Form 4 Physics Terms and Definition
Form 4 Physics Terms and Definition
Base Quantities
Name
Length Time Mass Electric Current Thermodynamic Temperature Amount of substance Luminous intensity m I T n Lv N J
Symbol
SI base unit
Meter (m) Second (s) Kilogram (kg) Ampere (A) Kelvin (K) mole Candela
Important
Terms
Scalars Vectors Precision Accuracy Sensitivity Systematic error Zero error Random error Parallax error Inertia Newtons First Law of Motion
Definition
Quantities described by a magnitude (numerical value) alone. Quantities described by a magnitude and direction. Ability of an instrument in measuring a quantity in a consistent manner with only a small relative deviation between readings. Approximation of the measurement to the actual value for a certain quantity of physics. Ability of an instrument to detect small changes in quantity that is being measured. Errors which tend to shift all measurements in a systematic way so that their mean value is displaced. Systematic errors can be compensated if the errors are know. Arises when the measuring doest not start exactly from zero. Arise from unknown and unpredictable variation in condition. Error in reading an instrument due to the eye of the observer and the pointer are not in a line perpendicular to the plane of the scale. Tendency of an object to remain at rest/keep moving at a constant speed in a straight line. Also known as Law of Inertia. Definition : Every object in a state of uniform motion tends to remain in that state of motion unless an external force is applied to it.
The acceleration of a body, a, is directly proportional to the net force acting upon it, F, and inversely proportional to its mass, m.
Change of momentum
Impulsive force
Weight
For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. Product of the applied force and the distance moved in the direction of force
Potential or ability of a system to do work. Energy an object has due to its motion.
The ratio at which useful output energy is compared to the input energy. Ability of an object to return to its original shape and size after the external force applied onto it has been removed. Extension of a spring is directly proportional to the force acting on it provided the elastic limit of the spring has not been exceeded. Maximum weight that can be loaded on a spring so that it remain elastic. Force which is acts per unit are of contact
Pascals Principle
When pressure is applied to an enclosed fluid, the pressure will be transmitted equally throughout the whole fluid.
Archimedes Principle
When an object is immersed in a fluid, the buoyant force on the object is equal to the weight of fluid displaced by the object
When the speed of a fluid increases, the internal pressure in the fluid decreases and vice-versa. The net transfer of heat is zero or the two objects have the same temperature. A measure of the degree of hotness of a body. A form of energy transferred from a hotter body to a colder body. Amount of heat required to change the temperature by 1C for a mass of one kg of the substance.