Physics Flashcards
Physical quantity
a quantity that can be measured and consists of a numerical magnitude and unit
scalar quantities
quantities that have magnitude only
vector quantities
quantities that have both magnitude and direction
distance
total length of travel irrespective of the direction of motion
displacement
distance moved in a specific direction
speed
rate of change of distance
velocity
distance travelled per unit time in a specified direction/ rate of change of displacement
acceleration
rate of change of velocity
Newton’s First Law of Motion
an object at rest will remain at rest and an object in motion will continue in motion at constant speed in a straight line in the absence of a resultant force acting on it
Newton’s Second Law of Motion
the resultant force acting upon an object is equal to the product of the mass and the acceleration of the object; the direction of the force is the same as that of the object’s acceleration
Newton’s Third Law of Motion
If an object A exerts a force on object B then B exerts an equal but opposite force on A
Friction
a force that resists the relative motion of objects that are in contact with each other
Inertia
the reluctance of an object to change either its state of rest, or if it’s moving, its motion in a straight line
mass
measure of the amount of substance in the object
weight
force of gravity acting upon an object
gravitational field
a region in which a mass experiences a force due to gravitational attraction
gravitational field strength
gravitational force per unit mass
moment
moment of a force about a pivot is the product of the force and the perpendicular distance from the line of action of the force to the pivot
Principles of moments
when an object is in equilibrium, the sum of clockwise moments about any point is equal to the sum of anticlockwise moments about the same point
centre of gravity
point through which the entire weight of the object appears to act
stability
measure of a body’s ability to maintain its original position
pressure
force per unit area
energy
capacity to do work
work done
work done on an object is the product of the force acting on the object and the distance travelled in the direction of the force
thermal energy
total kinetic energy of the atoms or molecules in the body
potential energy
energy stored in an object due to its shape, position or state
kinetic energy
energy a body possesses due to its motion
principle of conservation of energy
energy cannot be created or destroyed but only changes from one form to another. the total energy in an isolated system remains constant
power
rate of doing work
efficiency
ratio of the useful energy output to the total energy input expressed as a percentage
Brownian motion
haphazard movement of microscopic particles suspended in a fluid due to the uneven bombardment of the suspended particles by the molecules of the fluid
kinetic model of matter
all matter is made up of a large number of tiny atoms or molecules which are in continuous motion
internal energy
the combination of the total kinetic energy and potential energy of the molecules in the body