Lecture 1: Math Preliminaries and Introduction to Vectors 1

CHAPTER 1: Units, Physical Quantities, Dimensions

1. PHYSICS is a science of measurement. The things which are measured are

called physical quantities which are defined by the describing how they are to
be measured. There are three fundamental quantities in mechanics:
Length
Mass
Time
All other physical quantities combinations of these three basic quantities.
2. All physical quantities MUST have units attached to them. The standard
system of units is called the SI (Systeme Internationale), or equivalently, the
METRIC system. This system uses
Length in Meters (m)
Mass in Kilograms (kg)
Time in Seconds (s)
With these abbreviations for the fundamental quantities, one can also be said
to be using the MKS system.
3. An example of a derived physical quantity is Density which is the mass per
unit volume:
Mass =
Density ≡ Volume Mass
(Length)·(Length)·(Length)

4. Physics uses a lot of formulas and equation. A very powerful tool

in working out physics problems with these formulas and equations is
Dimensional Analysis. The left side of a formula or equation must have
the same dimensions as the right side in terms of the fundamental quantities of
mass, length and time.
5. A very important skill to acquire is the art of guesstimation, approximating
the answer to a problem. Related to that is an appreciation of sizes. Is the
answer to a problem orders of magnitude too big or too small.
Lecture 1: Math Preliminaries and Introduction to Vectors 2

The Standards of Length, Mass, and Time

The three fundamental physical quantities are length, mass, and time.
MASS
The standard mass of 1 Kilogram (kg) is defined as the mass of a platinum–
iridium alloy cylinder (3.9 cm diameter, 3.9 cm height) kept at the International
Bureau of Weights and Measures at Sevres, France.
All countries have duplicates, or secondary standards kept at their own domestic
bureaus of standards. Finally, there are tertiary standards which are available
in all scientific laboratories.
TIME
The standard unit of time, 1 Second (s), used to be defined in terms of the
time it took for the earth to rotate about its axis. Since the earth’s rotation
is now known to be slowing down, that is hardly a good standard. Instead
the standard second is defined in terms of the vibrations of the cesium–133
atom. Specifically
1 Second ≡ 9,192,631,770 vibrations
In fact this a very a useful definition since any laboratory can set up a cesium
clock and calibrate its time measuring equipment.
LENGTH
Formerly, like the mass definition, the definition of the unit length used to be
in terms of a platinum–iridium bar kept in France. Later that was changed in
terms of the wavelength of the orange–red light emitted from a krypton–86 lamp.
Most recently, the unit of length, the meter (m), has been defined in terms of
the distance traveled by light:
1
1 Meter ≡ Distance traveled by light in vacuum during 299,792,458 seconds
In principle, all the units except mass, can defined worldwide without reference
to any particular object.
The abbreviations of the fundamental quantities of length, mass, and time are
mks. All other quantities, we will see, are combinations or derivations from these
fundamental quantities. You must ALWAYS use units in your answers.
Lecture 1: Math Preliminaries and Introduction to Vectors 3

Powers of Ten in the SI Units

A decided advantage of the SI or mks system, compared to the British system
(inches, slugs, etc.), is the use of powers of ten. In addition to the fundamental
units (meter, kilogram, second) one can use prefixes to these units when that
is more convenient. Some of these prefixes are given on pages 5–6, and you
should memorize these. A more extended set of prefixes are is shown in the
table below, taken from page A8 in Appendix F which as the complete set from
10−24 to 10+24 .

Power of 10 Prefix Abbreviation

10−18 atto a
10−15 femto f
10−12 pico p
10−9 nano n
10−6 micro µ
10−3 milli m
10−2 centi c
10−1 deci d
103 kilo k
106 mega M
109 giga G
1012 tera T
1015 peta P
1018 exa E

Note the capitalization of the mega–, tera–, peta–, and exa– prefixes, while all
the other prefixes, including all those with negative powers of ten, have lower
case abbreviations. Typically, for derived units coming from a person’s names
such as volt (V) from Volta, or newton (N) from Issac Newton, these too will
have capital letters in their abbreviations.
You should be familiar with GBytes, meaning 1 billion1 bytes, as a unit of
memory or disk space on a personal computer. It should not be too long before
we see these quantities quoted in units of TBytes. In the high energy nuclear
experiments where I work, we quote our data outputs in units of PBytes, which
is pronounced as peta-Bytes.

