General Physics (Phys 1011)

Comprehensive practice flashcards covering basic mechanics, fluids, thermodynamics, oscillations and waves, electromagnetism, electronics, and cross-cutting applications for General Physics.

Physics

The branch of science that deals with matter in relation to energy and the accurate measurement of natural phenomena, originating from the Greek word meaning "nature."

Physical Quantity

A quantifiable or assignable property ascribed to a particular phenomenon or body, such as the length of a rod or the mass of a body.

Measurement

The act of comparing an unknown physical quantity with a known fixed standard quantity called a unit.

Unit

A standardized value or standard quantity of measurement against which physical quantities are compared and expressed.

Basic Physical Quantities

Physical quantities of fundamental importance that cannot be expressed in terms of any other physical quantity, such as length, mass, and time.

Derived Physical Quantities

Physical quantities that can be expressed as mathematical combinations of fundamental quantities, such as area, volume, and density.

International System of Units (SI)

The modern form of the metric system agreed upon in 1960 at the 11th International Conference on Weights and Measures, built upon 7 basic physical quantities and their associated base units.

Systematic Error

An error resulting from measuring devices being out of calibration, yielding measurements consistently too small or too large that can be eliminated by pre-calibrating against a known, trusted standard.

Random Error

An error resulting in fluctuations of measurements of the same quantity about the average, arising generally from the fineness of the scale division of a measuring device.

Uncertainty

A parameter that characterizes the spread of measurement results and covers the range of possible values containing the true value of the measurand.

Significant Digits

The meaningful digits recorded in a measurement that indicate its precision and estimated error, following the convention that only one uncertain digit is reported.

Scalar

A physical quantity that is completely specified by a magnitude (number and unit) without direction, obeying the ordinary rules of algebra.

Vector

A physical quantity that is specified by both a magnitude and a direction in space, obeying the laws of vector algebra.

Resultant Vector

A single combined vector obtained by adding two or more individual vectors together.

Graphical Method of Vector Addition

The technique of vector addition in which vectors are joined head-to-tail in any order, with the resultant vector $\mathbf{R}$ drawn from the tail of the first vector to the tip of the last vector.

Parallelogram Law of Vector Addition

A law stating that the resultant $\mathbf{R}$ of two concurrent vectors $\mathbf{A}$ and $\mathbf{B}$ is represented by the diagonal of the parallelogram formed by the two vectors as adjacent sides.

Unit Vector

A dimensionless vector having a magnitude of exactly one whose sole purpose is to point or specify a given direction in space, usually denoted with a hat symbol.

Mechanics

The branch of physics that studies the motion of bodies and systems and how it relates to physical factors such as force, mass, momentum, and energy.

Kinematics

The branch of mechanics that describes the motion of objects without reference to the forces causing that motion.

Dynamics

The branch of mechanics that deals with the motion of objects in connection with the forces causing that motion.

Particle

An idealized physical body so small that its shape and internal structure have no consequence in the solution of a given mechanical problem.

Displacement

The vector change in position of an object relative to a specified reference frame, defined as $\Delta \vec{r} = \vec{r}_f - \vec{r}_i$.

Average Velocity ($\vec{v}_{av}$)

The total displacement vector divided by the total time interval during which the displacement occurs: $\vec{v}_{av} = \frac{\Delta \vec{r}}{\Delta t}$.

Instantaneous Velocity ($\vec{v}$)

The limiting value of the average velocity ratio as the time interval approaches zero: $\vec{v} = \lim_{\Delta t \rightarrow 0} \frac{\Delta \vec{r}}{\Delta t}$.

Average Acceleration ($\vec{a}_{av}$)

The vector change in velocity divided by the time interval during which that change occurs: $\vec{a}_{av} = \frac{\Delta \vec{v}}{\Delta t}$.

Instantaneous Acceleration ($\vec{a}$)

The limit of the average acceleration ratio as the elapsed time interval approaches zero: $\vec{a} = \lim_{\Delta t \rightarrow 0} \frac{\Delta \vec{v}}{\Delta t}$.

Free Fall Motion

The vertical motion of an object near the Earth's surface governed solely by gravity, in which all bodies fall with a constant downward acceleration $g \approx 9.8\,\text{m/s}^2$ in the absence of air resistance.

Projectile

Any body that is launched obliquely into space with an initial velocity and thereafter moves under the sole influence of gravity.

Velocity of Projection ($u$)

The initial velocity vector with which a projectile is launched into space from its point of projection.

Angle of Projection ($\alpha$)

The angle formed between the initial direction of projection and the horizontal plane passing through the launch point.

Trajectory of a Projectile

The parabolic path described by a projectile from its launch point until it reaches the horizontal plane passing through the point of projection.

Horizontal Range ($R$)

The total horizontal displacement covered by a projectile over its entire time of flight, expressed as $R = \frac{u^2 \sin(2\theta)}{g}$.

Maximum Height ($h$)

The maximum vertical altitude achieved by a projectile, given by $h = \frac{u^2 \sin^2(\theta)}{2g}$, occurring when its vertical velocity component equals zero.

