Lamada Symbol?

[Sufferin-rebel]

I dont understand, How come that symbol has popped up everywhere in hl2, i understand it is on Gordan's HEV suit. but how did it get so famous, that even the rebels has the symbol on the armbands?

 

[ríomhaire]

Because it is on Gordons HEV suit. Gordon is the resistance Mesiah and so they use his symbol. The Lambda research centre is also where alot of action in HL1 talks place.

 

[AtomicSpark]

Lamada is the symbol for the constant in the equation for figuring out the half-life of a radioactive substance. I do not know the equation off hand but I remember seeing this posted somewhere.

 

[Dario D.]

So that's where the name half-life comes from. :O

 

[MarcoPollo]

yeh half life is the rate at which a material decays.

 

[Dario D.]

I always thought it was just a cool title.

Even cooler this way.

 

[Hunt3r88]

yeh half life is the rate at which a material decays.

Yeah its the time it takes a substance/material (mainly used for radioactive materials) to break down to half. Say it takes 350 years for a substance to break down, then its half life would be 175 years.

 

[bboymatty]

just a quick reply to atomicspark85

in physics, lambda is the greek symbol used to denote the wavelength (in meters) of a particular electromagnetic wave (eg: FM radio, Microwaves, nuclear radiation, UV rays), not radioactive decay as you say, which instead follows an exponential function (P=Po^(KT)) and has no greek symbol as its representation.

Half life is used to describe how long a unstable isotope (eg uranium, plutonium) takes for half of its constituent particles to break down to half of the original amount. sometimes this can be a very long time, and this decay of radioactive materials is what releases harmful ionising radiation. (hunt3r88's example is misleading)

As for why the symbol exsists all over the place (especially all over the areas that you need to find to continue onwards) is because of its origins at the lambda complex, the larger more advanced portion of black mesa research laboratories in which gordon used the teleporter to defeat the nilhilanth and to a lesser extent where the HEV suit was made. Obviously this was where the first signs of resistence against the invasion were made and thus has gone down in the history of the rebellion as being a site of importance. The lambda symbol then became a singular emblem of the rebellion and its aims.

 

[Sieg]

Ahh......why does everyting take it's meaning from Greek symbols

 

[ríomhaire]

just a quick reply to atomicspark85

in physics, lambda is the greek symbol used to denote the wavelength (in meters) of a particular electromagnetic wave (eg: FM radio, Microwaves, nuclear radiation, UV rays), not radioactive decay as you say, which instead follows an exponential function (P=Po^(KT)) and has no greek symbol as its representation.

......

The upper-case letter Λ is used as a symbol for:

* The lambda particles in particle physics
* The set of logical axioms in the axiomatic method of logical deduction in first-order logic

The lower-case letter λ is used as a symbol for:

* The wavelength of a wave in physics
* The radioactive decay constant
* The Lambda phage virus in biology
* Eigenvalues in linear algebra
* The definition of anonymous functions in lambda calculus and, by extension, some programming languages
o The language Unlambda is a functional programming language based upon combinatory logic, a simplification of the lambda calculus that does not involve the lambda at all, hence the un- prefix.
* Gay pride (explanations for this usage vary)
* The Half-Life computer game
* Air to fuel ratio in an internal combustion engine
* A Japanese rocket type, Lambda (rocket)

 

[DE3000]

Ahh......why does everyting take it's meaning from Greek symbols

Cos they are the history of the world

 

[Dinkleberry]

Lamada is the symbol for the constant in the equation for figuring out the half-life of a radioactive substance. I do not know the equation off hand but I remember seeing this posted somewhere.

Heh, it could've been my thread but as mine was closed i guess there were many before it.
Decay Constant = 0.69/HalfLife
I think. Or its decay constant = 0.69 * Halflife
(Lamda is used for decay const)

 

[Sybot]

Or, to be precise...

Decay Constant= ln 2 / half-life

ln 2 is approximatly 0.69 anyway but, doing A-Level Physics I just had to point that out.

 

[Dinkleberry]

Or, to be precise...

Decay Constant= ln 2 / half-life

ln 2 is approximatly 0.69 anyway but, doing A-Level Physics I just had to point that out.

Same here, but I get stoned to death by my teachers if I use precision.

 

[Aforesaidace]

Why did they name the Half-Life Half-life?

 

[AJ Rimmer]

Why did they name the Half-Life Half-life?

Half-life is a scientific term and the game is about a scientist, and also, Half-life sounds sortof cool. Please not that Opposing Force and Blue Shift are also scientific terms.

