What is Scientific Method.

The scientific method is a systematic approach used by scientists and researchers to investigate natural phenomena, acquire knowledge, and answer questions about the physical world. It consists of a series of steps and principles that guide the process of scientific inquiry. While the specific details of the scientific method can vary slightly depending on the field of study and the nature of the research, the fundamental principles remain consistent. Here are the typical steps involved in the scientific method:

Figure 1: Scientific Method

1. Observation: The process begins with the observation of a particular phenomenon or event. Observations can be made using the five senses or using instruments and tools.

2. Question: Based on the observation, a specific question or problem is formulation. Ther question should be clear, concise, and specific, as it will guide the entire research process.

3. Hypothesis: A hypothesis is a testable statement or educated guess that proposes a potential explanation for the observed phenomenon. It is often framed as an “if-then” statement, where the “if” part describes the conditions or factors that lead to the “then” part, which predicts an outcome.

4. Prediction: From the hypothesis, researchers make predictions about the expected results of experiments or observations if the hypothesis is correct. These predictions help design experiments and set expectations for the outcome.

5. Experimentation: This step involves designing and conducting experiments or making additional observations to test the hypothesis. Experiments should be carefully controlled to isolate the variables of interest and minimize potential biases.

6. Data Collection: During the experimentation phase, data is collected by making systematic and accurate measurements or observations. The data should be recorded in a structured and organized manner.

7. Analysis: After data collection, the collected data is analyzed to determine whether it supports or contradicts the hypothesis. Statistical methods are often used to analyze and interpret the data.

8. Conclusion: Based on the analysis of the data, researchers draw conclusions about the validity of the hypothesis. If the data supports the hypothesis, it may be considered a viable explanation for the observed phenomenon otherwise the proposed hypothesis is completely rejected.

9. Communication: Scientists communicate their findings through research papers, presentations, or other forms of scientific communication upon which the scientific community can build further knowledge and proposed new findings as a continued process.

10. Repeat and Refine: The scientific method is an iterative process. If the hypothesis is supported, further research may be conducted to refine the understanding of the phenomenon. If the hypothesis is rejected, new hypothesis may be formulated and tested.

Throughout the scientific method, objectivity, repeatability, and peer review are essential to ensure the validity of and reliability of scientific findings. Scientists continually seek to improve their understanding of the natural world by following these systematic steps and building on existing knowledge. The scientific method is more than a set of steps; it’s a philosophy that celebrates curiosity, objectivity, and rigor. It has led to groundbreaking discoveries, technological advancements, and a deeper understanding of our world. Whether you’re a scientist working in a laboratory or a curious individual exploring the wonders of the natural world, the scientific method is your trusted guide to unlocking the mysteries of the universe. It reminds us that every question is an opportunity, and every answer is a steppingstone on our never-ending journey of discovery.

Double Slit Experiment

Classical Physics:

Classical physics refers to the physics whose foundation was laid by Newton's determinism. According to Newton's determinism, given the initial parameters of any physical system, the future state of the physical system can be uniquely determined. For example, if we have an object and we know its velocity (v) displacement vector (r) and all the forces acting on that object, we can predict its path and future values of its velocity and position vector as given by Newton's second law of motion F = m*a. Thus, classical physics claims that given correct initial conditions of any physical system its future is completely deterministic. Giving rise to a phenomenon what we call as Newton's determinism.

This deterministic phenomenon was working quiet well until it hit a wall, when we started observing on microscopic world.

Quantum Mechanics:

In the context of quantum mechanics, particles also exhibit wave properties and can be expressed as a wave function corresponding to that particular particle waves. When a particle exhibits wave characteristics, we cannot apply Newton's determinism since its wave function cannot be localized in space unlike an macroscopic object. This is where the classical physics deterministic phenomenon fails to predict or explain the physical system in terms of its initial conditions.

Double-Slit Experiment:

Double slit experiment is perhaps the most famous experiments in the foundation of quantum mechanics. What is this double slit experiment? It is an arrangement in which we have a source which lights up a double slit film and behind this thin film is a screen collecting the results passing through the film.