1
In British English a billion is what we would call a trillion in America.
Lecture 1: Math Preliminaries and Introduction to Vectors 4

Derived Quantity: Density

Besides the fundamental quantities of length, mass, and time, there are also
many (many) so–called derived quantities which can be always be expressed in
terms of the fundamental quantities. One will also be seeing derived quantities
defined in terms of other derived quantities, but ultimately everything can be
expressed as combinations of length mass and time. For now we look at examples
of such quantities.
Density
Density is the mass of an object divided by its volume. If the object is composed
entirely of one substance, such as iron or gold or water or nitrogen, then the
density will be the same throughout the object. Density is usually given the
Greek symbol ρ (“rho”)
mass m
ρ= = (1a)
volume V
A short table of densities of various substances is given on page 457. By knowing
the density of a substance and the volume of the substance one can find the mass
of the substance according to:
m = ρV (1b)

For example what is the mass of a solid cube of aluminum with a volume of
0.2cm3 ? First realize that aluminum has a density of 2.7 gm/cm3 , and then use
the formula (1b) above
g
m = ρV = 2.7 3
· 0.2(cm)3 = 0.54 gm
(cm)
Finally, one can compute the number atoms N in the above cube by knowing
that in one mole of a substance there are Avogadro’s number of atoms:
1 Mole ≡ Molecular Weight in Grams
Avogadro’s Number (NA ) ≡ 6.02 x 1023 atoms
For aluminum 1 Mole = 27 grams, so:
NA N NA · 0.54 gm
= =⇒ N = = 1.2 x 1022 atoms
27 gm 0.54 gm 27 gm
You should look carefully in the above equations to see how the units in the
denominator and the numerator tend to cancel out such that you get the correct
units in the final answer. We will explore this topic more in the following page.
Lecture 1: Math Preliminaries and Introduction to Vectors 5

Dimensional Analysis
It is important that you realize that all formulas and equations must be dimen-
sionally correct. That is the left side must contain the same dimensions as the
right side. Also, if you add two quantities in a formula, they must have the same
basic dimensions.
For example we will look at the equation for distance traveled given an initial
speed and a constant acceleration. First we have to be told that speed is defined
as distance traveled divided by the time it took to travel that distance:

distance
v≡ =⇒ meters/second =⇒ LT −1
time
Here L and T are the dimensions length and time which are treated as algebraic
quantities.
Next, we have to be told that acceleration is defined as the change in speed
divided by the time it took for that change to occur:

∆v
a≡ =⇒ meters/(second)2 =⇒ LT −2
∆t
Now the formula for the distance traveled x(t) with an initial speed v0 and a
constant acceleration a:
1
x(t) = x0 + v0 · t + a · t2 (2)
2
Dimensional Analysis of this equation
1
L = L + (LT −1 ) · T + (LT −2 ) · T 2
2
L=L
So both sides of the equation are in terms of Length.
Lecture 1: Math Preliminaries and Introduction to Vectors 6

Dimensional Analysis Counter-Example

Contrast the correct Equation 2 with the following incorrect expression

x(t) = at

Dimensional Analysis of this equation

L = (?) (LT −2 ) · T
L 6= LT −1

Units Conversion
Often you will be given a problem in one set of units, but in order to find the
answer you must change to another set of units. For example, change the density
of water from grams/cubic centimeter into kilograms/cubic meter
g
ρwater = 1
(cm)3
10−3 kg
ρwater =
(10−2 m)3
10−3 kg
ρwater =
(10−6 m3 )
kg
ρwater = 10+3 3
m
One cubic centimeter of water contains one gram,

but

one cubic meter of water contains 1,000 kilograms!

Lecture 1: Math Preliminaries and Introduction to Vectors 7

CHAPTER 1: VECTORS

Most physical quantities are either Scalars or Vectors

A scalar is a physical quantity which can be specified by just giving the mag-
nitude only, in appropriate units.

