DO NOT USE THIS TAG just because the question deals with a law of physics!
All physical systems obey physical laws. Hence it is often a poor way to classify a question to use this tag.
Questions tagged [laws-of-physics]
196 questions
105
votes
18 answers
Why do most formulas in physics have integer and rational exponents?
I mean, why is $F=ma$? Why not $m^{0.123}$, $a^{1.43}$ or some random non-integers or irrational?
I hope you understand that my question isn't limited just to force, energy, velocity, etc.; it also extends to the area of a square, circle, etc. and…
dushyanth
- 1,304
36
votes
8 answers
Do the laws of physics evolve?
Hubble's constant $a(t)$ appears to be changing over time. The fine stucture constant $\alpha$, like many others in QFT, is a running constant that varies, proportional to energy being used to measure it. Therefore, it could be agued that all…
qftme
- 1,870
28
votes
6 answers
General relativity (and other theories) when proven wrong
So, I have been watching some science videos regarding Einstein's theory on general relativity and until today the predictions based on his equations have been proven to stand.
My question would be: what happens in the scientific community if one…
complex
- 415
- 4
- 5
22
votes
7 answers
Is the second law of thermodynamics a "no-go" theorem?
As defined here, there are several no-go theorems in theoretical physics. These theorems are statements of impossibility.
The second law of thermodynamics may be stated in several ways, some of which describe the impossibility of certain situations.…
Daddy Kropotkin
- 2,790
17
votes
3 answers
Is "voltage across an inductor" actually real, or a convenient engineer trick?
Recently in electricity and magnetism class I learned how to solve basic circuits with Faraday's Law. You can't really go wrong with it; define currents in branches, charges/voltages on capacitors, evaluate loops, and you got your system of…
HydroPage
- 331
15
votes
3 answers
Do the laws of physics work everywhere in the universe?
Do the laws of physics change anywhere in the universe? Or will they change from place to place in the universe?
Rohith1236
- 307
14
votes
7 answers
How does the whole universe agree on the laws of physics?
How is it possible that the every particle in the universe agrees on the laws of physics?
Note that I'm not asking 'why', I'm asking 'how'.
I might ask, "How does my water behave the same as your water?", and a reasonable answer could be: "By being…
Rocketmagnet
- 1,399
- 1
- 13
- 20
13
votes
4 answers
Why can't we run the laws of physics backwards and forwards in time infinitely?
So assuming we know all the laws of physics in differential equation form, and I have an estimate for the current large scale state of the universe (whatever standard assumptions/data cosmologists use about the current large scale state of the…
Ameet Sharma
- 1,254
12
votes
3 answers
What sets a "Law" apart from a "Rule" or a "Principle"?
Basically, I understand the difference between a "Theory" and a "Theorem" but I am quite confused when it comes to "Law", "Rule" and "Principle". Can you make the differences clear to me?
fronthem
- 527
12
votes
2 answers
How do we know the laws of physics remain the same in different dimensions?
Section on Wikipedia dealing with the possibility of different dimensions.
When reading this section it feels like there's a giant elephant in the room that is not addressed. For example, here's a quote from the section:
In 1920, Paul Ehrenfest…
Allure
- 23,373
11
votes
6 answers
Understanding this quote by Feynman
This might be more of a question on semantics and interpretation and if this doesn't meet community guidelines, feel free to let me know and I'll delete it.
It doesn't matter how beautiful your theory is, it doesn't matter how smart you are. If it…
Ambica Govind
- 1,647
11
votes
2 answers
Do Newton's laws of motion imply no physical difference between different inertial frames of reference?
I'm a mathematician learning physics from scratch, for my own curiosity and interest. Starting from the basics, I'm trying to get a deep grasp of Newton's laws of motion.
V.I. Arnold describes Galileo's principle of relativity as following (the bold…
35T41
- 414
11
votes
6 answers
Accuracy of physics laws
How accurate are physics laws? For example, for newtons' first law $F=ma$, if we can get a measurement of both force, mass and acceleration with a percentage of uncertainly close to $1\times 10^{-9}\%$, will the formula match the value we…
Jack the Ranger
- 310
11
votes
14 answers
Best (most realistic) physics game?
Inspired by a similar post, I wanted to know what video games, past or present, most accurately employ the laws of physics.
I believe this is an appropriate question for this site, since the users are far more qualified to answer it than anyone on…
Jeremy
- 3,811
10
votes
4 answers
Can we have laws of physics without any laws of conservation?
The famous physicist John Archibald Wheeler proposed that there were no fundamental laws and that eventually, at very high energies, they would be broken. He proposed this conjecture when it was proposed that the law of baryon number conservation…
vengaq
- 3,282