The question you're asking is designed to solicit opinions or best-practices on a particular topic, with the goal of reaching community consensus.
8
votes
1answer
88 views
Answering old questions
Should I answer old questions (over a year), even if they have been already answered? I think that this practice is correct, but since in many forums it is discouraged I'm not sure.
-3
votes
2answers
84 views
Can this question about anomalous dimensions and operator mixing be reopend?
I edited this question to remomve the reference request issue and think it should be reopend now.
1
vote
2answers
92 views
What is the purpose of the popular-science tag?
I have just noted that we have a popular-science tag. What is its purpose? Does it mean that the answers are expected to be pop science level, that just the question is pop science but the answers can ...
2
votes
2answers
45 views
Is it me or is the favicon shimmering?
You know, the logo on the tabs. It starts to shimmer and look a bit more green for tabs on the main page when left too long. Is this an intentional design change? Or am I just sleep-deprived?
8
votes
2answers
166 views
How to get the only answer marked as correct
I have answered a question here. It is the only answer to a reasonably up-voted question (+7), but it has not been selected as the correct one. Short of tracking down the original poster, is there any ...
13
votes
4answers
252 views
Should I avoid posting comments to simply say “Thanks” or “It has been helpful (+1)”?
I very often feel the need of posting a comment to simply say thanks for some idea in a comment, like a nice reference or a pedagogic suggestion, or simply to remark that the answer I accepted was the ...
0
votes
1answer
48 views
Asking in several sites
Is it correct to a ask a question in PSE and in other sites like Physics Forums?
I suppose that there shouldn't be any problem, but I can be thought as favouring the competence, althought Physics ...
1
vote
1answer
33 views
What is defination of ACTIVE?
Here is the BETA badge which says:
Actively participated in the private beta.
What is the active here?
1
vote
1answer
44 views
Auto-delete spam
Nowadays, there is a big wave of questions from black-magic spammers. What if there could be an option like auto-delete user or prevent-spammer as he tries to post phrases like "black-magic, +91 ...
8
votes
1answer
85 views
What reputation is needed to flag as spam?
We seem to be getting a rush of spam this morning. I see the spams quickly earn lots of downvotes but remain present. Since only 6 spam flags are required to delete the post I'm a bit surprised they ...
8
votes
1answer
116 views
Question with two, three right answers?
I have a little dilemma. There is simple question that came up in my actual research that I'd like to ask, but I think it's forbidden by stackexchange rules, because it has more than one correct ...
10
votes
1answer
144 views
is there no way to block spam coming from variable new users with the same nonsense?
The past days spam appears under variable user names. Is there no way to block it? IP addresses? phone numbers in content?
I just got a response when i tried to post only the first sentence that :
...
1
vote
1answer
51 views
What can I do if I note closevotes on a perfectly good question but have no access to the reopen / close queues?
What can I do, if I note that perfectly good questions are closevoted but still open, and I dont have access to the reopen / close queues? Having access to these higher rep review queues, I could ...
4
votes
1answer
193 views
Should something be done about the misspelling of (e.g., Nobel laureates') names?
I enjoy having this name. It makes me feel proud if someone handles it right.1
The name 't Hooft is quite often misspelled on the main site.
At least 12 questions/answers with tHooft
At least ...
0
votes
2answers
160 views
Why did this post get downvoted? Dodgy Physics?
I wrote an answer to a question about temperature and dimensional analysis. I am skeptical about the motivations. I cannot see at the moment if it was not just a random downvote by someone having fun. ...
8
votes
1answer
224 views
What kind of `[education]` questions should we allow?
I've seen questions about how to study physics or how physics should be taught being dealt with in a variety of ways. Some get downvoted, some get closed by moderators while others are even answered ...
-5
votes
3answers
230 views
Change of policy: Make reasons for suspensions public
There have been a couple of controversial suspensions or bans now on this site. Current rules prevent the moderators from giving details of suspensions. This is bad, because it raises suspicions and ...