Case 1:

Film has a single slit and the source is a source of light, what happens is what exactly we expect. When we throw a beam of light on a film with a single slit, we get a pattern of waves on the screen since light is passing through that slit. When we add another slit i.e. double slit experiment, we get an interference pattern and experiments show that: 

Equation of non-equivalence.

 where I1 is the intensity of light that passes through slit 1 and I2 is the intensity of light from slit 2. We get an interference pattern (both constructive and destructive) where some areas are much brighter than others, as we predict and expect from wave-theory. Figure below shows how waves behave in above scenario.

Figure 1: Source of waves in double slit experiment

Case 2:

As seen is case 1, nothing is weird and different from classical physics, because the waves behave exactly as we predict according to wave theory, but when we try the same above double slit experiment by using a source of micro-particles, things start to bizarre and unexpected.

Now, in the same above experiment if we use a source of electrons instead of photons, with a single slit we have a dot on a screen. When we add another slit what we predict is we should get two distinct spots that are summation of intensities of both slits since particles do not interfere with each other. But experiments shows that even with electrons we get an interference patterns as if electrons were waves instead of particles and were passing through both slits at the same time. These results raised a lot of questions on predictions given by classical physics. As shown in figure below we can see that electrons (particles) behave same as light (waves), as if a single electron is passing through both slits simultaneously. 

 Figure 2: Electron source in double slit experiment

                              

Scientists were intrigued by these mysterious results, so everyone jumped in to solve this mystery. Experiments done by different researchers confirmed that electrons does behave like waves when passed through slits, another experiment was setup to check that an electrons passes through which slit, because it was being theorized that electron passes through both which was against the concept of particles. A light counter was setup on each slit such that the counter will give a signal if electron passes through that slit. With this setup, when the same experiment was repeated, instead of interference pattern we again a simple summation of intensities as if electrons are now behaving as particles. As shown in figure below:

Figure 3: With setup of testing which slit electron passes

                              

After the above experiment, thing were even more strange than before as if electron knew when it was being observed. If electron was not observed, it behaved like a wave but if we add some observer into the experiment, electron starts to behave as an ordinary particle.

The above mystery ended Newton’s determinism, that given initial conditions, a physical system can be uniquely determined at any point in time. The experiments were totally in contradiction of classical physics. This laid the foundation of Quantum mechanics and also The Heisenberg’s principle.

Heisenberg's Uncertainty Principle:

What happens when we place an observer in the experiment that makes the electron change its path and behavior? Quantum mechanics explains that particles and wave are complementary to each other. When we try to measure the position of electron in double slit experiment we use a source of light or a photon whose wavelength and energy is comparable to that of an electron. This photon when interacts with the electron changes its momentum or position disturbing the physical system (as an external force is acting on the system). Heisenberg stated that we cannot accurately determine the position and momentum of quantum particle, when we try to accurately measure position the momentum changes and trying to take the momentum effects the position of electron. According to Heisenberg's uncertainty principle, there will always be an inaccuracy in measuring momentum and position given by following equation:

where x denotes position, p denotes momentum and ℏ is Planck's constant.

Time Travel: Unlike Science Fiction

Background:

Whenever we see the word, "time travel", our mind goes to science fiction and how it is depicted in movies and novels where time travelers move back and forth in time, trying to rewrite past for a better future but the question is, Is Time Travel possible according to physics?

Well answer to that question is YES and no! Laws of physics allow time travel but with some limitation. In this document I try to provide some overview of some of the existing Time Travel Theories and their limitations.

