4 ms·

It's just the frequency of a gravitational wave, it's not very impressive.

• peter_d_sherman 3y ago
  I don't believe that I stated an opinion relating to the impressiveness or non-impressiveness of the phenomena (or the purported phenomena) as the case may be... "Interesting" != "Impressive". What would impress me however (greatly I may add!) -- is if you knew how an average experimenter with, say, $100 or less of lab equipment -- could create and test (and therefore know to be real) gravitational waves -- without relying on, or repeating any news articles or other secondhand information source... In other words, with respect to gravitational waves, "I want to see them with my own eyes" -- to believe them... The problem with the media today is that everybody parrots what everyone else is saying (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Echo_chamber_(media) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Echo_chamber_(media) ), nobody seems to think for themselves, and it seems that very few people do actual firsthand experiments to verify media claims... I'm not saying that gravitational waves don't exist -- far from -- but the standard of proof I require is via firsthand experiment -- rather than secondhand hearsay about someone else's experiment... Firsthand experiments usually lead to greater understanding -- whereas secondhand hearsay usually leads to greater confusion... So, show me a guaranteed experimental way that someone with $100 or less of lab equipment could create their own gravitational waves with (and subsequently know them to be real via their own firsthand witnessing of one)... and I'll be impressed! Very impressed, in fact!
  • Vecr 3y ago
    Oh, sorry for taking so long to respond. You need very expensive equipment to detect gravitational waves at all, and it's not off the shelf either. They might be able to get the cost for a leading edge facility under 1 billion dollars and 5 years build time depending on how well you manage it. I'm saying the frequency itself is not profound, it won't give you psi powers or expand your mind any more than the frequency of ocean waves will.
    • peter_d_sherman 3y ago
      I'm guessing that Aquaman -- would respectfully disagree with that assessment! :-) <g> :-) But humor aside, an interesting question might be: Why is frequency -- such a fundamental component of Physics? What is the first principle or first principles -- that gives rise to frequency? We might step back a step, and say (and or observe) that waves and wave-like phenomena are present in many aspects of this Universe -- both seen and unseen. So do waves give rise to frequency -- or is it the other way around, does frequency give rise to waves? We see both phenomena present in the concept of energy -- energy of all sorts. We also see the concept of imbalance -- over half a wave cycle, and balance (or rebalance, if you will) over a full one... Which is in turn connected to the concept of vibration, oscillation, repetition and reversal (over a period of time, aka periodicity)... So, frequency is not profound? It seems to be intricately, intricately connected to a whole bunch of physical phenomena -- that are indeed profound! But that being said (and to agree with you!) -- no it probably won't give you psi powers or expand your mind any more than the frequency of ocean waves will. (Unless of course you somehow happen to be Aquaman! <g> :-) <g>)