Basic Physics Concepts Flashcards
define physics
science that deals with matter and energy and their interactions
what is matter
occupies space
has mass
interconvertible with energy
forms of matter
solid
liquid
gas
what is mass
measure of its inertia
amount of material it contains
weight in a gravitational field
constant
what is force
a push or pull upon an object resulting from the object’s interaction with another object
forces only exist as a result of an
interaction
when forces are equal
no motion
what is inertia
property of matter by which it retains its state of rest or velocity along a straight line so long as it is not acted on by an external force
newton’s first law of motion
a body at rest stays at rest
a body in motion stays in motion
until there is a change in force applied to it
newton’s second law of motion
force=mass x acceleration
F=m x a
what is acceleration
change in speed or direction of object
change in velocity
when velocity is not constant
what is weight
weight is a force
weight = mass x acceleration
gravity is the acceleration
difference between mass and weight
mass is constant
weight is a force
what is velocity
distance traveled per time, not speed
difference between speed and velocity
speed how fast we are going in any direction
velocity- includes direction
speed- measure of magnitude
velocity- vector quantity, has magnitude and direction
what is work
application of a force through a distance
work = force x distance
W = f x d
newton’s third law of motion
for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction
what is energy
energy is the ability to do work
comes in many forms
law of conservation of energy
energy cannot be created or destroyed
energy can only be transferred or changed from one form to another
potential energy
ability to do work
“stored energy”
kinetic energy
energy of motion
chemical energy
energy released by a chemical reaction
electric energy
energy from an electron moving through an electric potential (across a voltage difference)
thermal energy
motion at molecular level
kinetic energy of molecules- faster motion=more thermal energy
