Some time back, I reviewed a cool book about Fermi problems by Aaron Santos, then a post-doc at Michigan. In the interim, he's taken a faculty job at Oberlin, written a second book on sports-related Fermi problems, and started a blog, none of which I had noticed until he emailed me. Shame on me.
Anyway, his new book is just out, and he's running an estimation contest with a signed copy as the prize. So, if you're the sort of person who enjoys Fermi problems, read his post then grab a convenient envelope and start estimating on the back. You have until June 1.
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I had promised a little more info on Scientific Linux. This is a form of Linux with a name that changes faster than my shirt when I realize I've got it on inside out. Form the Fermi LInux site:
Given the recent Feynman explosion (timeline of events), some people may be casting about looking for an alternative source of colorful-character anecdotes in physics.
"I happen to have discovered a direct relation between magnetism and light, also electricity and light, and the field it opens is so large and I think rich." -Michael Faraday
Fermi gamma ray telescope has released the all sky image.
Some interesting stuff...
Clicking around your hyperlinks above, I came across a comment from a reader who recalled the "Back of the Envelope" problems that were published in the 1980's in the American Journal of Physics, and edited by Edward Purcell. The commenter hoped that they would one day be reprinted. Sure enough, The Magic that is Google whisks one to the following site: http://ajp.dickinson.edu/Readers/backEnv.html , where the Journal's editors have provided links to the problems.
Pat Dennis