atmosphere if we assume that the trees are cut and sunk into the deep ocean after
reaching maturity?

16. What happens when a pan of hot oil is burning and the cook quickly dumps a
gallon of cold water to extinguish the fire? Please do the calculation and describe
the processes.

17. Estimate the entropy of the internet today. Please explain why your estimated
input quantities are reasonable.

18. a.) How many ways you can come up to "Terraform" Venus? Please describe
and support the viability of your ideas. b.) Assume that humanity chooses to
crash comets into Venus to terraform it. Please describe the quantitative aspects,
energetics, and practical challenges of this approach. (Please disregard cost, but
respect the current level of physics and technology.)

19. What are the most important considerations when designing a nuclear power
plant? How are these considerations different from those which would be
considered when designing a power plant that runs, for example, on coal? What
are the comparative impacts on nature, investment, and human lives on the short
and long term?

20. What is a Solar Sail and why is it the future of space exploration?