-1
votes
0answers
28 views
What's a Good RSS program for a Macbook Pro [closed]
I have used RSS feeds on other websites before and in the past I'd just use Mail on my Macbook to hook up to these RSS feeds. Whenever new updates would come through I'd get the update as an email.
...
1
vote
2answers
37 views
How do I format a physical quantity (unit of measurement + numerical value)?
I tried $I = 1 v / R$ but v looks like a factor rather than unit of measurement. Does tex work in meta?
4
votes
2answers
620 views
Moderators, could you please explain why Dilation has just got banned?
Yes, he has been critical of over-moderation on the physics SE but as far as I could see he was always polite and respectful about it. I cannot see why this alone should have got him banned? What have ...
19
votes
2answers
314 views
How can I downvote or counteract in any (democratic) sense the creation of the Astronomy and Astrophysics site?
Tell me this isn't happening... The Astronomy and Astrophysics site is in the commitment phase at 65%. That site is going to bring fragmentation and general loss of quality to the Physics site. Just ...
5
votes
2answers
119 views
Link preferences: http vs. https
The other day this topic came up in chat, so I thought it would be good to have it settled officially.
Which, if any, internet protocol should be encouraged for users inserting links into their ...
2
votes
1answer
105 views
Who is the target audience for these answers?
I was looking through questions on the home page, and I noticed this:
Does entanglement not immediately contradict the theory of special relativity?
Now, it's obvious from the way the poster posed ...
3
votes
2answers
383 views
Yes another closed question, question
What makes this closed question less worthy than this very similar question that did not get closed?
Both questions are broad and open ended yet one gets a load of upvotes and the other gets shut ...
17
votes
4answers
145 views
Do we want the citation tool from Math.SE?
Related: How can I cite a question in SE?
Math.SE has a citation tool. Basically, if you click "share" on a post, there's a little "cite" link:
Clicking that, you get:
This lets one properly ...
3
votes
2answers
124 views
What makes this question too localised?
This question probably has one of the best answers I have received on physics.stackexchange and I think the question itself was clear enough too.
The moderator who closed it for being "too ...
1
vote
1answer
74 views
Gauging prefered expertise level for answering questions
I'm new to Physics.SE and StackExchange in general. I've been using the site for several days now and even answered a few questions. By almost any measure though I'm amateur interested in physics ...
-5
votes
1answer
259 views
Why ask research level questions?
When you ask a research level question, don't you expect a research level answer. Why would I ask a question that I could answer from a standard text?
3
votes
4answers
390 views
Question 6157: 'List of freely available physics books' — A broken window that we should fix
Question 6157 is a broken window:
List of freely available physics books
Were it asked today, it should get closed as Not a Real Question.
It's being used to justify the asking of other bad ...
1
vote
2answers
212 views
Question marked as inappropriate and closed
The following question has been closed and has been marked as inappropriate for this forum.
Free online study materials and codes for Monte Carlo simulation in statistical mechanics
But this ...
0
votes
1answer
25 views
When can tags be merged or made synonym?
I have recently asked a question about the surface energy of solids when only the surface-tension tag was still available. Now there is also a surface-energy tag which is, in my opinion a more broad ...
1
vote
2answers
51 views
Some Symbols to Ask Questions
How can i make a sum symbol to ask a math related physics question?
I mean Riemann Sum.
What is the short cut of Riemann sum or how can i ask a question that has mat symbols, formulas?
10
votes
2answers
260 views
Why do so many posts use the term 'in doubt' or 'have a doubt' regarding established physics?
An oddly large number of articles are titles with, or include in their opening line, a phrase like 'I have a doubt regarding gravity'; see the articles at the bottom, for examples.
In most cases, it ...
2
votes
1answer
78 views
How can I dispute a declined flag?
How can I constructively dispute a declined flag, if I think that my flag was really legitimate and should not have been declined? I am interested to know what can be done generally in this case, but ...
