Concise Dictionary Of Physics

Sudhir Dawra Dr.

Description

The book is designed to provide you with dictionaries of terms in physics to make science simpler for you. The terms have been arranged alphabetically for quick reference. Suitable explanations of terms that have come into public domain recently also find mention. The standard of explanation has been kept at a level of understanding expected from an average secondary and senior secondary student. Illustrations and examples, at appropriate places, have been given. Readers who have not made a special study of any science subject will have also be able to grasp the definitions. A glossary of Nobel Prize winners and their contributions is an added attraction. #v&spublishers

Sujets

• Dictionaries
• Reference work
• Physics
• Dictionary

Informations

• Publié par: V & S Publishers
• Date de parution: 01 février 2013
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9789350573310
• Langue: English
• Poids de l'ouvrage: 2 Mo

Extrait

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© Copyright: ISBN 978-935-05733-1-0
DISCLAIMER
While every attempt has been made to provide accurate and timely information in this book, neither the author nor the publisher assumes any responsibility for errors, unintended omissions or commissions detected therein. The author and publisher make no representation or warranty with respect to the comprehensiveness or completeness of the contents provided.
All matters included have been simplified under professional guidance for general information only without any warranty for applicability on an individual. Any mention of an organization or a website in the book by way of citation or as a source of additional information doesn't imply the endorsement of the content either by the author or the publisher. It is possible that websites cited may have changed or removed between the time of editing and publishing the book.
Results from using the expert opinion in this book will be totally dependent on individual circumstances and factors beyond the control of the author and the publisher.
It makes sense to elicit advice from well informed sources before implementing the ideas given in the book. The reader assumes full responsibility for the consequences arising out from reading this book. For proper guidance, it is advisable to read the book under the watchful eyes of parents/guardian. The purchaser of this book assumes all responsibility for the use of given materials and information. The copyright of the entire content of this book rests with the author/publisher. Any infringement/ transmission of the cover design, text or illustrations, in any form, by any means, by any entity will invite legal action and be responsible for consequences thereon.
Contents
Publisher's Note
Introduction
        A
        B
        C
        D
        E
        F
        G
        H
        I
        J
        K
        L
        M
        N
        O
        P
        Q
        R
        S
        T
        U
        V
        W
        X
        Y
        Z
Appendices Appendix – I
Appendix – II
Appendix – III
Appendix – IV
Appendix – V
Publisher's Note
Innumerable books are available in the market on science and its allied branches, like, physics, chemistry, and biology et al, both as textbook and reference manual. Written for different age-groups and class, quite a number of these books come replete with jargon-filled terms; and just fail to connect with readers’ inclination and curiosity level. On top of that, new words keep finding their way into the books every other day. Every new addition contributes to difficulty in comprehending the matter.
An average reader is interested only in knowing what a specific word means without getting lost with heavy sounding inputs.
Following an open-ended discussion with a cross-section of students and other stakeholders we realised that many books on science (physics, chemistry and biology) take readers’ understanding of scientific terms for granted and make short passing references while alluding to the term in the text. Presentations of this nature in no way assist readers in understanding the subject properly.
You need to suffer no longer.
V&S Publishers has come out with four dictionaries of terms; in science, physics, chemistry and biology. These have been compiled to help readers grasp the meaning of popular scientific terms. For easy reference terms have been arranged alphabetically. Terms that have come into the reckoning even in the early 2012 have been incorporated and suitably explained in such a way that an average secondary and senior secondary student can grasp them easily. High resolution images, illustrations and examples, where appropriate, have been added for reader's convenience. For all readers, who have not made a special study of any science subject, explanations of terms will be found to be easily comprehensible.
An attempt has been made to include important scientific charts, tables, constants, conversion tables as appendices to make this dictionary more useful. A glossary of Nobel Prize winners and their contributions is an added attraction.
We would be happy to have your views and comments about the book.
Introduction
What is Physics?
Physics is the systematic study of the way matters interact. It is really concerned with how things move and what causes things to move. Things can be as large as a star or small as an atom.
Why is study of physics important?
Studying the way things move and interact is fundamentally useful in everyday life. Have you given a thought how our brain functions? It uses an automatic understanding of physics, for example, being able to walk or balancing ourselves requires our brains to make lots of calculations about friction and forces.
Physics is crucial to virtually all of our modern technology, conveniences and infrastructure from computers to cameras and everyday appliances.
It is useful in everyday situations. Having an awareness of physics can help explain:
Significance of apple falling from a tree
Difficulty in walking on sand
How our eyes function
Big bang and the origin of Earth
Why we get tired
How water boils or freezes
How simple machines work
How is Physics Classified?
Typically physics is classified into traditional areas of study. These include:
Atomic/nuclear – The scientific study of the structure of an atom, its energy states, and its interactions with other particles and with electric and magnetic fields. Atomic physics has proved to be a spectacularly successful application of quantum mechanics, which is one of the cornerstones of modern physics.
Mechanics – The scientific study of motion of bodies under the action of forces, including the special case in which a body remains at rest. In the problem of motion are the forces that bodies exert on one another. This leads to the study of such topics as gravitation, electricity, and magnetism, according to the nature of the forces involved. Given the forces, one can seek the manner in which bodies move under the action of forces.
Electromagnetism – The study of charge and of the forces and fields associated with charge. Electricity and magnetism are two aspects of electromagnetism. Electric forces are produced by electric charges either at rest or in motion. Magnetic forces, on the other hand, are produced only by moving charges and act solely on charges in motion. Electricity and magnetism were long thought to be separate forces. It was not until the 19th century that they were finally treated as interrelated phenomena. At a practical level, however, electric and magnetic forces behave quite differently and are described by different equations.
Thermodynamics – The study of relationship between heat, work, temperature, and energy. In broad terms, thermodynamics deals with the transfer of energy from one place to another and from one form to another. The key concept is that heat is a form of energy corresponding to a definite amount of mechanical work.
Quantum physics – The study of scientific principles that explains the behaviour of matter and its interactions with energy on the scale of atoms and atomic particles (small scale). In classical physics, matter and energy at the macroscopic level (large scale) of the scale familiar to human experience is studied.
Optics – The study of science concerning the production and propagation of light, the changes that it undergoes and produces, and other phenomena closely associated with it. There are two major branches of optics – physical and geometrical. Physical optics deals primarily with the nature and properties of light itself. Geometrical optics has to do with the principles that govern the image-forming properties of lenses, mirrors, and other devices that make use of light.
Acoustics – The study of science concerning production, control, transmission, reception, and effects of sound.
How does Physics Work?
One way that physicists currently study things is by measuring the basic forces that exist in the universe. These forces are:
The Strong Force (forces inside the nucleus of atoms) – The forces that operate inside the nucleus are a mixture of those familiar from everyday life and those that operate only inside the atom. Two protons, for example, will repel each other because of their identical electrical force but will be attracted to each other by gravitation. Nevertheless, because the nucleus stays together in spite of the repulsive electrical force between protons, there must exist a counterforce-which physicists have named the strong force-operating at short range within the nucleus.
The Weak Force (relates to how atoms decay) – The weak force operates inside the nucleus. The weak force is responsible for some of the radioactive decays of nuclei. The four fundamental forces-strong, electromagnetic, weak, and gravitational-are responsible for every process in the universe. One of the important strains in modern theoretical physics is the belief that, although they seem very different, they are different aspects of a single underlying force.
The Electromagnetic Force (forces created by moving electrons including light)
The Gravitational Force (how things fall)
Most everyday physics is a result of the electromagnetic force and gravitational force.
How is Physics Studied?
The basic principle of studying physics is to measure things. For e