Time Travel Theories:

Time Travelers:

Before we launch ourselves into theories, lets first have a look at some of the time travelers that are actually travelling in time and we can easily observe them. Everything we see around us people, things, nature, colors, sky, moon, planets, stars even our sun is because of light emitted by them and entering our eyes. Since, our perception of sight is dependent on light and light has a finite speed (3 x 10⁸ m/s – very huge number but still finite), light emitted from a body must take some time to travel before it reaches our eyes. For things around us this time is a very small number because the distance light has to travel is very small compared to its speed but when we look at celestial bodies like moon or sun, distance are huge or comparable to speed of light. It takes 1 sec for moonlight to reach earth similarly it takes 8 minutes for light from sun to reach earth. Now imagine you are looking at the Sun (using some protection or it can cause serious harm), the current image of Sun you are looking at is a state of Sun in which Sun was 8 minutes ago and the current state is visible to you 8 minutes later. Suppose, if Sun suddenly disappears while you were looking at the Sun, you will see Sun disappearing 8 minutes later than it actually did. In other words we can say moon and Sun are time travelling into past for 1 second and 8 minutes respectively.

Time Travel in Relativity:

The Special Theory of Relativity came up with the idea that, “Time is not absolute” but it has a different value for different observer – giving rise to the question what is time? General Theory of Relativity gives an answer that time is the 4^th dimension in space-time and no event can be explained without all 4 coordinated (3 coordinated of space and 1 coordinate of time i.e. when and where that event occurred). Mathematical formulation of Relativity gives us a window towards time travel as it claims that time for a moving body moves slower than the body at rest. The famous twin paradox, where we have two twins and one is sent to a space mission and when he returns he is still young while the twin on Earth has grown quite old. Experiments have proven this “Time Dilation” and the most common example of Time Dilation in daily life is Global Positioning System or GPS – The GPS systems clocks deviates from clocks on Earth (as calculated by relativity) therefore the compensation factors are added in GPS system for precision.

Coming back to time travel, the time of moving bodies is slower than the observing body at rest; if the moving body moves fast enough it can travel in future as given by formula:

Above equation shows that as the speed of moving body increases the time slows down. If one is able to build a space ship that can travel close to speed of light, one can travel in time in the direction of cosmological time arrow (towards the expansion – or simply future). But it is not that simple there are indeed some limitations which are listed:
1. To build a space ship that can travel close to speed of light is out of entire Earth’s resources if we use of current travelling techniques,

       2. As the speed increases, according to the energy-mass relation by Einstein

,

the energy required to move that body increases, and as we go close to speed of light the energy required to move increases drastically and at the speed of light the energy required gets infinite,

3. But if somehow, we are able to build such a time machine with some new technique and overcome energy infinity limitation, we still have on little problem that are the physical effect of time travel on human body and human history.

4. Well, at microscopic level, we are actually speeding particles close to speed of light like in Large Hadron Collider, where we see relativity effects and verify its predictions, but still unable to manufacture relativity for macroscopic time travelling.

Time Travel in Wormhole:

Building a time machine that is strong enough and fuel efficient enough to travel at the speed of light is still far from concept, while this theory seems quite away from current scenario there are some other theories one of the most promising and not very far-fetched is the concept of a WORMHOLE.

Wormholes were first theorized in 1916, derived from Einstein’s equation of relativity under the name Einstein-Rosen Bridge, 1930 when physicists speculated the existence of wormholes in the fabric of space-time. Wormhole is a hypothetical concept of a hole or tunnel, which connects two separate points in space-time in such a way that resultant looks like a tunnel. It is theorized that, if one enters from one side of wormhole reaches very quickly on the other side even if these points are separated by trillions of miles.

You can imagine a wormhole as a sheet of paper with two points marked on it, one of the top and one on the bottom, the fastest way from point one to point two is a straight line between two points, or there could be another possibility for fastest track, that is, if you fold the paper in such a way that both points come in parallel (instead of top-bottom, it is now up-down), now you can travel down from one point to the other much faster than traveling on the paper.

For years this seemed that this passage or transit is impossible, but recent research by Kip Thorne, suggests that it is possible with some materials that can tolerate the forces acting inside a wormhole, but the physical limitations of time are still there, what happens if you enter and reach a time when that wormhole was not even created or you entered but the wormhole had an instantaneous life and you couldn’t exit.

We are still looking for natural wormholes existing in the universe, also working our way towards creating our own wormholes, because even if we found one, we need to understand and control is behavior before we could use it for travel.

