PHYSICS 1

L. Chisanu
0995 446 626
0884 945 925
[email protected]
[email protected]

Physics Department

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 PHYSICS 101 – COURSE INFORMATION

 Introduction to Physics I is a first-year algebra-based

course. Introduction to Physics I includes:
 First Semester (physics)
 Measurement and units
 mechanics
 waves
 Nuclear physics

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 LEARNING METHODS/ ACTIVITIES
 Lectures
 Discussions
 Demonstrations
 presentations

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REFERENCE AND RECOMMENDED TEXT

 Muncaster, R. (1993). A-Level Physics.

 Nelkon, M. and Parker, P. (1990). Advanced Level Physics.
Heinemann, London
 Serway, R.A College Physics

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 ASSESSMENT

Continuous assessment 30%
Assignments and Quizzes
Laboratories
Midterm
 Final (Comprehensive) 70%
 Total 100%

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 ASSESSMENT
 For material submitted for assessment, be sure to
show your work.
 The bulk of the marks for a multi-mark problem

on assignments and exams are allotted to the

work that leads to your final answer.
The general problem solving method where you
define variables
 state the equations
 solve and then state the solution with
appropriate units and significant figures
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 Learning Objectives

 The student is expected to become proficient in the

following topics.
 unit/dimension analysis, standard units, unit conversion, an
introduction to error analysis, scientific, notation, significant
digits, problem solving, and order of magnitude calculations.

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 PHYSICS
 The branch of science dealing with matter, energy and the interaction
between them.
 It is a science of matter, energy, space and time. Energy may be in the
form of light, motion, electricity, radiation, etcetera.
 Uses scientific method to formulate and test hypotheses/ideas that are
based on observation of the natural world.

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 PHYSICS
 It is an exact science because reproducible experiments are
conducted and observations are made with high precision
instruments.
 Laws and theories are formulated from measured results of

experiments and are used to predict the results of new

experiments.

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 PHYSICS
 Activities and interests evolve with time, physics also changes
with time
 Physicists gradually abandon a field once the basic principles

are known leaving further developments and practical

applications to others.
 Physics is everywhere; on the chair, cell phone, shoes,etcetera .

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 BRANCHES OF PHYSICS
 Mechanics  Nuclear physics

 Optics  Atomic physics

 Thermodynamics  Biophysics.

 All subfields of physics have just a few fundamental laws

derived from experimental measurements. Application of these

laws is usually straight forward even though at times the details are
complicated.

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 THE MATHEMATICS.
 Most fundamental relationships are expressed concisely in
mathematical form so that a lot of information is implicitly
contained in a single equation.
 Willingness to use a considerable amount of mathematics is

important
 High school algebra and geometry are good starting points and

other post-high school mathematic will also be used mostly for

derivation.

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 PHYSICS AND FUNDAMENTAL
QUANTITIES
 The goal of physics is to provide an understanding of the
physical world by developing theories based on experiments.
 A physical theory is essentially a guess, usually expressed
mathematically, about how a given physical system works
 The basic laws of physics involve such physical quantities as
force, velocity, volume, and acceleration, all of which can be
described in terms of more fundamental quantities
 In physics, the three most fundamental quantities are length
(L), mass (M), and time (T); all other physical quantities can
be constructed from these three.
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STANDARDS OF LENGTH, MASS, AND TIME

 To communicate the result of a measurement of a certain

physical quantity, a unit for the quantity must be defined.
 In 1960, an international committee agreed on a standard

system of units for the fundamental quantities of science,

called SI (Système International)

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UNITS (Systéme Internationale)
Dimension SI (mks) Unit Definition

Length meters (m) Distance traveled by light in

1/(299,792,458) s

Mass kilogram (kg) Mass of a specific platinum-

iridium allow cylinder kept by
Intl. Bureau of Weights and
Measures at Sèvres, France
Time seconds (s) 9,192,631,700 oscillations of
cesium atom

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 The Seven Base SI Units

Quantity Unit Symbol

Length meter m
Mass kilogram kg
Temperature kelvin K
Time second s
Amount of Substance mole mol

Luminous Intensity candela cd

Electric Current ampere a
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DERIVED QUANTITIES AND UNITS
 Multiply and divide units just like numbers
 Derived quantities: area, speed, volume, density
……
 Area = Length  Length SI unit for area = m2
 Volume = Length  Length  Length SI unit for volume
= m3
 Speed = Length / time SI unit for speed =
m/s
 Density = Mass / Volume SI unit for density =
kg/m3
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 Derived SI Units (examples)
Quantity unit Symbol
Volume cubic meter m3
Density kilograms per cubic kg/m3
meter
Speed meter per second m/s
Newton kg m/ s2 N
Energy Joule (kg m2/s2) J
Pressure Pascal (kg/(ms2) Pa
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Scientific Notation