Examples of scalars are mass, time, length, speed.

Scalar quantities may be added by the normal rules of mathematics

A very important class of physical quantity is Vectors.

A vector is characterized by specifying both a magnitude (in the proper units)

AND a direction.

Examples of vector quantities are force, velocity, momentum.

Vector quantities are added together by a special rule of vector addition.

There are two methods of doing vector addition:
1) Graphical addition (triangle, parallelogram, or polygon methods)
2) Analytic method — addition of the vector components
a) first: resolve the vectors into their X and Y components
b) second: add the vector X and Y components separately
c) third: use the Pythagorean theorem to form the resultant vector

The displacement vector is the vector which characterizes the change in po-
sition of a particle.
There are two ways of multiplying two vectors:
~·B
1) The scalar or dot product generates a scalar s ≡ A ~ of magnitude
ABcos θAB
~ ≡A
2) The vector or cross product generates a vector C ~ ×B ~ whose magni-
tude C = ABsin θAB and whose direction is by the right-hand rule.
Lecture 1: Math Preliminaries and Introduction to Vectors 8

Vectors and Scalars

Some quantities in physics such as mass, length, or time are called scalars.
A quantity is a scalar if it obeys the ordinary mathematical rules of addition
and subtraction. All that is required to specify these quantities is a magnitude
expressed in an appropriate units.
A very important class of physical quantities are specified not only by their
magnitudes, but also by their directions. Perhaps the most important of these
quantities is FORCE. Consider a heavy trunk on a smooth (almost slippery)
floor, weighing say 100 pounds. You want to move the trunk but you are only
able to lift 50 pounds.

What do you do?

A vector must always be specified by giving its magnitude and direction. In

turn the vector’s direction must be given with respect to some known direction
such as the horizontal or the vertical direction, or perhaps with respect to some
pre–defined “X” axis.

The specification of the magnitude and direction does not have to be direct or
explicit. The specification can be indirect or implicit by giving the “X” and “Y”
components of the vector, and it is up to you to use the Pythagorean theorem
to calculate the actual magnitude and direction.
(Do you remember your trigonometry?)

1) What is a right triangle ? How many degrees are there in a triangle ?

2) What are the definitions of sine, cosine, and tangent ?
3) What is the Pythagorean theorem ?
4) What is the law of sines ?
5) What is the law of cosines ?
6) What is a radian ?
Lecture 1: Math Preliminaries and Introduction to Vectors 9

Vector Addition by Graphical Means

Depiction of Vectors

A vector is represented by an arrow (a line with an arrowhead).

The length of the line is in some proportion to the magnitude of the vector.
The orientation of the line reflects the direction of the vector

How do I know that this is a vector and not just another arrow?
Answer: If it’s a vector, it must add like a vector
In order to add, I must have another vector. With two vectors, I can add them
together to form a RESULTANT.

Two vectors, A ~ and B, ~ can be added graphically by the simple triangle rule:
Place the tail of the second vector at the head of the first vector, and then draw
a line from the tail of the first vector to the head of the second vector. That
line, both in magnitude and direction is the sum (Resultant) of the two original
vectors.

~ =A
R ~ +B
~

If there are more than two vectors to be added, say A ~+B ~ +C ~ + D,

~ then the
triangle rule is simply extended to the polygon rule. Just keep placing the tail of
the next vector at the head of the preceding vector. The resultant is represented
by a line from the tail of the first vector to the head of the last vector.

~ =A
R ~ +B
~ +C
~ +D
~
Properties of Vector Addition
~+B
1) Vector addition is commutative: A ~ =B
~ +A
~
~ + (B
2) Vector addition is associative: A ~ + C)
~ = (A
~ + B)
~ +C
~

A scalar may multiply a vector e.g. 2A. ~ This produces a vector twice as large
as the original vector, and in the same direction as the original vector. On the
other hand −0.5A ~ produces a vector half the size of the original vector, and in
the opposite direction to the original vector’s direction.
Lecture 1: Math Preliminaries and Introduction to Vectors 10

Analytic Addition of Vectors using Vector Components

The graphical addition of vectors is not terribly convenient, especially if a nu-

merical solution is required. Much more often you will have to add vectors
analytically. By that is meant that you first resolve the vectors into their per-
pendicular components, then add the components by ordinary mathematics,
and finally reconstitute the resultant with trigonometry and the Pythagorean
theorem.

