Quarks

[SHISHKABOB]

Hey I was just wondering if someone could explain to me what quarks were and/or if they are proved and stuff. They just seem quite interesting.

[GrassDragon]

This will get you started:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quark

If you take Physics in highschool you should at least get introduced to them in the last few months of the year (I took AP Physics and we had a lot of quarky stuff [PUN!!!]).

[Nickodemus]

I think they are Q's kids.....


*P_H would be proud. I used a dork refrence

[GrimTerror]

OMG QUARKS! I know all about them!!!!

In a way. Why does wikipedia always crop up on the first page? Bah...

Anyway, here's what I know about Quarks.

There are 6 types of Quarks: up, down, top, bottom, charming and one other which name escapes me...

Quarks are fundimental particles (which means they cannot be made any smaller, like electrons) and are what makes up protons and neutrons. The "up" and "down" quarks are what make up protons and neutrons and the overall charge given by the combination of quarks determine what type of particle they make up.

Up quarks have a positive charge of 2/3 (two thirds)
Down quarks have a negative charge of -1/3 (minus one third)

Protons have an overall charge of one and are made up of 2 up quarks and one down quark. Lookie here:

Quark: Up + Up + Down
Charge: 2/3 + 2/3 + -1/3

This gives an overall charge of one: positive

Neutrons have an overall charge of zero and are made up of two down quarks and one up quark. Again, see here:

Quark: Down + Down + Up
Charge: -1/3 + -1/3 + 2/3

This gives an overall charge of zero: Neutral

That's all there was to learn on our syllabus, so that's all I know. I remember it so clearly even though I did it about 2 years ago for my High School Exams and I'm in college now and I can't remeber what I did in Biology yesterday...

...Story of my life...

[Ixion]

the last kind you're trying to think of is "strange".

[TheBB]

OMG QUARKS! I know all about them!!!!

(...)

That's all there was to learn on our syllabus, so that's all I know.

If everything there is to know about quarks is contained in that modest syllabus, what are we paying physicists for? :P

[GenocideAlive]

I'm not sure, but I'm getting paid to be the Grammar Police. For instance, it's bad grammar to end a sentence in a preposition. Wait, I'm not getting paid, I just have some sort of disorder.

[GrimTerror]

I'm not sure, but I'm getting paid to be the Grammar Police. For instance, it's bad grammar to end a sentence in a preposition. Wait, I'm not getting paid, I just have some sort of disorder.
Got it in one.

the last kind you're trying to think of is "strange".
Ooooh, I would never have guessed that one. I knew it was an irregular name like "charming" (and also an amusing name.) Really though, what kind of names are those? Top and Bottom, fair enough. Up and Down, that's fine. But Strange and Charming quarks!? I'd really like to know what that's all about...

[MidnightGladius]

They're charmed, not charming. :/

And Grim, "I just have some sort of disorder", being an independent clause, is fine to end a sentence with.

[GrimTerror]

They're charmed, not charming. :/

And Grim, "I just have some sort of disorder", being an independent clause, is fine to end a sentence with.
That wasn't the point I was trying to make MG...

What do you mean they are "charmed" Quarks? I distinctly remember my physics teacher telling us all about how queer "charming" quarks sounded. I refuse to believe in your past-tense descriptions of fundimental particles!!!!

LIAR!!!!!

(Either way, Charming quarks sounds so much better than charmed quarks.)

[MidnightGladius]

No, I'm pretty sure they're charmed...

On further analysis, it seems that both are acceptable.

[Fenguin]

Quarks don't exist. All matter is composed of my secretions; I once ate a colossal buffet and a few hours later the Universe was born.

[GrimTerror]

And here we have a pure specimen for experimentation, the Fenguin! Once thought to be the simple online administrator of a popular gaming forum, it was revealed that Fenguin is actually composed of the newly descovered "less-than-charming" Quark. What new horrors will be uncovered with the discovery of this mysterious 7th kind of fundimental particle?

Next on The Warboards' Science Cube, Episode 2: The disection of Fenguin the abomination...

A new era of forum science begins!!

[TheBB]

Lmao, forum science would be a sad science. :P