1. Concept #1 “The Science of Physics”
Honors Physics

2. Physics is the study of the physical world.
Physics-what is it?
Physics is the study of the physical world.

3. Does anything really MATTER?
Matter is anything that has mass, occupies space, and has inertia.

4. Mass and weight, is there a difference?
Mass is the amount of substance and doesn’t depend upon location.
Weight is the force upon an object due to gravity. It depends upon location. An object’s mass on earth and on the moon is the same, its weight is different.

5. The Scientific Method, is it right for me?
Step 1 Observe the problem
Step 2 Form a hypothesis
Step 3 Collect data/experiment
Step 4 Form a conclusion
Step 5 Make a theory

6. Pure or Applied?
Applied research is that which tries to address a specific problem or question. “How can we make a better paint?”
Pure research is that which is concerned with finding out how the universe works. “Why is grass green?”

7. Doesn’t SI mean yes in Spanish?
System International is the system of measurements that scientists worldwide use.
There are 7 SI base units.
The 5 most commonly used are
meter, kilogram, second, mole, Kelvin
candela and ampere are less commonly used.

8. Are prefixes like a warranty?
Prefixes are used to reduce the number of zeros scientists use.
The commonly used prefixes are
kilo-1000 units 2.5km = 2,500 m
deci-1/10th unit dm = 0.50 m
centi-1/100th unit 101cg = 1.01 g
milli-1/1000th unit 750ms = s

9. Ton of feathers vs. a ton of lead?
Density is mass per unit volume.
The formula for density is:
D= m units are g or kg
V cm m3

10. Density

11. What precisely is accuracy?
Accuracy is how close to the accepted value your measurements are.
Precision is how close together your measurements are.

12. Is there always room for percent error?
Percent error relates how far your measurement is from the accepted value.
Percent error = (your value – accepted)
accepted
x 100%

13. Scientific notation and rounding: rules to live by?
Scientists use powers of ten to replace zeros that are simply place holders and are not significant.
All non-zero numbers are significant
Zeros between non-zeros are significant
All final zeros to the right of the decimal are significant

14. Cont’d Placeholder zeros aren’t significant
All digits in counting numbers and defined constants are all significant
Examples: Significant digits are black
72.3 m, g, s, g,
4320 kg, 600 cars, 1,000 g = 1 kg

15. Adding and Multiplying Sig Figs
When adding significant figures, report the answer to the number of
digits to the right of the decimal that the smallest number added had.
When multiplying, report the answer to the number of significant figures that the number with the smallest number of significant figures had.

16. A Graph: a picture or a kiloword?
A bar or line graph are the most common graphs scientists use.
Variables being measured(dependent) appear along the y-axis and variables that vary independently appear along the x-axis.
Properly labeled axis, consistent intervals and a title are required.

17. Major Areas of Physics
Mechanics is the study of motion and its causes and the interactions between objects. Ex: falling objects, friction, weight, spinning objects.
Thermodynamics is the study of heat and temperature. Ex: melting and freezing processes, engines, refrigerators.
Vibrations and wave phenomena are the studies of specific types of repetitive motions. Ex: springs, pendulums, sound.

18. Major Areas of Physics
Optics is the study of light. Ex: mirrors, lenses, color, astronomy.
Electromagnetism is the study of electricity, magnetism, and light. Ex: electrical charge, circuitry, permanent magnets, electromagnets.
Relativity is the study of particles moving at any speed, including very high speeds. Ex: particle collisions, particle accelerators, nuclear energy.

19. Major Areas Within Physics
Quantum Mechanics is the study of the behavior of submicroscopic particles. Ex: the atom and its parts.

20. Factor-Label Method (aka, dimeneional analysis)
Factor label is a method used to convert from one unit to another.
To convert from km/h to m/s, for example.
What is the velocity (in m/s) of a car traveling at 88 km/h?

21. Order of Magnitude Estimates
When numbers are extremely large or very small, we can estimate the order of magnitude (or power of ten) of an answer to a problem by rounding to the nearest power of ten and calculating.
Estimate the number of breaths taken by a person in 70 years.