Calculations Definition and 1000 Threads

A calculation is a deliberate process that transforms one or more inputs into one or more results. The term is used in a variety of senses, from the very definite arithmetical calculation of using an algorithm, to the vague heuristics of calculating a strategy in a competition, or calculating the chance of a successful relationship between two people.
For example, multiplying 7 by 6 is a simple algorithmic calculation. Estimating the fair price for financial instruments using the Black–Scholes model is a more complex algorithmic calculation.
Statistical estimations of the likely election results from opinion polls also involve algorithmic calculations, but produces ranges of possibilities rather than exact answers.
To calculate means to determine mathematically in the case of a number or amount, or in the case of an abstract problem to deduce the answer using logic, reason or common sense. The English word derives from the Latin calculus, which originally meant a small stone in the gall-bladder (from Latin calx). It also meant a pebble used for calculating, or a small stone used as a counter in an abacus (Latin abacus, Greek abax). The abacus was an instrument used by Greeks and Romans for arithmetic calculations, preceding the slide-rule and the electronic calculator, and consisted of perforated pebbles sliding on iron bars.

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  1. H

    Electric Field and Flux: Calculations and Explanations

    1. A nonconducting sphere with center C and radius a has a spherically symmetric electric charge density. The total charge of the object is Q > 0. a. Determine the magnitude and direction of the electric field at point P, which is a distance R > a to the right of the sphere's...
  2. P

    Solving Truss Calculations: How to Find the Forces

    I mainly am having trouble accurately calculating the force on members in a truss. The reason being is sort of common, my teacher skimmed through the lecture on these calculations, and left the entire class in a fog. I've made my best attempts at researching on the Internet, but so far no real...
  3. Ookke

    Practical meaning of simultaneity calculations?

    Is there any practical reason for calculating simultaneity of distant events? Two events either are causally connected or not, and there is nothing relative about this. If a cause-effect link doesn't exist, does it matter if the events are calculated to be simultaneous from a certain point of...
  4. A

    Orifice Calculations: Convert Pressure Difference to Mass Flow Rate

    Hi there, I have used an orifice for my project to measure the pressure difference and hence the mass flow rate of air going through a pipe of 26 mm diameter. i kept changing the flow from max to min and ended up with values of pressure diference. The questions here is how to convert thses...
  5. A

    Solving Lever Calculations to Help Son

    My problem (trying to help an ay last keen son)-a lever 5m long, a weight of 300kg, a force of 100kg. The question says describe? I am trying to work out the distance from the end of lever to fulcrum or in other words where the fulcrum should lie. tried formula which has gone to...
  6. S

    Acid-base equilibrium calculations in business

    Do many chemists or technicians in the chemical businesses find much use for equilibrium calculations of weak acids or weak bases? In practice, laboratory people can make practical measurements, practical preparations, titrate to a certain pH endpoint, even use a pH indicator material, and can...
  7. J

    Need serious help with these enthelpy of neutralisation calculations

    ok i keep reading that ideally they (neutralisation enthalpies) are meant to be around 58KJ here is my problem: im reacting 50cm3 of NaOH with 25cm3 of HCl the HCl is 1 mole NaOH is also 1 mole. my moles calculation is: (1x25)/1000 which gives me 0.025 the i do : ((mass x...
  8. E

    Convection heat transfer, Fluent vs Calculations

    Hi all I've been calculating heat convection off a horizontal heated plate to still cool air around it. Since the plate has a size of 50m2 the GrPr number is turbulent i there's no equation in my book to calculate heat transfer by convection for GrPr > 10^11, so i used the equation of GrPr at...
  9. A

    Applying the rules of significant figures to calculations

    I have a question about applying the rules of significant figures to calculations. Should one apply the rules to everyday calculations? I don't know if it will benefit me in the long run to count the number of sig/decimal places in numbers in the simplest calculations. If I major in...
  10. S

    Sound Pressure Calculations for a Baby and Parents

    Homework Statement A baby's mouth is a distance of 35.0 cm from her father's ear and a distance of 1.52 m from her mother's ear. Child Sounds <------------0.35m-------->Father X <----------------------------1.52m-----------------> Mother Homework Equations I(Father) =...
  11. N

    How Do Volumes of Reactant Gases Compare to Product Gas in Ammonia Synthesis?