Force

Any interaction that changes or tends to change the state of motion, direction, shape, or size of an object.

Net Force

The vector sum of all individual forces acting upon an object, which produces acceleration when not equal to zero.

Contact Force

A type of physical force that requires bodily or mechanical contact between interacting objects, such as muscular, normal, or frictional forces.

Muscular Force

A contact force produced by the action of biological muscles during activities like lifting, pulling, breathing, or pushing.

Normal Force

The contact support force exerted by a surface on an object that acts perpendicular to the surface of contact.

Tension Force

The pulling force applied by a fully stretched rope, string, or cable anchored to an object, acting equally in both directions.

Spring Force

The restoring force exerted by a compressed or stretched spring, directed toward the equilibrium configuration in accordance with Hooke's law.

Non-Contact Force

A type of force that acts over distance without requiring physical contact between interacting bodies, such as gravity, magnetic, or electrostatic forces.

Newton's First Law of Motion

The principle stating that an object remains at rest or continues in uniform motion in a straight line unless acted upon by a net external force.

Law of Inertia

An alternate name for Newton's first law, describing the inherent property of matter that resists changes in its state of rest or constant motion.

Newton's Second Law of Motion

The fundamental dynamic law stating that the acceleration of an object is directly proportional to the net force acting on it and inversely proportional to its mass: $\sum \vec{F} = m\vec{a}$.

Newton's Third Law of Motion

The law stating that for every action force, there is always an equal and opposite reaction force, such that forces between interacting bodies exist in pairs acting on different bodies.

Static Friction ($f_s$)

The resisting force that acts between two stationary surfaces in contact to oppose the onset of relative sliding, with a maximum value of $f_{s,\max} = \mu_s F_N$.

Kinetic Friction ($f_k$)

The resisting force that opposes the relative motion between two surfaces sliding past each other, given by $f_k = \mu_k F_N$.

Uniform Circular Motion

The motion of an object traversing a circular trajectory at a constant speed, characterized by continuous changes in velocity direction resulting in centripetal acceleration.

Centripetal Acceleration ($a_c$)

The inward radial acceleration of an object moving in a circle of radius $r$ with constant speed $v$, given by $a_c = \frac{v^2}{r}$.

Newton's Universal Law of Gravitation

The law stating that every particle in the universe attracts every other particle with a mutual force proportional to the product of their masses and inversely proportional to the square of their separation distance.

Gravitational Constant ($G$)

The universal proportionality constant in Newton's law of gravitation, experimentally determined to be $G = 6.674 \times 10^{-11}\,\text{N}\cdot\text{m}^2/\text{kg}^2$.

Kepler's First Law (Law of Orbits)

The planetary law stating that the orbit of each planet in the solar system is an ellipse with the Sun located at one of its two foci.

Kepler's Second Law (The Law of Areas)

The planetary law stating that the radius vector connecting the centers of the Sun and a planet sweeps out equal areas in equal intervals of time.

Kepler's Third Law (The Law of Harmony)

The planetary law stating that the square of the orbital period of a planet is directly proportional to the cube of the average distance between the centers of the planet and the Sun ($T^2 / R^3 = \text{constant}$).

Astronomical Unit ($au$)

A standard unit of astronomical distance defined as the average distance from the Earth to the Sun, approximately equal to $1.4957 \times 10^{11}\,\text{m}$.

Weightlessness

The sensation experienced by an individual when all supporting contact forces are absent, typically occurring during free fall where gravity is the sole acting force.

Work ($W$)

The scalar product of a constant force $\vec{F}$ and displacement $\vec{d}$, given by $W = F d \cos(\theta)$, representing energy transferred to or from a system.

Hooke's Law

The empirical relationship stating that the restoring force exerted by an elastic spring is directly proportional to its displacement from equilibrium: $F_s = -kx$.

Spring Constant ($k$)

The positive constant of proportionality in Hooke's law, also termed the stiffness factor, that measures the rigidity of an elastic spring.

Kinetic Energy ($KE$)

The capacity of an object of mass $m$ to do work by virtue of its translational motion at speed $v$, defined as $KE = \frac{1}{2} m v^2$.

Potential Energy ($PE$)

The energy stored within a system by virtue of the relative position or configuration of its components, defined only for conservative forces.

Conservative Force

A force for which the work done on an object moving between two points depends only on the end-points of the displacement and is independent of the path taken.

Work-Energy Theorem

The theorem stating that the net work performed on an object by all acting forces equals the resulting change in its kinetic energy: $W_{\text{net}} = \Delta KE$.

Mechanical Energy ($ME$)

The total energy of a mechanical system defined as the sum of its kinetic energy and potential energy: $E = KE + PE$.

Conservation of Mechanical Energy

The principle stating that the total mechanical energy of an isolated, friction-free system remains constant when only conservative forces perform work.

Power ($P$)

The time rate of energy transfer or work done, defined as average power $P_{av} = \frac{W}{\Delta t}$ or instantaneous power $P = \vec{F} \cdot \vec{v}$.

Watt ($W$)

The SI unit of power, equivalent to one joule of energy transferred per second ($1\,\text{W} = 1\,\text{J/s}$).

