Introduction
Course Description
• This course covers a broad range of topics in physics including, but
not restricted to, kinematics, dynamics, work and energy, waves,
simple harmonic motion, electric fields and electric circuits.
Laboratory experiences are used to introduce and reinforce basic
physics concepts, centering on engineering projects and application
of physics formulas and concepts to real-world examples.
• We focus on two main parts of Physics: Mechanics, Electricity and
Magnetism.
Textbook
Workload and Grading Policy
1-1 The Nature of Science
• From the flight of birds to the colors of flowers
• from lightning to gravity
• from the flow of time to the mystery of the creation of the
universe
1-1 The Nature of Science
• Science is a way of explaining the natural world.
• Observation is one important aspect of science.
• Observation: important first step toward scientific theory; requires
imagination to tell what is important
384 BC – 322 BC
Ancient Greece
One of the first to try to explain the
natural world
Objects given an initial push along the
ground always slow down and stop
The natural state of an object is to be
at rest.
1564 – 1642
Italy
Perhaps the first true scientist.
As the surface is smother, the object
would move further and further before
stopping
If there is no friction, the object will
continue at that speed forever
Theories:
• Theories: created to explain observations; will make predictions
How does a new theory get accepted?
• Predictions agree better with data
• Explains a greater range of phenomena
Example: Sun-centered theory is simpler than Earth-center theory
and explain a greater variety of phenomena. Also, it predicted the
moonlike phases of Venus.
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1-1 The Nature of Science
The principles of physics are used in many practical
applications, including construction. Communication
between architects and engineers is essential if disaster
is to be avoided.
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1-3 Models, Theories, and Laws
Models are very useful during the process of understanding
phenomena. A model creates mental pictures; care must be
taken to understand the limits of the model and not take it
too seriously.
A theory is detailed and can give testable predictions.
A law is a brief description of how nature behaves in a
broad set of circumstances.(Newton’s Law)
A principle is similar to a law, but applies to a narrower
range of phenomena.(Archimedes’ Principle)
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Wave interference
1-4 Measurement and Uncertainty;
Significant Figures
No measurement is exact; there is always some
uncertainty due to limited instrument accuracy and
difficulty reading results.
The photograph to the left
illustrates this – it would be
difficult to measure the width of
this board more accurately than
± 1 mm.
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1-4 Measurement and Uncertainty;
Significant Figures
Estimated uncertainty is written with a ± sign; for example:
8.8 ± 0.1 cm.
Percent uncertainty is the ratio of the uncertainty to the
measured value, multiplied by 100:
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1-3 Measurement and Uncertainty;
Significant Figures
The number of significant figures is the number of reliably known
digits in a number. It is usually possible to tell the number of
significant figures by the way the number is written:
23.21 cm has four significant figures.
0.062 cm has two significant figures (the initial zeroes don’t
count).
80 km is ambiguous—it could have one or two significant figures.
If it has three, it should be written 80.0 km.
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1-3 Measurement and Uncertainty;
Significant Figures
When multiplying or dividing numbers, the result has as
many significant figures as the number used in the
calculation with the fewest significant figures.
Example: 11.3 cm x 6.8 cm = 77 𝐜𝐦2 .(Not 76.84 𝐜𝐦2 )
When adding or subtracting, the answer is no more accurate
than the least accurate number used.
The number of significant figures may be off by one; use the
percentage uncertainty as a check.
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1-4 Measurement and Uncertainty;
Significant Figures
Calculators will not give you the right number of
significant figures; they usually give too many
but sometimes give too few (especially if there
are trailing zeroes after a decimal point).
The top calculator shows the result of 2.0/3.0.
The bottom calculator shows the result of 2.5 x
3.2.
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1-4 Measurement and Uncertainty;
Significant Figures
Conceptual Example 1-1: Significant figures.
Using a protractor, you measure an angle to be 30°. (a) How many
significant figures should you quote in this measurement? (b) Use a
calculator to find the cosine of the angle you measured.
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1-3 Measurement and Uncertainty;
Significant Figures
Scientific notation is commonly used in physics; it allows the
number of significant figures to be clearly shown.
For example, we cannot tell how many significant figures the
number 36,900 has. However, if we write 3.69 x 104, we know
it has three; if we write 3.690 x 104, it has four.
Much of physics involves approximations; these can affect
the precision of a measurement also.
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1-3 Measurement and Uncertainty;
Significant Figures
Accuracy vs. Precision
Accuracy is how close a measurement comes to the true
value.
Precision is the repeatability of the measurement using the
same instrument.
It is possible to be accurate without being precise and to be
precise without being accurate!
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1-5 Units, Standards, and the SI System
1-5 Units, Standards, and the SI System
Quantity Unit Standard
Length Meter Length of the path traveled by light in
1/299,792,458 second
Time Second Time required for 9,192,631,770
periods of radiation emitted by cesium
atoms
Mass Kilogram The kilogram is currently redefined in
terms of the Planck constant as approved
by the General Conference on Weights
and Measures (CGPM) on 16 November
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2018.
1-5 Units, Standards, and the SI System
Copyright © 2009 Pearson Education, Inc.
1-5 Units, Standards, and the SI System
Copyright © 2009 Pearson Education, Inc.
1-5 Units, Standards, and the SI System
Copyright © 2009 Pearson Education, Inc.
1-5 Units, Standards, and the SI System
We will be working in the SI
system, in which the basic
units are kilograms,
meters, and seconds.
Quantities not in the table
are derived quantities,
expressed in terms of the
base units.
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1-6 Converting Units
Unit conversions always involve a conversion factor.
Example: 1 in. = 2.54 cm.
Written another way: 1 = 2.54 cm/in.
So if we have measured a length of 21.5 inches, and wish to
convert it to centimeters, we use the conversion factor:
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1-7 Order of Magnitude: Rapid Estimating
A quick way to estimate a calculated quantity is to round off all
numbers to one significant figure and then calculate. Your
result should at least be the right order of magnitude; this can
be expressed by rounding it off to the nearest power of 10.
Diagrams are also very useful in making estimations.
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1-7 Order of Magnitude: Rapid Estimating
Example 1-6: Volume of a lake.
Estimate how much water there is in a
particular lake, which is roughly circular,
about 1 km across, and you guess it has
an average depth of about 10 m.
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1-7 Order of Magnitude: Rapid Estimating
Example 1-7: Thickness of a page.
Estimate the thickness of a page of
your textbook. (Hint: you don’t need
one of these!)
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1-6 Order of Magnitude: Rapid Estimating
Example 1-8: Height by
triangulation.
Estimate the height of the
building shown by
“triangulation,” with the help of
a bus-stop pole and a friend.
(See how useful the diagram
is!)
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1-7 Order of Magnitude: Rapid Estimating
Example 1-9: Estimating the radius of Earth.
If you have ever been on the shore of a large lake, you
may have noticed that you cannot see the beaches,
piers, or rocks at water level across the lake on the
opposite shore. The lake seems to bulge out between
you and the opposite shore—a good clue that the
Earth is round. Suppose you climb a stepladder and
discover that when your eyes are 10 ft (3.0 m) above
the water, you can just see the rocks at water level on
the opposite shore. From a map, you estimate the
distance to the opposite shore as d ≈ 6.1 km. Use h =
3.0 m to estimate the radius R of the Earth.
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