 

[the_lone_wolf]

BTW i saw somewhere that the lambda symbols in the game indicate a weapons/health/crate stash nearby

 

[bboymatty]

yeh so sorry lambda is the DECAY CONSTANT, not the equation symbol for half life

i remember someone saying that half life actually has two meanings, the first being about the scientific meaning which has been explained heaps of times already and the second is slightly different,it applies to the game but i cant exaclty remember it so i aint gonna try to barf up some half baked definition.

if anyone can remember it im sure it would help in this thread

 

[D.L]

Half-life is a scientific term and the game is about a scientist, and also, Half-life sounds sortof cool. Please not that Opposing Force and Blue Shift are also scientific terms.

Actually they are scientific terms:

Blue shift:Apparent shortening of the wavelength due to Doppler effect, of radiation received from a source in motion toward the observer.

Opposing force: well obvious really. e.g.- push's opposing force is pull.

 

[ríomhaire]

Blue Shift: When something is moving away from you its colouring slightly changes to the red end of the spectrum it is in red shift. When something is moving towards you its colouring slightly changes to the blue end of the spectrum it is in blue shift.
Opposing Force: Every action has an equal and opposite reaction. Also every force has an equal opposing force pushing back. That is why you hurt your hand when you punch a wall.

 

[AJ Rimmer]

Actually they are scientific terms:

Blue shift:Apparent shortening of the wavelength due to Doppler effect, of radiation received from a source in motion toward the observer.

Opposing force: well obvious really. e.g.- push's opposing force is pull.

That's what I said.
oops... that's supposed to be *note*, instead of not in my post

 

[bboymatty]

I honestly dont think that half life: opposing force was called that because of its relation to newtons third law of motion.

Gordon = Good guys
Shepard = Bad guys (relative to gordons mission)

therefore, they are opposing forces.

 

[Angry Lawyer]

It's meant to be a double meaning.

Same way as blue shift refers both to the blue uniform that Barney wears, and the scientific term.

Notice that many chapters of the original game, and HL2, have scientific names. Like 'Surface Tension'. Surface Tension is what allows certain things to float, and what keeps water in nice, congealed lumps when it seperates. It also refers to the fact that, in that chapter, you reach the surface.

-Angry Lawyer

 

[ríomhaire]

Barney's post is actualy called the Level 3 Blue Shift Security Team or something. The hologram says it at the end of the hazard course.
And I agree with Angry Lawyer.

 

[Angry Lawyer]

Really? Never thought I'd hear you say that

Now, about the Combine on Xen...

But anyways, I never actually played Blue Shift, but what Riomhaire's saying sounds right.

-Angry Lawyer

 

[Combine Elite]

Ahh......why does everyting take it's meaning from Greek symbols

Because most of us don't speak Japanese and or Korean. English is not mystical enough and greek fits in nice as most medical terms and frankly science terms come from you guessed it greek. Even in Japan and Korea.

 

[ríomhaire]

Because most of us don't speak Japanese and or Korean. English is not mystical enough and greek fits in nice as most medical terms and frankly science terms come from you guessed it greek. Even in Japan and Korea.

And Latin

 

[FireCrack]

Any other dual meaning chapters anyone can thgink of?

 

[ríomhaire]

Route Canal is a dentestry procedure, thank you Finding Nemo
Water Hazard is a golf term
Sandtraps also a golf term

 

[Angry Lawyer]

"Entanglement" is a physics term, when two quantum particles get intermeshed, so that no matter how far apart they are in the universe, changing some details on one will affect the other (which is where half the teleportation stuff gets its theories from).
"Dark Energy" is what's making the universe expand at an exponential rate.

-Angry Lawyer

 

[Combine Elite]

And Latin

Yes and Latin you surgo non plumde equto

 

[PhaTox]

Yeah its the time it takes a substance/material (mainly used for radioactive materials) to break down to half. Say it takes 350 years for a substance to break down, then its half life would be 175 years.

sorry, but that is not correct...

 

[ríomhaire]

sorry, but that is not correct...

It's half correct, I think.

 

[bboymatty]

nup. not even half correct.

 

[Angry Lawyer]

Two half-lives is quite a bit less than the time for it to break down completely.

Think of the numbers that will follow as a sample of radioactive crap. The half life of the object is 5 seconds.

Now, what you guys just said states that the decay will be done in ten seconds.

So...

1 - 1/2 - 0

That's not the case though, as every half-life looks at the last position, and halves that.

1 - 1/2 - 1/4 - 1/8 - 1/16 - 1/32

Radioactive stuff takes ages to break down completely.

-Angry Lawyer

 

[MrSmith713]

The Lambda symbol is the same as the scientific symbol for "wavelength".
Just pointing that out.

 

[Darkside55]

Behold, the dread necromancer has come! He comes to dredge up the oldest posts in Singleplayer Mythology with knowledge that was spoken on the first page!

 

[kineaesth]

And make everyone think that Angry Lawyer is back.

 

[Emporius]

Oh god I was scrolling down the posts here, looking at the dates and dreading what was coming next...

 

[nipples]

Wow. Reviving a four year old thread just to say its a wavelength. Great.