Time Travel in String Theory:

What is String Theory?

String Theory is currently the biggest candidate if we are looking for a complete universal “Theory of Everything”. According to the String Theory, the fundamentals of the universe are not particles but strings having lengths but no other dimensions, likely infinitesimally thin piece of string. These strings some are two ended (open) while some are closed (looped). Everything is frequency and energy. Particles interactions are also explained in terms of strings, e.g. the absorption and emission of particles are explained by joining and separating of strings. “Supergravity” explains the reason of gravity as a virtual particle called graviton. The exchange of these gravitons is which cause the effects we call gravity, the same phenomenon is explained in terms of strings as an H-shaped bridge. This H-shaped bridge is the result of joining of two strings one from each body (emission of gravitons in particle theory supergravity).

Time Travel:

Just like the concept of wormhole, string theory also propose some of the most weird concepts, one of the most remarkable is multiple dimension (greater than four), these higher dimension are what causing other effects like multi-verse and multi-inflation concepts. If all the predictions of string theory are true, then there is not just another you, but infinite another you, throughout the multi-verse. If you had an option in selecting your career with two options, you may have taken both in different dimensions these dimensions may also be separated by another dimension of time because in imaginary co-ordinates there is no differentiation between space and time. So, there may be another dimension where you are still 6 years old or 60 years old. String theory puts forwards the concept of transfer between these dimensions as some of the particles (virtual) are able to move freely between these dimensions but for bodies like humans should have a beam of parallel strings passing by at the speed of light, they would bend the curvature of space-time and will create something similar to a wormhole into time, here there is no distinction between past or future i.e. you can travel in either direction. But strings are yet to be observed and scientist are working not to observe strings but to verify the predictions of string theory.

Conclusion:  

There was a time when time travel was a bizarre concept, then a time came when it was The Topic for science fiction, now we are entering into an era where we are exploring time like never before, we are on the verge of science and technology. Time Travel as depicted in science fiction is not as simple in real life as it is presented (ignoring the fact that the human civilization is also shown to be quite advance in most of them). Time Travel according to the laws of science is possible and not just possible but also happening right now as a result of finite speed of light, we see everything in the past, like a galaxy 1 million light years away (it takes a million years to reach light from that galaxy to our telescopes) what we see there now, is what there was 1 million years ago. Time Travel for particles is also possible according to the laws of science, but there are certain limitations when we try to artificially manipulate space-time, these limitations includes the huge limitation of resources, the physical laws of nature of space-time, chemical effect on human mind and biological effects on human body. At microscopic level, particle smashers are working trying to produce some useful results and some have observed time travel at microscopic level according to Einstein’s time dilation and relativity equations. Currently, for humans time travel is a thing of future but certainly achievable.  

References:

  1.  1905 Paper, “On the Electrodynamics of Moving Bodies” by A. Einstein,

2. “A Brief History of Time”, by Stephan Hawking,

3.  Anderson Institute, http://www.andersoninstitute.com/wormholes.html,

Amazing Quantum Theory

Quantum Theory:

Physicist Max Plank, was trying to answer the Question, "Why glowing body changes color from red to orange and than to blue as its temperature increases". He came up with a solution and presented it to German Physical Society in 1900. The presented theory he called "Quantum Theory".

In order to solve this he made an assumption that energy existed in individual units (like matter) rather than constant electromagnetic waves. He called this individual unit as "quanta".

According to Planck's equation " E = hv " where E is the energy of electromagnetic waves, h is Planck's constant (it relates the energy of a quantum photon or quanta of an electromagnetic radiation with the frequency of that radiation) and v  is the frequency of that radiation.

He made and assumption, gave an equation, this equation explains the above phenomenon quite well, in a way that when temperature changes the energy spectrum occupy a different discrete color spectrum.
This was the beginning of a totally new way of looking at the universe. Since then every great scientist contributed to our recent understanding of Quantum Theory.

Some important developments in Theory:

In 1900 Max Planck, made an assumption that energy is composed of individual units or "quanta" just like matter.

