16 MAR 2012 by ideonexus

 The Concept of the Chemical Bond

[The chemical bond] First, it is related to the disposition of two electrons (remember, no one has ever seen an electron!): next, these electrons have their spins pointing in opposite directions (remember, no one can ever measure the spin of a particular electron!): then, the spatial distribution of these electrons is described analytically with some degree of precision (remember, there is no way of distinguishing experimentally the density distribution of one electron from another!): concept...
Folksonomies: chemistry
Folksonomies: chemistry
  1  notes

...is based on things we cannot see or measure and only exist in terms of probabilities.

31 JAN 2012 by ideonexus

 Courses That Appealed to Steven Chu

I approached the bulk of my schoolwork as a chore rather than an intellectual adventure. The tedium was relieved by a few courses that seem to be qualitatively different. Geometry was the first exciting course I remember. Instead of memorizing facts, we were asked to think in clear, logical steps. Beginning from a few intuitive postulates, far reaching consequences could be derived, and I took immediately to the sport of proving theorems.
Folksonomies: education
Folksonomies: education
  1  notes

He enjoyed Geometry for the process rather than the boring memorization of facts.