Physics I For Dummies

Steven Holzner

• Publisher: For Dummies
• Year: 2022
• Print ISBN: 9781119872221
• eBook ISBN: 9781119872245
• Edition: 3
• Topic: Physical Sciences
• Subtopic: Mathematical & Computational Physics

An easy-to-follow guide to introductory physics, from the Big Bang to relativity

All science, technology, engineering, and math majors in college and university require some familiarity with physics. Other career paths, like medicine, are also only open to students who understand this fundamental science. But don't worry if you find physics to be intimidating or confusing. You just need the right guide!

In Physics I For Dummies, you'll find a roadmap to physics success that walks you through every major topic in introductory physics, including motion, energy, waves, thermodynamics, electromagnetism, relativity, and more. You'll learn the basic principles and math formulas of physics through clear and straightforward examples and instruction, and without unnecessary jargon or complicated theory.

In this book, you'll also find:

• Up-to-date examples and explanations appearing alongside the latest discoveries and research in physics, discussed at a level appropriate for beginning students
• All the info found in an intro physics course, arranged in an intuitive sequence that will give first-year students a head start in their high school or college physics class
• The latest teaching techniques to ensure that you remember and retain what you read and practice in the book

Physics I For Dummies is proof that physics can fun, accessible, challenging, and rewarding, all at the same time! Whether you're a high school or undergraduate student looking for a leg-up on basic physics concepts or you're just interested in how our universe works, this book will help you understand the thermodynamic, electromagnetic, relativistic, and everything in between.

Part 1

Putting Physics into Motion

IN THIS PART …

Part 1 is designed to give you an introduction to the ways of physics. Motion is one of the easiest physics topics to work with, and you can become a motion meister with just a few equations. This part also arms you with foundational info on math and measurement to show how physics equations describe the world around you. Just plug in the numbers, and you can make calculations that astound your peers.

Chapter 1

Using Physics to Understand Your World

IN THIS CHAPTER

Recognizing the physics in your world

Understanding motion

Handling the force and energy around you

Getting hot under the collar with thermodynamics

Physics is the study of the world and universe around you. Luckily, the behavior of the matter and energy — the stuff of this universe — is not completely unruly. Instead, it strictly obeys laws, which physicists are gradually revealing through the careful application of the scientific method, which relies on experimental evidence and sound rigorous reasoning. In this way, physicists have been uncovering more and more of the beauty that lies at the heart of the workings of the universe, from the infinitely small to the mind-bogglingly large.

Physics is an all-encompassing science. You can study various aspects of the natural world (in fact, the word physics is derived from the Greek word physika, which means “natural things”), and accordingly, you can study different fields in physics: the physics of objects in motion, of energy, of forces, of gases, of heat and temperature, and so on. You enjoy the study of all these topics and many more in this book. In this chapter, we give an overview of physics — what it is, what it deals with, and why mathematical calculations are important to it — to get you started.

What Physics Is All About

Many people are a little on edge when they think about physics. For them, the subject seems like some highbrow topic that pulls numbers and rules out of thin air. But the truth is that physics exists to help you make sense of the world. Physics is a human adventure, undertaken on behalf of everyone, into the way the world works.

At its root, physics is all about becoming aware of your world and using mental and mathematical models to explain it. The gist of physics is this: You start by making an observation, you create a model to simulate that situation, and then you add some math to fill it out — and voilà! You have the power to predict what will happen in the real world. All this math exists to help you see what happens and why.

In this section, we explain how real-world observations fit in with the math. The later sections take you on a brief tour of the key topics that comprise basic physics.

Observing the world

You can observe plenty going on around you in your complex world. Leaves are waving, the sun is shining, light bulbs are glowing, cars are moving, computer printers are printing, people are walking and riding bikes, streams are flowing, and so on. When you stop to examine these actions, your natural curiosity gives rise to endless questions such as these

• Why do I slip when I try to climb that snowbank?
• How distant are other stars, and how long would it take to get there?
• How does an airplane wing work?
• How can a thermos flask keep hot things warm and keep cold things cool?
• Why does an enormous cruise ship float when a paper clip sinks?
• Why does water roll around when it boils?

Any law of physics comes from very close observation of the world, and any theory that a physicist comes up with has to stand up to experimental measurements. Physics goes beyond qualitative statements about physical things — “If I push the child on the swing harder, then she swings higher,” for example. With the laws of physics, you can predict precisely how high the child ...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Title Page
• Table of Contents
• Introduction
• Part 1: Putting Physics into Motion
• Part 2: May the Forces of Physics Be with You
• Part 3: Manifesting the Energy to Work
• Part 4: Laying Down the Laws of Thermodynamics
• Part 5: The Part of Tens
• Glossary
• Index
• About the Author
• Connect with Dummies
• End User License Agreement