Questions tagged [physical-constants]

This tag is for questions relating to physical constants which are any of a set of fundamental invariant quantities observed in nature and appearing in the basic theoretical equations of physics. Accurate evaluation of these constants is essential in order to check the correctness of the theories and to allow useful applications to be made on the basis of those theories.

A physical constant, sometimes fundamental physical constant or universal constant, is a physical quantity that is generally believed to be both universal in nature and have constant value in time. It is contrasted with a mathematical constant, which has a fixed numerical value, but does not directly involve any physical measurement.
There are many physical constants in science. Some famous ones are the speed of light, Planck's constant, the gravitational constant, and Avogadro's number. Constants that do not have units (like length or speed) are called fundamental physical constants.

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Why is the Planck length considered fundamental, but not the Planck mass?

The planck length is considered by many to be a lower bound of the scale where new physics should appear to account for quantum gravity. The reasoning behind, as far as I understand, is that $l_{P}=\sqrt{\dfrac{\hbar G}{c^3}}$ consists of the…
korni1990
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Cases of any known fundamental physical constants changing within our locality?

Has there been any cases where the only explanation has been that at least one of the physical constants must have changed to explain an experiment/event/obervation? I am not intrested in large scale obsorvations such Gaolaxies holding together with…
jimjim
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What makes a constant of nature fundamental?

I came across a video on youtube in which Alexander Unzicker argues that in order to have a scientific revolution, one of the constants of nature should be eliminated(at 23:00). He gives the example of Electromagnetism where by the…
Etg
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Why are physical "constants" constant?

I am really sorry if this question is inappropriate or wrong. But this is something that I can never perfectly agree with, it just keeps on striking my mind when I am studying something new in Physics. So, my question is: Whenever developing any…
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Were the physical constants chosen randomly by Nature?

Were the physical constants chosen randomly by Nature or it was determined by some source of… matter(?). I really don't have idea. If you could help me it'd be awesome.
Garmen1778
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What if physical constants were increased or decreased?

(Probably related to this one, and probably should be CW.) A very long time ago, I had the good fortune to read George Gamow's excellent series of Mr. Tompkins books. That introduced me to the idea of a world where the usual physical constants (e.g.…
user172
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Are laws of nature changing?

I am reviewing articles that address whether fundamental laws of nature (physics) are changing. The following letter sums up my research literature and conclusions. "Book Review: The Constants of Nature and Just Six Numbers, Reviewed by Brian E.…
GianniTee
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Where is the fine-structure constant in this list?

so John Baez has this nice list of what he enumerates as the 26 Fundamental Universal Physical Constants and they're dimensionless, as they should be to be meaningfully fundamental. one if his grad students worked out the numerical values of those…
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Do time/location-dependent fundamental constant exists?

Throughout history people have been carrying out experiment after experiment to test many of the known constant, so I like to know if there are any oddities among the known fundamental constants. If not how come they don't exist?
user6760
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Can we alter/engineer natural "constants"?

There are numerous constants that define the physical universe, from the fine structure constant to Planck to the speed of light etc. Can any of these be altered locally? For example, it seems that we might be able to alter the speed of light in…
user56903
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What are the physycal meaning of universal constants such as the magnetic, electric and gravitational constants?

I know that: $G=6.67300 × 10^{-11}\dfrac{Nm^2}{kg^2}$(Gravitational constant) $K_e=9×10^9\dfrac{Nm^2}{C^2}$(Electric constant or Coloumb's constant) $k_m=1×10^{-7}\dfrac{Ns^2}{C^2}$(Magnetic constant) But what are the meaning of this values? Would…
Garmen1778
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Have the values of constants ever changed before?

Example sub-questions: Was the speed of light always that value? Was the acceleration due to gravity always been 9.8m/s/s? Etc By "change" I mean both actual change in the physical world because of multiple factors and "change" in the numerical…
radj
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How do fundamental constants determine the size of material bodies?

The size of an object depends on the size of the molecules and atoms it is made of and these ultimately depend on the value of the fundamental physical constants. The simplest example could be the size of the hydrogen atom which is Bohr's radius…
Mark
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How should constants of nature be changed to experience extreme phenomena in everyday situations (like Mr. Tompkins did)?

In George Gamow's Mr. Tompkins books, Mr. Tompkins ends up, first in a world where the speed of light is so small that time dilation and Lorentz contraction are dominantly present when he rides a bicycle, later in one where Planck's constant is so…
doetoe
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How are the constants in hydraulics calculated?

I would like to know (out of sheer morbid curiosity) how constants in hydraulics are calculated. The constants are, for good ol' 'Merican units; 63025, 5252,and 231. These constants came out of "Introduction to Fluid Power." The constant 231 is…
Kenny
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