Formal Definitions

Question 1

significant digits

Answer 1

those digits that are known with certainty followed by the first digit which is uncertain

Question 2

acceleration

Answer 2

rate of change in velocity, per unit of time

Question 3

average acceleration

Answer 3

change in velocity over an interval of time divided by the time travel

Question 4

average velocity

Answer 4

change in displacement over an interval of time divided by the time travel

Question 5

displacement

Answer 5

distance traveled in a specified direction

Question 6

equilibrium

Answer 6

the state of an object with no resultant force in any direction (transitional equilibrium) and no resultant moment at any point (rotational equilibrium)

Question 7

Newtons first law

Answer 7

an object continues in uniform motion in a straight line or at rest until a resultant external force acts

Question 8

Newtons second law

Answer 8

Force = mass x acceleration
Force = rate of change of momentum

Question 9

scalar

Answer 9

a quantity that has only magnitude

Question 10

vector

Answer 10

a quantity that has both magnitude and direction

Question 11

Newtons third law

Answer 11

if body A exerts a force on body B, then body B exerts an equal but opposite force on body A

Question 12

absolute zero

Answer 12

The temperature at which molecular motion becomes a minimum (approximately - 273 C)

Question 13

Internal energy

Answer 13

The sum total of the potential energy and the random kinetic energy of the molecules of the substance making up the system

Question 14

temperature

Answer 14

the property that determines the direction of heat flow between two bodies in thermal contact

Question 15

amplitude

Answer 15

maximum displacement of a particle from its equilibrium position for an oscillating particle

Question 16

average speed

Answer 16

change in distance over an interval of time divided b the time travel

Question 17

angle of incidence

Answer 17

the angle between the direction of travel of the incident wave and the normal to the boundary

Question 18

Angle of refraction

Answer 18

the angle between the direction of travel of the refracted wave and the normal to the boundary

Question 19

critical angle

Answer 19

The angle, measured to the normal, at which a ray incident on a boundary between two media, will undergo total internal reflection in the more dense medium.

Question 20

Forced oscilations

Answer 20

Oscilattions resulting from the application of an external, usually periodic, force,

Question 21

frequency

Answer 21

the number of complete oscilattions a system makes in unit time

Question 22

laws of reflection

Answer 22

The angle at which the waves are reflected from a barrier is equal to the angle at which they are incident on the barrier.

Question 23

Longitudional waves

Answer 23

A wave where the particles of the medium through which the wave travels vibrate parallel to the direction of energy propogation

Question 24

Transverse waves

Answer 24

wave in which the particles of the medium through