3/18/2020 0 Comments Physics of Snow :: physics snowThe most basic form of an ice crystal is a hexagonal prism. This form occurs because certain surfaces of the crystal, the growth facets, grow very slowly. The reason these facets exist derives from the molecular structure of water, and how water molecules arrange themselves into a crystalline lattice. The hexagonal prism includes two hexagonal "basal" faces and six rectangular "prism" faces. Note that the hexagonal prism can be "plate-like" or "column-like", if the length along the c-axis is short or long compared to the length along the a-axes. What kinds of snow crystals fall from the sky? Before answering this, it is useful to define what a snow crystal is. Types of frozen precipitation include: Snow crystals -- Individual, single ice crystals, often with six-fold symmetrical shapes. These grow directly from condensing water vapor in the air, usually around a nucleus of dust or some other foreign material. Typical sizes range from microscopic to at most a few millimeters in diameter. Snowflakes -- Collections of snow crystals, loosely bound together into a puff-ball. These can grow to large sizes, up to about 10 cm across in some cases, when the snow is especially wet and sticky. Rime -- Supercooled tiny water droplets (typically in a fog), that quickly freeze onto whatever they hit. For example, one often sees small droplets of rime on large snow crystals. Graupel -- Loose collections of frozen water droplets, sometimes called "soft hail." Hail -- Large, solid chunks of ice. A simple observation on a snowy day, with a low-power microscope or hand magnifying lens, quickly reveals a great variety of snow crystal shapes. Some different types include basic plate-like forms. 1) Simple sectored plate; 2) Dendritic sectored plate; 3) Fern-like stellar dendrite and basic column-like forms: 1) Hollow column, or sheath-like crystal; 2) Needle crystal More crystal types can be listed, as are described under Classification schemes. These other forms are mostly variations and combinations of the above basic types, such as plates with dendritic extensions, capped columns, etc. Under what conditions do the different types of snow crystals form? By growing snow crystals in the laboratory under controlled conditions, one finds that snow crystals grow in different forms depending mainly on the temperature and supersaturation level during growth. This is shown in a "morphology diagram," which gives the crystal shape under different conditions. At very low supersaturation levels, say less than a few percent relative to ice, crystals grow mostly as simple hexagonal prisms. The aspect ratio (ratio of sizes along the a-axis and c-axis) varies somewhat with temperature at low supersaturation, changing from plates (-2 C) to columns (-5 C) to plates (-15 C) and back to columns again (-30 C).
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Communication embodies the ability for one to convey a message through the use of verbals (words) and non-verbals (behaviours) in a process to compare, transmit and interpret messages. Garside and Kleiner (2007) portrays communication as sharing thoughts and feelings with other people. For this process to be effective the message should be transmitted with "maximum accuracy and minimum effort" (Garside and Kleiner 2007) with "mindfulness" (Burgoon, Bieger and Waldron 2002) from both parties. Mindfulness requires the sender and receiver to be alert to "the content, situation and sequence of verbal messages, as well as the paralinguistic cues, gestures, facial expression, body movements and cues produced by the physical environment that occupy verbal messages" (Burgoon, Burger and Waldron 2000). Not everyone is competent in transmitting information, this results in ineffective communication. Ineffective communication can be interpreted as neglecting mindfulness during an interaction, hindering the process of obtaining valuable information and ineffectively transmitting our thoughts and beliefs across. Interpersonal communication is "a distinctive, transactional form of human communication involving mutual influence, usually for the purpose of managing relationships" (Beebe, Beebe and Redmond 2008). By studying interpersonal communicating skills, one can hope to gain an appreciation for the benefits of using effective communication skills on a daily basis. This reflective essay will analyse and deconstruct the effective and ineffective communication skills which were used in an interaction involving myself. In an effort to develop new skills, identify, deepen and improve on existing knowledge, an examination and reflection of ineffe... ...y interaction which hinders our ability to develop new relationships and build from existing ones. I believe the reflection of ineffective communication is essential in the process of developing a more effective style of communication which can be used to convey and interpret interpersonal messages. Through the studying and correct use of verbal and nonverbal messages, future interactions can be dealt with accordingly by applying the interpersonal skills learnt and practiced. Conversely, many situations we encounter on a daily basis might not be the same as one another because everybody is different, thus, it is beneficial to learn many skills to apply to different encounters. Ultimately, the goal of effective interpersonal communication is to acknowledge "Everyone wants to feel that they are important and that their message is valued" (Garside and Kleiner 1991).
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