Chapter 1: Intro. the nature of science and physics
Study online at https://quizlet.com/_4y0dp2
1. Physics describes the interactions of energy, matter, space, and time,
and it is especially interested in what fundamental mecha-
nisms underlie every phenomenon
2. Isaac Newton (1642-1727)
3. Marie Curie (1867-1934) only person to win Nobel prizes in both physics and chemistry
4. Model representation of something that is often too difficult (or
impossible) to display directly
5. Theory an explanation for patterns in nature that is supported by
scientific evidence and verified multiple times by various
groups of researchers
6. Law a description, using concise language or a mathematical for-
mula, a generalized pattern in nature that is supported by
scientific evidence and repeated experiments
7. Models, theories, and laws Models, theories, and laws are used to help scientists analyze
the data they have already collected. However, often after a
model, theory, or law has been developed, it points scientists
toward new discoveries they would not otherwise have made
8. Scientific Method As scientists inquire and gather information about the world,
they follow a process called scientific method
9. Classical Physics Physics as it developed from the Renaissance to the end of
the 19th century
10. Aristotle (384-322 B.C.) wrote on a broad range of topics including physics, animals,
the soul,
politics, and poetry
1/5
, Chapter 1: Intro. the nature of science and physics
Study online at https://quizlet.com/_4y0dp2
11. Galileo Galilei (1564-1642) laid the foundation of modern experimentation and made
contributions in mathematics, physics, and astronomy
12. Niels Bohr (1885-1962) made fundamental contributions to the development of
quantum mechanics, one part of modern physics.
13. Limits on the laws of classical For the laws of classical physics to apply, the following criteria
physics must be met: Matter must be moving at speeds less than
about 1% of the speed of light, the objects dealt with must be
large enough to be seen with a microscope, and only weak
gravitational fields (such as the field generated by the Earth)
can be involved.
14. Modern Physics consists of the two revolutionary theories, relativity and quan-
tum mechanics
15. Relativity must be used whenever an object is traveling at greater
than about 1% of the speed of light or experiences a strong
gravitational field such as that near the Sun
16. Quantum Mechanics must be used for objects smaller than can be seen with a
microscope
17. Q:A friend tells you he has Without knowing the details of the law, you can still infer
learned about a new law of na- that the information your friend has learned conforms to
ture. What can you know about the requirements of all laws of nature: it will be a concise
the information even before description of the universe around us; a statement of the
your underlying
friend describes the law? How rules that all natural processes follow. If the information had
would the information be dif- been a theory, you would be able to infer that the information
ferent if your friend told you he will
had learned about a scientific be a large-scale, broadly applicable generalization.
theory rather than a law?
2/5
Study online at https://quizlet.com/_4y0dp2
1. Physics describes the interactions of energy, matter, space, and time,
and it is especially interested in what fundamental mecha-
nisms underlie every phenomenon
2. Isaac Newton (1642-1727)
3. Marie Curie (1867-1934) only person to win Nobel prizes in both physics and chemistry
4. Model representation of something that is often too difficult (or
impossible) to display directly
5. Theory an explanation for patterns in nature that is supported by
scientific evidence and verified multiple times by various
groups of researchers
6. Law a description, using concise language or a mathematical for-
mula, a generalized pattern in nature that is supported by
scientific evidence and repeated experiments
7. Models, theories, and laws Models, theories, and laws are used to help scientists analyze
the data they have already collected. However, often after a
model, theory, or law has been developed, it points scientists
toward new discoveries they would not otherwise have made
8. Scientific Method As scientists inquire and gather information about the world,
they follow a process called scientific method
9. Classical Physics Physics as it developed from the Renaissance to the end of
the 19th century
10. Aristotle (384-322 B.C.) wrote on a broad range of topics including physics, animals,
the soul,
politics, and poetry
1/5
, Chapter 1: Intro. the nature of science and physics
Study online at https://quizlet.com/_4y0dp2
11. Galileo Galilei (1564-1642) laid the foundation of modern experimentation and made
contributions in mathematics, physics, and astronomy
12. Niels Bohr (1885-1962) made fundamental contributions to the development of
quantum mechanics, one part of modern physics.
13. Limits on the laws of classical For the laws of classical physics to apply, the following criteria
physics must be met: Matter must be moving at speeds less than
about 1% of the speed of light, the objects dealt with must be
large enough to be seen with a microscope, and only weak
gravitational fields (such as the field generated by the Earth)
can be involved.
14. Modern Physics consists of the two revolutionary theories, relativity and quan-
tum mechanics
15. Relativity must be used whenever an object is traveling at greater
than about 1% of the speed of light or experiences a strong
gravitational field such as that near the Sun
16. Quantum Mechanics must be used for objects smaller than can be seen with a
microscope
17. Q:A friend tells you he has Without knowing the details of the law, you can still infer
learned about a new law of na- that the information your friend has learned conforms to
ture. What can you know about the requirements of all laws of nature: it will be a concise
the information even before description of the universe around us; a statement of the
your underlying
friend describes the law? How rules that all natural processes follow. If the information had
would the information be dif- been a theory, you would be able to infer that the information
ferent if your friend told you he will
had learned about a scientific be a large-scale, broadly applicable generalization.
theory rather than a law?
2/5