    Suppose that you want to prepare 2.00*10^3 L of ammonia gas, NH3 , from the reaction of hydrogen gas with nitrogen gas. What volume of hydrogen and nitrogen do you need? Assume that the temperature and pressure remain constant during the reaction. 3H2(g) + N2(g) -> 2 NH3(g) V H2 =...
  12. F

    Inconsistent calculations with Hooke's Law/Elastic Potential Energy

    Homework Statement My question is in regards to a relatively simple problem: A massless, ideal spring with a spring constant k hangs from the ceiling; it is originally neither compressed nor stretched. We attach a block of mass m to the spring. In terms of the mass of the block, the...
  13. L

    When doing calculations, should pressure be in atm or Pa?

    When doing calculations, should pressure be in atm or Pa? (looking for answers in joules)
  14. U

    Can someone tell me what error calculations to do

    I have 5 values of data for flux, each were calculated using a 2% error in current. Should I put the uncertainty for the individual values or just give the standard deviation of all 5? Current 1 2 3 4 5 Flux...
  15. G

    Calculating Head Pan Angle with Accelerometer Measurements

    Hi, please don't hesitate to reply to either of my paragraphs. Or ask for clarification. The first paragraph descibes the basic problem, and the second one is more indepth. I'd be happy if I could get just the first one working. I'm working on a project were a two-axis accelerometer will...
  16. B

    Optimizing Error Calculations for Coursework

    for my coursework I'm meant to do error calculations. say i measured a distance between two things five times and got these results: 0.104 0.104 0.104 0.108 0.108 now I've got to use this distance for my calculations. would you recommend i use an average (mean)? i suppose that's a...
  17. J

    What is the value of .8^(2/5) when using logs?

    I wish to find the value of .8^(2/5) using logs. I can find the value of .8^(-2/5) as follows: =(log(8)X1/10)X-2/5 =(-1 + .9031)X-2/5 = (-.0969)X-2/5 = +.03876; antilog(.03876) = 1.093; Now to find .8^(2/5) my approach is the same: log(.8)X2/5 = (log(8)X10^-1)X2/5 = (bar1 + .9031)X2/5 ...
  18. B

    Energy Calculations please check work (thanks)

    Please someone check to see if on the right track: A woman lifts a barbell 2.0m in 5.0s, beginning and ending at rest. If she lifts the same distance in 10s, the work done by her is: I said it would be four times as much because I used 1/2mv^2. I placed the v I calculated from v=d/t into...
  19. B

    Energy work calculations (please check over)

    A 2-kg block is attached to a horizontal ideal spring with a spring constant of 200N/m. When the spring has its equilibrium length the block is given a speed of 5 m/s. What is the maximum elongation of the spring? 1/2mv= 1/2KX^2 max PE equals starting KE. then follows x= v/sqrt k x=.25...
  20. S

    VLE Calculations: Help and Explanation

    Sorry bout putting the question in the form of like a homework problem, just didnt know how to go bout asking what i wanted. Basically can anyone explain how to do VLE calculations.. So confused with the topic. Whats bubblepoint and dew mean.. Cheers. Hopefully this post is ok for...
  21. F

    Spting Balance in Space(no calculations)

    Spring Balance in Space(no calculations) Using a spring balance in space to measure the weight of anything is useless. Is there any way to use a spring balance to compare the weight of two people in space?
  22. L

    Propagation of uncertainty calculations

    I hope this is the right place for this... Well, I have a lab where we measured the charge/mass ratio of an electron using a helmholtz coil and vacuum tube. I need to calculate the propagation of uncertainty in my final value. The formula for calculating the e/m ratio is the following...
  23. C

    How many digits to use in calculations.

    Nevermind, but thanks Chi Meson. I was not calculating correctly... Sorry :)
  24. S

    Work-Energy Theorem calculations

    Please check to see if my calculations are correct. I am unsure if I used the right values and setup. You throw a rock of weight 21.0 N vertically into the air from ground level. You observe that when it is a height 14.8 m above the ground, it is traveling at a speed of 25.7 m/s upward...
  25. L

    How Do You Calculate the Solubility of AgBrO3 from Given Data?

