Physics

Physics I (BAS I
Spring 2019
021)
(Bas 021)-Fall 2017

Lecture 1

Physics and Measurements

Physics
• Physics is based on experimental observations and
quantitative measurements.
• The main objectives of physics are to identify a
limited number of fundamental laws that govern
natural phenomena and use them to develop
theories that can predict the results of future
experiments.
Physics and measurement
• Units for measurement
• Measurement of a physical quantity involves its comparison with a
chosen standard of the same kind as the physical quantity.
• The chosen standard of same kind taken as reference in order to
measure a physical quantity is called the unit of that quantity.
• The meaning of measurement of a physical quantity is to find out
the number of times, its unit is contained in that physical quantity.
Therefore, the process of measurement of a physical quantity
involves :
(i) The selection of unit and
(ii) To find out the number of times that unit is contained in the physical quantity.
Characteristics of standard for measurements

1. It should be well defined.

2. It should be of suitable size i.e. neither too large
nor too small in comparison to the quantity to be
measured.
3. It should be easily reproducible (‫ )قابلة للتكرار‬at all
places.
4. It should not change with time and from place to
place.
5. It should not change with change in its physical
conditions, such as temperature, pressure, etc.
6. It should be easily accessible.
Units for measurement
• Measurement of a physical quantity involves its
comparison with a chosen standard of the same kind as
the physical quantity.
• The chosen standard of same kind taken as reference in
order to measure a physical quantity is called the unit
of that quantity.
• The meaning of measurement of a physical quantity is
to find out the number of times, its unit is contained in
that physical quantity. Therefore, the process of
measurement of a physical quantity involves :
– The selection of unit and
– To find out the number of times that unit is contained in the physical
quantity.
SI unit for 3 Basic Quantities
• Many possible choices for units of Length,
Mass, Time
• In 1960, standards bodies control and
define Système Internationale (SI) unit
as,
– LENGTH: Meter
– MASS: Kilogram
– TIME: Second
Basic Quantities and Their Units
Other Systems

• Cgs system: cm, gram, second.

• U.S. customary system: foot, slug, second.
Still used in the US, but we will use SI
Quantities Used in Mechanics
•In mechanics, three fundamental quantities
are used:
– Length
– Mass
– Time
•All other quantities in mechanics can be
expressed in terms of the three fundamental
quantities.
Length
•Length is the distance between two points in
space.
•SI Units: meter, m
•Defined in terms of a meter, the distance traveled
by light in a vacuum during a given time.
Measuring length
Mass
•Defined in terms of a kilogram, the mass of a specific
platinum–iridium alloy cylinder kept at the
International Bureau of Weights and Measures at
Sèvres, France.
•SI Units: kilogram, kg.
Measuring mass
Time
• Defined in terms of the oscillation of radiation
from a cesium atom
• SI Units: seconds, s
• One second is now defined as 9 192 631 770
times the period of vibration of radiation from
the cesium-133 atom.
Measuring time
Derived Units
More units (derived units) are built up from the units of
length, mass and time.
Derived quantities can be expressed as a mathematical
combination of fundamental (basic) quantities.
Examples:
• Area: is a measure of surface, units (m2)
• Volume: the volume of an object is the amount of space
that is occupies, units (m3)
• Density: it is the amount of matter that is present in a
certain volume of it, i.e. mass/volume, units kg/m3
 Derived Units
• Speed: distance/time, units ( m/s)
• Acceleration: change in velocity/time, units (m/s/s = m/s2)
• Force: mass × acceleration, units (kg.m/s2 = N (Newton))
1 newton (1N) = 105 dyne
1 pound (1b) = 4.45 N
• Pressure: force/area
1 bar = 1.01 x 105 pa (1 N/m2)
1 atmosphere (1 atm) = 1.01 x 105 pa (1 N/m2)
=760 torr = 76 cm of Hg
Derived Units
• Energy , work , thermal energy
Work = force × length, units (kg.m/s2 = N
(Newton))
1 Joul (J) = 107 ergs = 1 N.m
1 Calorie (Cal) = 4.185 J
• Power: work/time
1 watt (w) = 1 J / sec
1 horse power (hp) = 746 w
• charge (Q): current x time, units: As = C (Coulomb)
Mathematical formulas
Reasonableness of Results
•When solving a problem, you need to check
your answer to see if it seems reasonable.
•Reviewing the previous tables of approximate
values for length, mass, and time will help you
test for reasonableness.
Prefixes
•Prefixes correspond to powers of 10.
•Each prefix has a specific name.
•Each prefix has a specific abbreviation.
•The prefixes can be used with any basic units.
•They are multipliers of the basic unit.
•Examples:
– 1 mm = 10-3 m
– 1 mg = 10-3 g
Prefixes for SI Units
Basic Quantities and Their Dimension
•Dimension has a specific meaning, it denotes the
physical nature of a quantity.
• Dimensions are often denoted with square brackets.
– Length [L]
– Mass [M]
– Time [T]
• Each dimension can have many actual units.
• see next table for the dimensions and units of some
derived quantities
Dimensional Analysis Warming-up
Dimensional Analysis
• A Technique to check the correctness of an
equation or to assist in deriving an equation.
• Dimensions (length, mass, time, combinations)
can be treated as algebraic quantities: Add,
subtract, multiply, divide
• Both sides of equation must have the same
dimensions.
• Any relationship can be correct only if the
dimensions on both sides of the equation are the
same.
Dimensional Analysis
• The derived units of all physical quantities can
be suitably expressed in terms of the basic
units of mass, length and time raised to some
power.
• For example, if units of mass, length and time
are denoted by bracketed capital letters [M],
[L] and [T], then for area = (length x width), we
have area = [L] × [L] = [L2]
Dimensional Analysis
• To add or subtract any two physical quantities
they must have the same units.
• Example:
We cannot add or subtract mass and time, because
they haven’t the same units:
3 kg. + 5 sec. = x
But we can add or subtract work and energy
because they have the same units:
5 Joule – 2 Joule = 3 Joule
Dimensional Analysis – example1
Dimensional Analysis – example2
Conversion of Units
Conversion of Units – Example1
Conversion of Units – Example2
Reference:
Physics for Scientists and Engineers with Modern
Physics, 8th Ed., Raymond A. Serway and John W.
Jewett, Jr., 2014