Physics Capsule – Details, episodes & analysis

Does the universe have an edge? Is it finite or infinite? In what shape is it? What do we mean by the edge in the first place? And of course there’s the infamous question: what’s beyond the edge? In this episode V and R discuss all these questions and what we know about them from a properly scientific perspective.

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V and R are back at last and they’re armed with some philosophical questions and discussions about charges and electrons. Sit back lazily and relish a casual start to the second series of this popular physics podcast.

In this series finale V and R sit down to talk about ███████████ that we’ve ██████████ in ██████ and ███████ in █████. Because there’s so much to discuss the focus this time round is on the █████████████████████████. Sit back, have a sip of your favourite drink and lose yourself in the ███████████████. Wait, why are we redacting this? Didn’t the episode title give it all away?

Anyway, if you love comics, this episode is for you. And if you don’t love comics this episode might show you the light. Oh, and also all the film sound clips we’ve used are copyright Marvel Entertainment. Also, thanks to moviesoundclips.net for some audio clips from the Marvel films.

People have mixed feelings about Pluto’s status as a planet. What happened in 1992 that changed Pluto’s identity once and for all? In 2006 why did we decide Pluto wasn’t a planet anymore? Was it not special or are we missing the bigger picture?

We flew in space in our last episode, it is time to demystify some physics you encounter while flying within our own atmosphere. From tall mountains to landing procedures to banking planes here’s a primer on some common physics you might encounter during your flight.

Today reusable rockets, lunar bases and plans to colonise Mars are everyday news. We’re on the brink of a new space age and space travel will become commonplace in the future. All you early birds who want to know how you can soon drive around in your spaceship or steer a probe through our solar system, you’ll need to have a good idea of gravity and orbital mechanics. So here’s a primer.

V and R try in vain to solve light’s infamous identity crisis.

Someone asked V about gravitational waves sometime back so today we’re going to dumb it down for you. Why is everyone talking about it? What’s the deal with gravitational waves? And what’s in store for the future?

If you like you can listen to the chirp of the first gravitational waves ever detected. And, as promised on the show, here are some links to interesting papers, articles etc.:

• ‘Observation of Gravitational Waves from a Binary Black Hole Merger’, by Abbott et al.
• ‘Merging neutron stars generate gravitational waves and a celestial light show’, from Science
• Interesting interview with Barish and Thorne

V and R sit down to discuss scientifically sound driving decisions.R found himself perplexed today when he thought he could easily cross an intersection but the car before him came to a sudden halt. We use this alarming situation to discuss the science behind some driving etiquettes.When is it better to stop at and when to drive through an intersection? And should you swerve around or brake hard to avoid ramming into a vehicle that came to a sudden halt in front of you?