    I have this salt AgBrO_{3} which has got the solubility of \frac{0,196g}{100mL}. From the following information I should be able to calculate Solubility for AgBrO_{3}. I really cannot see how? So please help me. It is really an Urgent matter so a quick replay would be most appreciated!
  26. T

    Stress Calculations for Girder with W(b) and A Values

    What is the resulting stress at the upper and lower edge of a section profile with W(b) = 144 cm3 and A = 34 cm² at the fixed end of the girder. I'm not sure about how it looks like.Can smby pls explain to me (if possible,togther with a picture) thanx
  27. R

    How many layers of atoms were deposited on the pennies during the experiment?

    i don't know where to post this, but we did a little experiment on pennies, and I'm having trouble with analyzing the calculations... basically the pennies turned into silver, the other gold.. after we heat it, etc inc. in mass of the pennies .0006 g density of the solid added to the...
  28. E

    Mathematical series calculations

    let be the series... 93712402... Does anyone know what the general term is or how could it be calculated?..thanks. -In fact if you are "Family's matter" fan you will know that this series appears in a chapter when Urkel is "jailed"... the picture...
  29. S

    Solving Electric Fields with Gauss's Law: Doubts and Calculations

    Hello, everyone. I have a problem that I solved using Gauss's Law. However, I am unconfident in my answers, as I have very little experience with Gauss's Law. The surfaces of two large (i.e. infinite) parallel conducting plates have charge densities as follows: \sigma_1 on the top of the top...
  30. P

    Rules for all calculations regarding integration

    Hey I’ve now come across integration in my maths course for my first time. I was wondering if somebody out there might be able to help me with a couple issues regrading this topic. Firstly I would appreciate if I could be told all the necessary rules for all calculations regarding integration...
  31. Hootenanny

    An Introduction to pH and Buffer Solutions Calculations

    An Introduction to pH and Buffer Solutions Calculations [work in progress] This is a work in progress 1. pH and Strong Acids pH is defined as the negative logarithm of the hydrogen ion concentration in a solution; pH = - log10[H+(aq)]. (From this point forward 'log' will represent log to the...
  32. N

    Upthrust calculations for hovercraft

    Hi, usually don't ask for help but this is bugging me now! I am working on a r/c model hovercraft, i have been trying to work out the upthrust but can not get a formula to do so. I know the air cushion pressure is a factor, i am using a ducted fan for upthrust with attatched 9 v motor. Any...
  33. A

    How Do You Calculate the Concentration of an HCl Solution Using Titration?

    A student obtains 25.00 mL of an HCl solution of unknown concentration. Upon titration, 21.35 mL of 0.1200 M NaOH are required for neutralization. Determine the concentration of the HCl solution. the capital M is molar mass right? but i thught that was constant so how can it be 0.1200 M NaOH...
  34. T

    Calculations on a set of drumbrakes

    I'm doing some calculations on a set of drumbrakes. In a book I have from my school days it says that the normal force on each shoe are not equal (this is the force appearing on the outer left and right sides of the drum when viewing the drum from the side). This apparently leads to different...
  35. A

    How to Calculate Mass of C6H5NO2 from Given Reactants?

    the folowing reaction proceeds with a 70% yeild C6H6 + HNO3 = C6H5NO2 + H2O calculate the mass of C6H5NO2 expected if 12.8g of C6H5 reacts with excess HNO3 How do you do this problem?
  36. M

    KP Theory Bandstructure Calculations

    Hello, I was wondering if anybody has any experience doing these calculations? I understand the basic concepts ( eg. k is considered far away from the BZ edge and thus is small and that the Bloch function is the linear combination of the individual Bloch functions at k=0 ). Also, the inner...
  37. A

    How Do You Calculate Molar Concentrations and Mass of Solute?