In 1905 Albert Einstein, suggested that not just energy of an electromagnetic radiation but also the radiation itself is quantized.

In 1924 Louis de Broglie, proposed that there is no difference in makeup and behavior between energy and matter. This principle came to known as, "The principle of wave-particle duality".

In 1927 Werner Heisenberg, proposed, "Uncertainty Principle" which claims it is impossible to accurately calculate two complementary values of a subatomic particle (i.e. position and momentum). The statement is contrary to concepts of classical physics.

Famous Quantum Experiment:

Under the context of above developments, we have a very famous experiment, "Double Slit Experiment".

If we have an observing screen and an electron gun, between these two we place a double slit wall. Now when we fire electrons on the screen, we should get two parallel lines right behind those two slits, that's how matter behaves. But what we observe it results are totally opposite, instead of two parallel lines we get an interference pattern on the screen (as if electron were a wave not a particle).

The only possible explanation could be that each electron is passing trough both slits, but when we try to test it and place a detector in front of each slit, we observe that electron passes through only and only one slit and this time we do not see an interference pattern just two parallel lines. It seems that electron knows when it is being watched.

Double Slit Experiment

Wave interference property

Two Major Interpretations:

Quantum Theory made every one think again about there universe and many different interpretations came out from different minds. Among other two interpretations are most accepted these are Copenhagen Interpretation and Many Worlds Interpretation.

Copenhagen Interpretation:

Neil Bohr came up with Copenhagen Interpretation, it claims that a particle is whatever it is measured to be (for example a wave or a particle). But it can not be assumed that a particle has some specific properties or even it exists until we measure it. In short Neil Bohr said that, "Objective Reality does not exist".

This principle is known as, "The Superposition Principle". 

According to this principle an object is in its all possible states and that object stays in all those states until we try to measure that object.

Many Worlds Interpretation: 

Second interpretation Many Worlds or (Multi-verse Theory) was first presented by Hugh Evert III in 1957, and it claims as soon as a potential exists for any object to be in any state the universe of that object operates it into a series of parallel universes equal o the number of possible states of that object, with each universe having a unique state of that object. We live in a multi-verse and all universes communicate and interact in a specific way and also affect each other in some manner.

In short, reality is all possible combinations you can have and the one you see is right now associated to your universe because you are trying to observe it. 

Conclusion:

Quantum Theory is the debate of the century and the very basic assumption of Max Planck that matter and energy have same makeup and that there is no difference in their behavior was a huge break through in Physics. Quantum theory contradicted classical physics. New and better experiments are being performed to explain this theory better and better. Quantum Theory explains behavior of subatomic particles where forces like strong force and weak force are applied, but it completely ignores gravitational force because the gravitational force at subatomic level is One Hundred Trillion Trillion Trillion times less  strong then Strong Force i.e. if Strong Force at proton level is 1 then gravity's string will be only 10^-38, so Quantum Theory ignores gravitational effects. Work in new fields like Quantum Computing and Quantum Chemistry is being done.

Reference:

1. WikiWand - Double Slit Experiment

2. Physics of the Universe - Quantum Theory
3. Whatis techtarget - Quantum Theory
4. Wave behavior image - Ducksters

Solar Power in Pakistan

One of the major issues in Pakistan is short fall of electricity commonly known as Load Shedding. Electricity short fall means that state is unable to create enough power to meet the state’s power needs. There are many sources for electricity production these days and most recent and most talked about of them is a Solar Power Production.

The benefits of solar power is that it is a renewable source and produces no harmful chemicals or radiations that can hurt human health therefore solar power energy is also called as Clean Energy. Also it does not require any fuel, just sunlight and it can be installed in homes, offices and other buildings so that they can power up their own facility without completely relying on Government.

The disadvantages of solar system are high initial installation cost, also it provides second most expensive electricity in Pakistan and is weather dependent.

While some claim it to be a savior in energy crisis of Pakistan whereas others call it too much expensive. There is a lot of misconception about solar energy. Some of the most frequently asked question about Home Solar Power Projects in Pakistan are as follows:

 Q: How solar system works?

