Practical Physics

Upon completion of the course the student will be able to:

1. Explain/define terms and quantities encountered: displacement, velocity/speed, acceleration, free-fall, scalar, vector resultant, vector component, equilibrium, mass, weight, force, free body diagram, centre of gravity, torque, lever arm, friction, work, kinetic energy, potential energy, power, momentum, impulse, moment of inertia, angular displacement, angular velocity, angular acceleration, centripetal force, centripetal acceleration, density, pressure, fluid pressure, temperature, thermal energy, specific heat, latent heat, heat conduction, convection, radiation, electric charge, electrical conductor, insulator, electric field, electric potential difference/voltage, resistance, current, electromotive force.
2. Identify the appropriate SI units for the quantities encountered.
3. State the major principles/laws encountered: first and second conditions for equilibrium, Newton’s three laws of motion, law of universal gravitation, work-energy theorem, principles of conservation of energy and momentum, Archimedes’ principle, Coulomb’s law, Ohm’s law.
4. Add vector quantities using the geometric and component (trigonometry) methods.
5. Apply the laws/principles to the solution of numerical problems encountered in the textbook and in the laboratory.
6. Perform basic experiments in mechanics, heat and electricity and analyze the data obtained using appropriate graphing techniques, scientific notation, significant figures and experimental uncertainty considerations.