M x 10 n

 M is the coefficient 1<M<10

 10 is the base

 n is the exponent or power of 10

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Prefixes for SI Units
 3,000 m = 3  1,000 m 10x Prefix Symbol
= 3  103 m = 3 km x=18 exa E
 1,000,000,000 = 109 = 1G 15 peta P
 1,000,000 = 106 = 1M 12 tera T
 1,000 = 103 = 1k 9 giga G
6 mega M
 141 kg = ? g 3 kilo k
 1 GB = ? Byte = ? MB 2 hecto h
1 deca da

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 SI Unit Prefixes- Part II

Name Symbol Factor

deci- d 10-1
centi- c 10-2
milli- m 10-3
micro- μ 10-6
nano- n 10-9
pico- p 10-12
femto- f 10 -15
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Length, Mass, Time

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 OTHER UNIT SYSTEM
 U.S. customary system: foot, slug, second
 Cgs system: cm, gram, second
 We will use SI units in this course, but it is useful to know
conversions between systems.
 1 mile = 1609 m = 1.609 km 1 ft = 0.3048 m = 30.48 cm
 1 m = 39.37 in. = 3.281 ft 1 in. = 0.0254 m = 2.54 cm
 1 lb = 0.465 kg 1 oz = 28.35 g 1 slug = 14.59 kg
 1 day = 24 hours = 24 * 60 minutes = 24 * 60 * 60 seconds

 More can be found in Appendices A & D in your textbook.

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FACTOR-LABEL METHOD OF UNIT CONVERSION

 Example: Convert 5km to m:

 Multiply the original measurement by a conversion factor.

NEW UNIT
85km x 1,000m = 85,000m
1km
OLD UNIT

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DIMENSIONS, UNITS AND EQUATIONS
 Quantities have dimensions:
 Length – L, Mass – M, and Time - T
 Quantities have units: Length – m, Mass – kg, Time –
s
 To refer to the dimension of a quantity, use square
brackets, e.g. [F] means dimensions of force.

Quantity Area Volume Speed Acceleration

Dimension [A] = L2 [V] = L3 [v] = L/T [a] = L/T2
SI Units m2 m3 m/s m/s2

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 DIMENSIONAL ANALYSIS
 Dimensional analysis is a conceptual tool often applied in physics,
chemistry, and engineering to understand physical situations involving
certain physical quantities. It is routinely used by mathematicians,
statisticians, physical scientists and engineers to check the plausibility of
derived equation.
 Necessary either to derive a math expression, or equation or to check its

correctness.
 Quantities can be added/subtracted only if they have the same
dimensions.
 The terms of both sides of an equation must have the same dimensions.

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CONSERVATION OF UNITS IN AN EQUATION

 Principle of conservation of units:

 units on the left side of an equation must be the same as those on the right side of
an equation
 dimensional homogeneity

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 DIMENSIONAL ANALYSIS
1 2
x f  xi  vi t  at
2
(L/T2)T2=L

L
(L/T)T=L

• Each term must have same dimension

• Two variables can not be added if dimensions are different
• Multiplying variables is always fine
• Numbers (e.g. 1/2 or p) are dimensionless

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 UNITS VS. DIMENSIONS
 Dimensions: L, T, M, L/T …
 Units: m, mm, cm, kg, g, mg, s, hr, years …
 When equation is all algebra: check dimensions
 When numbers are inserted: check units
 Units obey same rules as dimensions:
Never add terms with different units
 Angles are dimensionless but have units (degrees or radians)
 In physics sin(Y) or cos(Y) never occur unless Y is dimensionless

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 SUMMARY
 The three fundamental physical dimensions of mechanics are
length, mass and time, which in the SI system have the units
meter (m), kilogram (kg), and second (s), respectively
 The method of dimensional analysis is very powerful in

solving physics problems.

 Units in physics equations must always be consistent.

Converting units is a matter of multiplying the given quantity

by a fraction, with one unit in the numerator and its
equivalent in the other units in the denominator, arranged so
the unwanted units in the given quantity are cancelled out in
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favor of the desired units.
 IMPORTANT
 Focus attention on the basic principles
 Avoid memorizing a mass of facts or formulae.
 As a basic science, Physics is not particularly easy but it is very
rewarding.
 There is no gender discrimination with physics, both males and
females can excel!
 Ease or Difficulty starts with the attitude of your mind (90% attitude,
10% aptitude).

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Looking forward to learning with
you!
Enjoy Physics.

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