Answer:  A photo-voltaic (sensitive to light) cell captures sunlight and converts it into DC (Direct Current) voltage and then converted into AC (Alternate Current) voltage using an inverter. This AC voltage is then supplied to homes, offices and other buildings.

Q: Does shady weather affects the performance of solar system?

Answer: The best optimal output of solar system is achieved when the system is in direct sunlight, shady weather in certain cases could affect the maximum output or in extremes cases could also become a big problem.

Q: Using solar system do we actually save money?

Answer: This completely depends on the usage of electricity in home appliances on an average house a average solar system could be around 15-20% saving of money annually.

Q: Cost of solar system in home project?

Answer: The selection of solar system for home depends upon certain factors which are current, energy usage (kWh), direct sun light capturing roof top, metering utility and some other factors, one of the biggest cost for any solar system is its initial cost, some companies in Pakistan now-a-days are providing financing options where you do not have to pay the upfront cost right at the time.  

                       

Recent research on solar power energy production has taken a complete new direction because Scientists are now able to produce electricity from organic solar cell. Organic solar cells basically use the Photosynthesis process of plants and use it to convert sunlight to energy, but its commercialization is not anywhere in near future. 

It is not feasible to say that solar system is the only solution to Pakistan’s energy crisis, because like any other production plant it also has some advantages and some disadvantages, its selection either to install it or not, depends on the type of situation we are dealing with. If we want to install a power production plant near Ravi it would be better to install a hydro-electric and in Thar Desert is would be better if power plant operates on Solar Energy. In home this selection can be done by calculating current bills and bills after adding installation (once) and operation of solar system (annually) if calculation show feasible results it can be applied.

For further details go to:

http://www.solarsystemspk.com/

http://forum.paksc.org/Thread-Best-solar-panels-in-Pakistan

http://www.paksolarservices.com/
http://www.solarpanelscostguide.com/
http://www.wholesalesolar.com/solar-information/solar-cost
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solar_power_in_Pakistan
http://us.sunpower.com/home-solar/residential-solar-system-economics/
http://www.dawn.com/news/1209933

Planets of the Solar System Compilation of Facts and Theories

Planets of the Solar System Compilation of Facts and Theories

By 

Muhammad Shuzub Gul.

Abstract

Ever wondered about the stars at night? Ever imagined the Sun right above

us? Ever thought about the beauty of moon shining right above us? Just

like us the early humans were also curious about stars, sky, sun and moon. A

very famous saying is,"Curiosity is the best teacher". Different theorist of

different eras proposed different ideologies on the existences of these heavenly

bodies trying to relate their motion with daily life activities.

But with the advent of modern astronomy and astronomers like Gallelio

and mathematics like Isaac Newton who in early 1600's changed the course of

astronomy that we ever knew. Their laws were so accurate that we still use them

to launch a rocket in space and know its exact path. With the advent of modern

astronomy we have now seen far beyond the edges of our Solar System, NASA's

space Hubble Telescope sending data back from far reaches of our universe and

universe is not ending any soon.

We try to take a voyage to all eight planets of our solar system in this

document, and try to explore them. Methodology is we compare what we see

there and what we thought to be there. Out there Nothing is the Same.


To Get your Free Softcopy Click Here

Sleeping Position and Sleep Quality

Researchers in Turkey have experimented on 63 people and observed their sleeping habits.
41% of left side sleeper reported nightmares and unpeaceful sleep.
On the other hand 15% of right side sleepers reported nightmares.

Futhermore, right side sleepers also reported more peaceful and joyful sleep.

Scientists are still searching for the reason behind this phenomenon.

Another research in Hong Kong tells that people who sleep on their stomach side experience most voilent dreams.

Sleeping habits and its affects could be different for different people. Experiment tells if you have a nightmare next time try changing your side to your right.


The importance of this research to me is that:
Sleeping on your right side is Sunnah (Hazrat Muhammad P.B.U.H. used to sleep on right side and following THEM and THEIR Sunnah is surely a best choice in this life and after life).