Brainscape's Knowledge GenomeTM

Browse over 1 million classes created by top students, professors, publishers, and experts.


See full index

physics > Physics Terms > Flashcards

Physics Terms Flashcards

You may prefer our related Brainscape-certified flashcards:
Physics 101 flashcards AP® Physics flashcards
1
Q

displacement

A

Change in position. How far an object is from its starting point.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
2
Q

average speed

A

distance traveled along its path divided by the time it takes to travel this distance.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
3
Q

Velocity

A

Is a vector. Has a magnitude (numerical value) and the direction in which it is moving.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
4
Q

average velocity

A

displacement divided by time elapsed

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
5
Q

acceleration due to gravity

A

9.80 m/s^2

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
6
Q

scalars

A

a number and unit

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
7
Q

vectors

A

has direction and magnitude

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
8
Q

examples of scalars

A

mass, speed, distance

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
9
Q

examples of vectors

A

velocity, acceleration, momentum, weight

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
10
Q

inertia

A

tendency of a body to resist a change in its motion

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
11
Q

mass

A

the measure of inertia of a body

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
12
Q

weight

A

the force of gravity on a body

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
13
Q

force

A

Ts considered a push or a pull. It is a vector. An action that gives rise to an acceleration.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
14
Q

Net Force

A

net force on an object is the sum of all forces acting on it

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
15
Q

What are the two types of forces?

A

Contact forces and Field forces.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
16
Q

Which is stronger? kinetic friction or static friction?

A

Kinetic friction is weaker. It is easier to keep an object moving than to get it started.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
17
Q

Horizontal

A

left to right or like the x-axis

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
18
Q

Vertical

A

up and down or like the y-axis

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
19
Q

What is the difference between static and kinetic friction? Which coefficient is generally larger?

A

Static friction is with an object not moving, kinetic friction is to keep an object moving. Static friction is generally larger.

20
Q

An object acted upon by a net force will always experience a _____, which means it will either _____ and/or _____.

A

acceleration; speed up, change direction, and/or slow down.

21
Q

Describe velocity, acceleration, and net force when an object is in translational (linear) equilibrium.

A

Velocity is constant
acceleration is zero
Net Force is zero

22
Q

Two objects moving together (pulled by a rope or pushing each other) share the same_____

A

acceleration

23
Q

The normal force is always _______ to the surface.

A

perpendicular

24
Q

perpendicular

A

an angle 90 degrees to another line or surface

25
Q

The friction force always ______ the motion (or the intent of motion) and is proportional to the ______ force.

A

Opposes
Normal

26
Q

Given an object on an incline, list the components of its weight parallel and perpendicular to the plane.

A

Parallel: mg sin theta
Perpendicular: mg cos theta

27
Q

While an object is in projectile motion with no air resistance…

A

The horizontal component of its velocity remains constant and the vertical component of the acceleration is equal to -g

28
Q

A ball is tossed vertically upward. When it reaches its highest point (before falling back downward) …

A

The velocity is zero, the acceleration is directed downward, and the force of gravity acting on the ball is directed downward.

29
Q

What are the 2 types of forces?

A

There are two types of forces. Contact forces are the result of two objects touching one another. Examples of
contact forces are applied forces, drag force, friction force, force normal, spring force and tension. Field forces happen
even when two interacting objects are not touching one another. Examples of Field forces are gravitational force,
magnetic force and electric force.

30
Q

Tension

A

Tension force or the force of tension (T or FT) is the force transmitted through a rope, cable, string or wire pulled taut by forces acting on both ends.

31
Q

Newton’s Third Law

A

Newton’s Third Law states that in every interaction, there is a pair of forces acting on the two interacting objects.
The size of the forces on the first object equals the size of the force on the second object. The direction of the force on
the first object is opposite to the direction of the force on the second object

32
Q

Friction Force

A

The friction force is the force exerted by a surface as an object moves across it or makes an effort to move across
it.

33
Q

Frictions Forces

A

Kinetic friction is weaker than static friction, as it is easier to keep an object sliding once it is sliding than to start
an object sliding in the first place (Newton’s 1st law). Therefore, there are two types of µ, denoted with subscripts. For a
given pair of surfaces, it is true that µk < µs.

34
Q

A projectile has no horizontal acceleration and so moves at a constant velocity in the horizontal.

A

true

35
Q

A projectile is in free fall, so its vertical acceleration is aways -10 m/s^2

A

true

36
Q

The vertical displacement of a projectile launched and landing at the same level is aways zero

A

true

37
Q

Forces at Angles

A

If the net force has both a vertical and a horizontal component, use the Pythagorean theorem to determine the magnitude of the net force, and use the tangent function to determine the direction of the net force.

38
Q

Object in Free fall

A

When an object is in free fall, its acceleration is 10 m/s per second10 toward the ground. “Free fall” means no forces other than the object’s weight are acting on the object.

39
Q

Projectile’s horizontal acceleration

A

A projectile has no horizontal acceleration, and so it moves at constant speed horizontally. A projectile is in free fall, so its vertical acceleration is 10 m/s per second downward

40
Q

The horizontal and vertical motion charts for a projectile must use the same value for
time.

A
41
Q

In a position-time graph, the object’s position is read from the vertical axis.

A
42
Q

In a position-time graph, the object’s speed is the slope of the graph. The steeper the slope, the faster the object moves. If the slope is a front slash (/), the movement is in the positive direction; if the slope is a backslash (), the movement is in the negative direction.

A
43
Q

In a velocity-time graph, the object’s speed is read from the vertical axis. The direction of motion is indicated by the sign on the vertical axis.

A
44
Q

In a velocity-time graph, the object’s acceleration is the slope of the graph.

A
45
Q

In a velocity-time graph, the object’s displacement is given by the area between the graph and the horizontal axis. The location of the object can’t be determined from a velocity time graph; only how far it ended up from its starting point can be determined.

A

physics (3 decks)

Brainscape helps you reach your goals faster, through stronger study habits.
© 2024 Bold Learning Solutions. Terms and Conditions