Kilowatt-Hour ($kWh$)

A commercial unit of electrical energy representing the energy transferred in one hour at a constant rate of one kilowatt, equal to $3.6 \times 10^6\,\text{J}$.

Linear Momentum ($\vec{p}$)

The vector quantity defined as the product of the mass of an object and its translational velocity: $\vec{p} = m\vec{v}$.

Impulse

The product of the net force acting on a particle and the time interval of interaction, which is equal to the change in momentum: $\vec{I} = \vec{F}_{\text{net}} \Delta t = \Delta \vec{p}$.

Law of Conservation of Linear Momentum

The principle stating that the total linear momentum of an isolated system of interacting particles remains constant over time when no net external force acts.

Elastic Collision

A collision between two or more objects in an isolated system in which both total linear momentum and total kinetic energy are conserved.

Inelastic Collision

A collision in an isolated system in which total linear momentum is conserved, but total kinetic energy is not conserved.

Perfectly Inelastic Collision

A collision in which colliding bodies stick together after impact and proceed to move with a common final velocity.

Center of Mass

The unique point in a system at which all of the mass can be considered concentrated for the analysis of translational motion.

Fluid

A state of matter (liquid or gas) that lacks a fixed shape and continually deforms or flows under the application of shear stress.

Elastic Materials

Materials that regain their original dimensions and shape once the deforming external force is removed.

Plastic Materials

Materials that experience permanent and irreversible deformation, failing to regain their initial shape after deforming forces are removed.

Stress

The deforming force applied per unit cross-sectional area of an object, having the SI unit of Pascal ($\text{N/m}^2$).

Strain

The dimensionless measure of deformation defined as the change in configuration of a body divided by its initial configuration.

Tensile Stress and Strain

The elongation deformation of a bar of cross-sectional area $A$ subjected to perpendicular tensile forces $F_\perp$, defined by tensile stress $F_\perp / A$ and tensile strain $\Delta l / l_0$.

Shear Stress and Shear Strain

The lateral deformation of an object where a tangential force $F_\parallel$ applied across an area $A$ causes a horizontal displacement $x$ across height $h$, producing shear strain $x/h$.

Volume Stress and Volume Strain

The uniform compression of a body subjected to external pressure changes $\Delta P$, defined by volume stress $\Delta F / A$ and volume strain $\Delta V / V_0$.

Young's Modulus ($Y$)

The elastic modulus defined as the ratio of tensile stress to tensile strain, measuring the resistance of a solid to changes in its length.

Shear Modulus ($S$)

The elastic modulus defined as the ratio of shear stress to shear strain, measuring a solid's resistance to planes sliding parallel to each other.

Bulk Modulus ($B$)

The elastic modulus defined as the ratio of volume stress to fractional volume strain ($B = -\Delta P / (\Delta V / V_0)$), measuring resistance to volumetric compression.

Compressibility

The physical property defined as the reciprocal of the bulk modulus ($1/B$), measuring how readily a solid or fluid decreases in volume under pressure.

Density ($\rho$)

The mass per unit volume of a substance, defined as $\rho = \frac{m}{V}$ with SI units of $\text{kg/m}^3$.

Specific Gravity ($SG$)

The dimensionless ratio of the density of a substance to the density of pure water at $4\,^\circ\text{C}$ ($1.0 \times 10^3\,\text{kg/m}^3$).

Pressure ($P$)

The magnitude of the normal force exerted perpendicular to a surface divided by the surface area over which it acts, measured in Pascals ($1\,\text{Pa} = 1\,\text{N/m}^2$).

Gauge Pressure

The pressure value measured relative to local atmospheric pressure, equal to the difference between absolute pressure and atmospheric pressure ($P_g = P - P_{atm}$).

Absolute Pressure

The total actual pressure exerted in a fluid, equal to the sum of gauge pressure and atmospheric pressure ($P = P_{atm} + \rho g h$).

Pascal's Principle

The principle stating that pressure applied to an enclosed, confined fluid is transmitted undiminished to every portion of the fluid and to the walls of its container.

Hydraulic Press

A fluid device utilizing Pascal's principle in which a small force applied to a smaller piston produces an amplified lifting force on a larger piston.

Archimedes' Principle

The principle stating that an object wholly or partially submerged in a fluid is buoyed up by a force equal to the weight of the fluid displaced by that object.

Buoyant Force ($B$)

The net upward vertical force exerted by a surrounding static fluid on an immersed or partially submerged body, arising from the fluid pressure gradient.

Streamline (Laminar) Flow

A steady, smooth fluid motion in which adjacent layers of fluid slide past one another with no cross-currents or disruption.

Turbulent Flow

An irregular, chaotic fluid flow occurring above a critical speed, characterized by eddies, mixing of layers, and internal energy loss.

Viscosity

The internal friction between adjacent layers of a fluid that resists flow and causes dissipation of mechanical energy.

Equation of Continuity

The conservation of mass expression for steady, incompressible fluid flow in a conduit, stating that the flow rate is constant ($A_1 v_1 = A_2 v_2$).