996

Check out this public advisory for Tropical Storm Noel. See how low the central pressure is? How does that compare to fair weather at sea level?

000 WTNT31 KNHC 312032 TCPAT1 BULLETIN TROPICAL STORM NOEL ADVISORY NUMBER 17 NWS TPC/NATIONAL HURRICANE CENTER MIAMI FL AL162007 500 PM EDT WED OCT 31 2007 ...NOEL LINGERING ALONG THE CUBAN COAST...TROPICAL STORM WATCH ISSUED FOR THE SOUTHEAST FLORIDA COAST... AT 5PM EDT...2100Z...A TROPICAL STORM WATCH IS IN EFFECT FROM NORTH OF OCEAN REEF TO JUPITER INLET FLORIDA. A TROPICAL STORM WATCH MEANS THAT TROPICAL STORM CONDITIONS ARE POSSIBLE WITHIN THE WATCH AREA. A TROPICAL STORM WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT FOR THE CUBAN PROVINCES OF SANCTI SPIRITUS...CIEGO DE AVILA...CAMAGUEY...LAS TUNAS... GRANMA...HOLGUIN...SANTIAGO DE CUBA...AND GUANTANAMO. A TROPICAL STORM WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT FOR THE CENTRAL AND NORTHWESTERN BAHAMAS. FOR STORM INFORMATION SPECIFIC TO YOUR AREA...INCLUDING POSSIBLE INLAND WATCHES AND WARNINGS...PLEASE MONITOR PRODUCTS ISSUED BY YOUR LOCAL WEATHER OFFICE. AT 500 PM EDT...2100Z...THE CENTER OF TROPICAL STORM NOEL WAS LOCATED NEAR LATITUDE 22.6 NORTH...LONGITUDE 78.8 WEST OR ABOUT 190 MILES...305 KM...SOUTH-SOUTHWEST OF NASSAU AND ABOUT 240 MILES...385 KM...SOUTH-SOUTHEAST OF MIAMI FLORIDA. NOEL HAS BEEN STATIONARY FOR THE LAST SEVERAL HOURS...BUT A GENERALLY NORTHWARD MOTION IS EXPECTED OVER THE NEXT 24 HOURS. MAXIMUM SUSTAINED WINDS ARE NEAR 50 MPH...85 KM/HR...WITH HIGHER GUSTS. SOME STRENGTHENING IS FORECAST DURING THE NEXT 24 HOURS. TROPICAL STORM FORCE WINDS EXTEND OUTWARD UP TO 115 MILES...185 KM FROM THE CENTER. ESTIMATED MINIMUM CENTRAL PRESSURE IS 996 MB...29.41 INCHES. ABOVE NORMAL TIDES ARE LIKELY WITHIN THE WARNING AREAS.

Office hours this afternoon

I will have office hours in Starbuck's in the central campus bookstore, 1-4 PM today. Drop by for any reason.

SSG bonus points

For those of you who attended special study groups, I have not added in your 2 bonus points yet. They will be in a separate line of your My Grades page. It is a chore I will get to maybe this afternoon. No worries.

Section 0001 sketches UP

OK, you guys in section 0001, at 9:30 AM, I just pushed the PDF of our sketching from Monday into the blue mailbox area, "Deluxe lecture files." I hope you find it useful.

Exam 3 scores are now up.

I got your guys' exam 3 scores this afternoon, as I hoped. I just set them up in Webcourses, and you can view your scores on your My Grades page.

Average scores were:

• Section 0001, 33/45
• Section 0002, 31/45

Sketching lecture UP

Last uvision, visual podcasting announcement of Fall 2007

The podcast of today's lecture is now up on the Uvision podcasting site. The visual track uses the diagrams from the 10:30 AM lecture. The full scale scan files of section 0002 are now in the blue mailbox, "Deluxe lecture files," for each section.

Early section: If you want the files from section 0001, we will be getting them scanned in tomorrow, and I will slip them into "Deluxe lecture files."

Day off from lecture

I think that nearly everyone worked their you-know-what off to get ready for midterm 3, so I am giving everybody the day off from lecture.

In the meantime here are a few things you can work on:

1. Scout ahead in the textbook:
   
   17. Light
   20. Electricity
   
   I specifically like the "Physics On Your Own" blurb on p. 341, with two pencils and a small mirror. You can try this out. And if you have another small mirror or two, you can make your own retro-reflector like the Apollo astronauts placed on the moon, which is diagrammed on p. 344.


2. View the two new movies on the Uvision site, both about the electromagnetic interaction, our last big topic of the semester.

See you again on Monday!

Be ready with calculator!

Last brain-burner, midterm, think announcement of Fall 2007

Today's midterm exam has some true-false questions and several basic calculations, in addition to the usual one or two brain burners.

So we want to start ultra-fast, minimum possible delay.

Have your calculator ready to go as soon as you sit down. The calculations themselves are not tricky, but we want to do them as rapidly and accurately as possible so that you have time to THINK!

Also: I am only going to make two time announcements: 15 minutes to go and 5 minutes to go. This will cut down on distraction.

Pitiful question submissions

I am surprised that so few people in section 0001 have proposed questions for inclusion in midterm 3. Most semesters we have a ton of questions. I am disappointed.

S.I. this week

Gaby asked me to provide the following announcement:

1. There is SI tomorrow afternoon after the test.
2. SI is cancelled this Thursday (Oct. 25th).