Resolving a vector into its perpendicular components.

Say that you are given a vector A ~ oriented at an angle θ with respect to the x
(horizontal) axis. This original vector may be resolved into two perpendicular
components, A ~x and A ~y which replace A.~
In other words, the original vector no longer exists, and one has two mutually
perpendicular vectors in its place.

The magnitudes of the two component vectors are given by:

Ax = A cos θ
Ay = A sin θ

The directions of the two component vectors are given by two unit vectors, ~i
and ~j along the x and y directions respectively:

~x = Ax~i
A
~y = Ax~j
A

Clearly the above process can be run backwards. One can obtain back the
~ by using trigonometry:
original vector A
q
For the magnitude use the Pythagorean theorem: A = A2x + A2y . For the
direction use the right triangle trigonometry definitions: tan θ = Ay /Ax =⇒ θ =
tan−1 Ay /Ax
Lecture 1: Math Preliminaries and Introduction to Vectors 11

Analytic Addition of Vectors using Vector Components

The graphical addition of vectors is not terribly convenient, especially if a nu-

merical solution is required. Much more often you will have to add vectors
analytically. By that is meant that you first resolve the vectors into their per-
pendicular components, then add the components by ordinary mathematics,
and finally reconstitute the resultant with trigonometry and the Pythagorean
theorem.

~ now take another vector B

Instead of one vector A, ~
~ is at an angle α, and B
Let’s say A ~ is at an angle β
The vector sum of A ~ and B~ is denoted by R~

~ =A
R ~ +B
~

This can be solved component–by–component

Rx = Ax + Bx
Ry = Ay + By

~ First the magnitude

Now solve for R.

r q
R = Rx2 + Ry2 = (Ax + Bx )2 + (Ay + By )2

~ which we symbolize as γ
And now the direction of R
Ry (Ay + By )
γ = tan−1 = tan−1
Rx (Ax + Bx )
Lecture 1: Math Preliminaries and Introduction to Vectors 12

Analytic Addition of Vectors using Vector Components

The graphical addition of vectors is not terribly convenient, especially if a nu-

merical solution is required. Much more often you will have to add vectors
analytically. By that is meant that you first resolve the vectors into their per-
pendicular components, then add the components by ordinary mathematics,
and finally reconstitute the resultant with trigonometry and the Pythagorean
theorem.

TABLE FORM OF ANALYTIC ADDITION

Vector Angle Magn. of x component Magn. of y component
~
A α A cos α A sin α
~
B β B cos β B sin β
~
R γ = tan−1 Ry
Rx = A cos α + B cos β Ry = A sin α + B sin β
Rx

Worked Example
A hiker walks 25 km due southeast (= −45o ) the first day, and 40 km at
60o north of east. What is her total displacement for the two days?

~ being the first day’s displacement

Arrange the problem in the table above with A
~ being the second day’s displacement:
and B

Vector Angle Magn. of x component Magn. of y component

(km) (o ) (km) (km)
A = 25 −45 A cos (−45) = A sin (−45) =
B = 40 +60 B cos (+60) = B sin (+60) =
Ry
R= γ = tan−1 R x
= Rx = Ry =
Lecture 1: Math Preliminaries and Introduction to Vectors 13

Analytic Addition of Vector Components

Worked Example
You are given a displacement of 20 km to the West, and a second displacement
at 10 km to the North. What is the sum of the two displacements?

Vector Angle Magn. of x component Magn. of y component

(km) (o ) (km) (km)
Vector Angle Magn. of x component Magn. of y component
(km) (o ) (km) (km)
A = 20 +180 A cos (+180) = A sin (+180) =
B = 10 +90 B cos (+90) = B sin (+90) =
Ry
R= γ = tan−1 R x
= Rx = Ry =

WARNING Know your quadrants !!