2
votes
1answer
86 views
Should /q/59448 be reopened?
The question
Has there been a proposed explaination to the observation of wave-particle duality?
has been closed as not a real question.
While the posting isn't particularly well formulated, the ...
6
votes
1answer
95 views
Should we disallow vast (self-)editing of a question, completely changing it's meaning?
Here is one thing that really annoyed me about science-related forums: The constant change of the topic by a person, who obviously just afraid that he'll look ignorant, incompetent or lazy if he'd ...
16
votes
2answers
310 views
What “practical” physics problems do you “actually” face?
The FAQ states:
You should only ask practical, answerable questions based on actual problems that you face.
This bit is highlighted.
This sentence has an obvious meaning, which is wrong. ...
8
votes
5answers
221 views
When should authors voluntarily delete a post once it gets negative votes?
I have an answer voted -5 to this question, and I'm not sure if I should delete it. On the one hand, it's completely wrong and ludicrous. Yet on the other, there's useful comments and links that ...
1
vote
1answer
37 views
Should I cross-post this question in chemistry.SE?
Recently I asked this question and given the number of upvotes and comments I think that there are quite some people interested. However, it seems from the comments and the lack of answers that the ...
-4
votes
4answers
300 views
Should this question have been closed?
On March 19 2013 I asked a legitimate question (Does quantum mechanics violates the energy conservation law?) about the scientific theoretical validity of Quantum Mechanics. This question was backed ...
2
votes
1answer
66 views
Are 'what would happen if' type questions appropriate for this site?
Mainly I'm thinking of the type of questions that pop up there every week: http://what-if.xkcd.com/
If not, which other SE site do you think it's appropriate for them?
13
votes
1answer
372 views
How do I dispute a moderator's action?
A moderator closed/migrated/deleted a post, and I disagree with this. How should I proceed in getting this reversed?
6
votes
3answers
235 views
How do I make a question about something I don't understand in a book I am reading?
I am reading about exciton transfer between molecules in this book:
Volkhard May, Oliver Kühn - Charge and Energy Transfer Dynamics in Molecular Systems, 2nd Edition
I am confused about section ...
-3
votes
2answers
294 views
moderator's personal opinions are irrelevant, or should be
Once again, arbitrary "moderation" has risen. A perfectly on-topic question was asked but was then moved inappropriately to another board. If I could formally register a complaint, I would, but I've ...
1
vote
2answers
59 views
Should email addresses be allowed in posts?
I recently saw this answer which (apart from being not very good and even slightly spammy) has an email address for further contact. I have seen this before in other posts and it's always made me ...
3
votes
2answers
233 views
If I ask a question in the math stackexchange, but I feel it is more likely to get an answer in physics, should I also ask it in physics?
The question I'm asking is mathematical in content, but I suspect a physicist is more likely to know the answer. I've already asked the question in the math stackexchange, but I'd like physicists to ...
9
votes
5answers
572 views
What can be done to improve Physics.SE as an active forum for physics researchers and student's?
As noted elsewhere, I have personally discontinued use of Physics.SE, since it seems to me that it no longer acts as a forum for research based physics Q&A. Over the past 12 months there has in my ...
0
votes
1answer
79 views
Is this question on-topic?
Link to question: Why do bullets in a magazine go up instead of down?
Is this question acceptable or not? The answers seem to suggest it is only based off of ergonomic choices, and I"m not sure if ...
6
votes
1answer
132 views
“Unanswered Questions” with several comments
Is there any way for moderators to either promote a comment which contains an answer to an "answer"? I ask because of questions like this:
light ray 'entropy'
I have only been on this site ...
2
votes
1answer
43 views
Why do some edits need more than one reviewer?
I recently reviewed a suggested edit to this question, and it told me that it needs additional reviews for this to go through. I have been reviewing suggested edits for some time and this is the first ...
