Radiation and Thermal Conductivity Lab Report Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Radiation and Thermal Conductivity - Lab Report Example The third experiment involved the verification of Stefan Boltzmann law and the general realization was that there exists a direct proportionality between the intensity of radiation and the ration between emitter temperature and ambient temperature to factor four (?4). The fourth experiment involved an analysis of Aluminum and Stainless Steel. During the analysis the general realization was that the thermal conductivity of Aluminum was that the thermal conductivity of Aluminum. Introduction Radiation can be defined as the situation arising from the interaction involving heat between a system and the surrounding environment. Consequently thermal radiation involves the study of the electromagnetic radiation emitted as a result of the temperature of the emitter with regard to the dual-wave particle nature of electromagnetic radiation (Mahan, 2002). According to Mahan, studies of Heat have led to the realization that heat is an energy that occurs as a result of energy variations between a system and its surroundings. The basis of the experiment was to conduct an analysis on the various characteristics of thermal radiation as a form of heat transfer and the characteristics are applicable in real life situations. The objective of the first experiment was to study the relationship between the view factor designated F and the intensity of the radiation measured in terms of the temperature. The second experiment was aimed at validating the postulation that there exists an inverse proportionality relationship between the source of heat and the surface. The third experiment was aimed at validating the Boltzmann law which is mathematically expressed as: qb = O( Ts4 – Ta4 ) The fourth experiment was aimed at comparing the thermal conductivity of two different metals. Literature Review Apart from conduction and convection heat can be transferred via radiation. The major difference between radiation and the other forms of heat transfer is that radiation can travel in a vaccum because unlike conduction and convection that require molecules, radiation does not require molecules. Radiation occurs via elecgtromagnetic waves. According to Theodore (2011) any system that has a temperature greater than absolute zero is an emitter of thermal radiation. Theodore outlines that the amount of radiation given out by a given system depends on both the temperature and the charatceristics of the surface. In essence, the undertanding of thermal radiation requires an understanding of the electromagnetic spectrum. Electromagnetic radiation is an occurrence experienced when the atoms of a system become excited from their dormant state so that they acquire enough internal energy to begin emitting the radiation. Am example of a biological phenomenon that depends on radiation is sight. Although we are not able to see the electromagnetic waves our eyes are able to detect the waves and the ability allows us to percieve the images of the objects around us. Although radiati on can be approached from the particulate aspect, scientists have since found it more convenient to approach radiation from the wave aspect. According to Kubota (2007), scientists now approach radiation as involving emission of wavelengths by solid particles. In the study of black body radiation, scientists have also

Moral luck Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Moral luck - Essay Example Concepcion (2002) describes the "standard view of responsibility" whereby "it is unjust to hold a person morally responsible for that which she did not control. Agents deserve to be morally appraised or held liable only for that which they controlled" (455). The problem this poses is that at some level it can always be argued that a situation was outside of a person's control. There will invariably be some uncontrollable factor that, when joining the confluence of other factors over which a person did have control, it can be argued was the cause of any given scenario. For example, if a person driving a vehicle strikes a child who suddenly runs into the road, it might be argued that the person could have been paying closer attention and thereby braked sooner, or should have been driving more slowly. On the other hand it could be argued that a reasonable person under the circumstances could not have predicted the child running into the road, and therefore this was just bad luck and the driver should not be held responsible. This epitomizes the concept of moral luck. To what extend does a random, uncontrollable occurrence relieve a person of moral responsibility for a harm done Concepcion goes on to argue that accepting the standard view of responsibility "is tantamount t... never morally responsible, show that luck is not ubiquitous or at least that ubiquitous luck is not moral, or show that ascriptions of responsibility can retain justice despite the omnipresence of luck" (455). The implication is that it does not make sense to avoid assigning responsibility simply because luck played a role in the moral dilemma, since luck will virtually always be a factor to some degree. This would logically mean that nobody is ever morally responsible for anything. Paradox of Moral Luck and Moral Responsibility The paradox, as Thomas Nagel (1979) describes it, is that individual moral responsibility is possible even though luck is ubiquitous. We hold a person responsible for actions taken within a scenario he/she did not bring about. It is possible for a person to be morally blameworthy even though the bulk of the circumstances bringing about a scenario were entirely outside of that person's control. Degrees of control are virtually irrelevant, as proximate causation of uncontrollable variables fails to offer any relief from a person's moral responsibility for actions taken within any given situation. Consider the case of a soldier who voluntarily enlists in the U.S. Marine Corps in the hopes of being deployed in Iraq to fight in the war on terror. This person, after months of grueling patrols in Baghdad watching his fellow marines get killed by improvised explosive devices, decides to take revenge by entering the nearest civilian residence and shooting up the women and children inside. Then consider the kid who had his sights set on college but was instead drafted into the U.S. Army during the Vietnam War and becomes so worn down by the war and numbed to killing that he partakes in a massacre of civilians at Mai Lai. The former soldier chose to