    Hi, I need help with this question what is the molar concentration of 0.50 mol of NaCl dissolved in 0.30L of solution? =moles of solute/leters of solution =0.50mol/0.30L =1.7 mol/L Is this correct? and what mass of solute is present in 1.00L of 0.045 mol/L of Ca(oH)2, solution...
  38. H

    Calculations in place of experiments

    Today many scientists' or physicists' research is mainly based upon mathematical calculations, and not on the real experiments. Mathematics partially reffer to reality but the other half is far from the reality of our world. Hence many theories and studies in science today are away from trivial...
  39. P

    Qsp Calculation for NaCl+AgNO3: Determine Precipitate

    Calculate the ion product to determine if a precipitate will form when 125 mL .00500 M sodium chloride is mixed with 125 mL .00100 M silver nitrate solution. NaCl + AgNO3 -> NaNO3 + AgCl Net ionic equation = 2AgCl -> 2Ag + Cl2 [Ag+] before = .00100 after = .00050 [Cl-] before =...
  40. G

    Molecular orbital calculations

    Hi, I need to calculate and visualize molecular orbitals (HOMOs) of few simple organic molecules (may be using DFT method). The molecules are positivly charged. Can anybody please help me with this calculations?
  41. I

    How do I calculate the volume of water in a partially filled cone?

    Imagine that I have a pipe that is on a constant slope at any percent. On the low end of the pipe, there is a container filled with water. The water has naturally found a leveling point up into the pipe. Provided the level of water in the container is above the top of the pipe, a portion of...
  42. A

    Calculations of Solubility Product of Lead 2 Chloride

    HELP! In this experiment I measured the initial mass of a piece of Al and then i put it into a beaker containing 100.0 mL of saturated PbCl2 The concentration I calculated for Pb is 6.12 *10^-^5 mol/L The concentration I calculated for Cl is 1.224* 10^-^4 mol/L Therefore my Ksp= [Pb]...
  43. C

    Bayes Networks - calculations in terms of joint distribution

    Hi I am trying to calculate a particular problem from a given bayesian network. The network consists of nodes G1,G2,G3,G4,Pr1 G1 leads to G2, G2 leads to G4 and G3 also leads to G4 but it has no parents, and G4 leads to Pr1. The probability tables for the nodes are: P(G1) = 0.02...
  44. B

    Why cosine theta for calculations?

    When figuring the force between 2 points, no angle the result is calculated just by distance (and charge). But when there are 3 points, either 2 charges or more and a point or 3 charges, why is there an angle calculation?
  45. K

    How Do You Isolate dS in the Equation dS(27.0m/s) = (dS + 30.0m)(9.0m/s)?

    solve for dS(distance for Seth) dS(27.0m/s) = (dS + 30.0m)(9.0m/s) dS = 15m how do you get dS on 1 side?
  46. C

    Inlet plenum and gas law calculations?

    Inlet plenum and gas law calculations? Not sure if this is the best pace to post this question but here goes... I want to get a custom inlet plenum made for my car, there are many already out there but they cost a fortune, but several people have made there own and the construction is fairly...
  47. N

    How Do You Calculate Coating Weight for a Cylinder in the Automotive Industry?

    Hello, This is not homework etc. I am in the work place (automotive industry) and have a question. It has been some time since I have taken any math courses. I am trying to calculate the theoretical weight of a known coating on the surface of a hollow cylinder and set this up in an excell...
  48. P

    Bridge Force Calculations for Hiker's Weight

    A hiker, who weighs 696 N, is strolling through the woods and crosses a small horizontal bridge. The bridge is uniform, weighs 4440 N, and rests on two concrete supports, one on each end. He stops 1/4 of the way along the bridge. What is the magnitude of the force that a concrete support exerts...
  49. C

    Balancing Chemical Equations: How to Calculate Unknown Products

    I need help, please!:eek: :bugeye: I am totally and completely lost with this problem. Unfortunately, my book does not give any examples for me to go by. Here is the problem... In the following reaction, 24 g of CH4 (methane) react completely with 96 g of O2 to form 66 g of CO2. How many...
  50. K

    Perform mathematical calculations like addition

    My question seems to be so idiotic.please forgive me for that.On what basis we perform mathematical calculations like addition and subtraction?As for as decimal system is concerned we have only 10 uncontinuos digits.but we are doing so much magic(I don't know whether I am using the correct...
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