Conceptual Physics Practice Final Exam Flashcards

Flashcards covering key scientists, formulas, units, and conceptual physics principles including momentum, energy, rotational motion, and gravity as presented in the practice final exam.

Émilie du Châtelet

Scientist who contributed to scientific progress by translating the Principia from Latin to French, hypothesizing that energy is conserved, and writing a “Lessons in Physics” book.

Emmy Noether

Scientist who discovered a relationship between symmetry and conservation and lost her teaching position at a German university in 1933.

Dr. Jillian Dempsey

Researcher whose scientific research is focused on solar energy.

Dr. Vera Rubin

Scientist whose research on the angular motion of galaxies contributed to the discovery of dark matter.

Dr. Katie Bouman

Caltech professor who wrote software used to produce the first image of a black hole.

Momentum ($p$)

The physical quantity defined as the product of mass and velocity ($p = mv$), measured in $kg \cdot m/s$.

Impulse

The product of force and time ($Ft$) which results in a change in momentum ($\Delta p$).

Elastic Collision

A collision in which momentum is conserved and the objects do not stick together.

Inelastic Collision

A collision in which momentum is conserved and the objects stick together, such as when object A collides with and sticks to object B to create object AB.

Potential Energy

The energy of an object due to its position.

Kinetic Energy

The energy of an object due to its motion, which increases by a factor of $4$ if the speed of the object is doubled.

Machine

A device that can redirect and/or multiply force; it is considered ideal if it is $100\%$ efficient.

Fossil Fuels

Energy sources including natural gas, coal, and crude oil that come from decayed organic material.

Tangential Speed

A quantity that is directly proportional to rotational speed.

Centrifugal Force

Considered a “fictitious” or “apparent” force because it is not the result of an interaction between two objects.

Torque

A physical quantity measured in $N \cdot m$ that, if the net value is not zero, prevents an object from being in a state of equilibrium.

Rotational Inertia

A property of an object that can be changed by changing the distribution of the object’s mass from its axis of rotation; its symbol is $I$.

Newtonian Synthesis

The historical realization that the same set of natural laws applies to both the Earth and space.

Force Field

An alteration of space that allows objects to exert forces on each other without touching each other.

Black Hole

An astronomical object that appears invisible because the speed of light is less than the speed needed to escape it.

Satellite

A projectile that orbits Earth and must be above the atmosphere to avoid friction from air resistance.

Escape Speed

The speed needed for an object to escape an astronomical body; it is generally greater for bodies with greater masses.

Thermonuclear Fusion

The reaction in the Sun that produces the light seen on Earth during the daytime.

Rotational Speed ($\omega$)

A measure of how fast an object rotates; for a vinyl record, it may be measured in RPM (revolutions per minute).

Mechanical Energy

The total energy of a satellite (kinetic energy + potential energy), which remains constant in both circular and elliptical orbits.

Angular Momentum

A physical quantity measured in units of $kg \cdot m^2/s$; its symbol is $L$ (though not explicitly listed as a match, the unit is noted).

Gravitational Constant ($G$)

A physical constant valued at $6.67 \times 10^{-11}\,N \cdot m^2/kg^2$.

Projectile Motion

The motion of an object where the horizontal component of velocity remains constant (ignoring air resistance) while the vertical component is affected by gravity ($g = 10\,m/s^2$).