Two analogous(?) problems
- Author:
- Judah L Schwartz
Here are two physical situations whose mathematical descriptions are related. Compare and contrast the two situations.
I. a beam of light is emitted from a light source, is reflected from a mirror and strikes a receiver.
- What is true about the actual path of the light?
- What physical quantities have a minimum value along the actual path?
[You can adjust the positions of the light source, receiver and mirror.]
II. Each end of a weightless string of fixed length is attached to a peg. A ring is free to move along the string.
- What is true about the equilibrium position of the ring?
- What physical quantities have a minimum value in the equilibrium position of the string?
[You can adjust the positions of the pegs and the length of the string.]
How are these two problems similar? How are they different?
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