PHYSICS 1

CHAPTER 1
Science deals with concept in seeking to extend the range of our experience and to reduce it to
order.
Physics deals with concepts which describe properties of matter, energy, space and time.
Measurement in simple cases means comparing things with a standard to see how many times
as big it is.
Mechanics - the branch of applied mathematics dealing with motion and forces producing motion.
THREE FUNDAMENTAL QUANTITIES IN MECHANICS
Length - is the measured dimension of an object. (i.e centimetre, meter, foot, etc. )
Mass in physics, the quantity of matter in a body regardless of its volume or of any forces acting
on it. (i.e grams, kilograms, slugs, etc. )
Time - is what a clock reads, also it is the thing that is measured as seconds, minutes, hours, years,
etc.
For each fundamental quantity there is an arbitrarily chosen fundamental unit. Other units based
on combination of the fundamental units are called derived units. A complete set of unit, both
fundamental and derived is called systems of units.
SYSTEMS OF UNITS
1. MKSA systems a system on the fundamental units of the meter as a unit of length, kilogram
as a unit of mass, and second as a unit of time.
2. CGS systems formerly widely used in science , is based upon the centimetre as a unit of
length, the gram as a unit of mass, and the second as a unit of time.
3. FPS system is also called as the British gravitational system. This system of unit is based
upon the foot as a unit of length, the pound as a unit of mass, and second as a unit of time.

EQUIVALENTS OF CERTAIN UNITS

1 kilometer (km) 1000 m
1 hectometer (hm) 100 m
1 dekameter (dam) 10 m
1 meter (m) 1 m
1 decimeter (dm) 0.1 m
1 centimeter (cm) 0.01 m
1 millimeter (mm) 0.001 m

1 meter (m) 39.37 inches (in)

1 inch (in) 2.54 centimeters (cm)
1 liter (l) 1.057 quarts (qt)
1 kilogram (kg) 2.205 pounds (lb)

Example1:
Change 115 in. to centimeters?
Example 2:
Express 60 mi. / h in feet per second?

Example 3:
The following readings were obtained when measuring the dimensions of a long, thin rectangular
object 0.25 km long, 25 cm wide, and 25 mm thick. What is its volume in cubic meters?
Example 4:
Five coins are placed on a balance and are found to have the following masses: 5.25 g, 4.95 g, 5.05
g, 4.90 g, and 5.10 g. If the standard weight for these coins is 5.00 g, find the average percentage
deviation of these readings?
Example 5:
Density in cgs units is expressed in grams per cubic centimetre and in mks units in kilograms per
cubic meter. Convert a density of 7.45 g / cm3 to mks units?

VECTORS AND SCALARS

SCALAR is a quantity that has magnitude only.
i.e 100 N
VECTOR is a quantity that has magnitude and direction.
i.e 100 N acting east
If two forces of 100 N magnitude are applied to an object, one acting east and other acting north,
these two forces acting on an object. It is also possible to find a third that has an equivalent effect
of the two forces and this is called the resultant force.
ADDITION OF VECTORS
In solving all vector problems, either graphical or mathematical procedures. The following steps
are to be used.
1. Carefully draw the diagram representing the magnitude and direction of each vector.
2. Scale is establish. i.e 1 in. = 10 lb. , 1 m = 10 N
3. Construct a parallelogram, the length and direction of the resultant is then determined by a ruler
and a protractor.
Example:
What is the resultant of the following forces acting on an object at O.? A = 6 N W, B = 5 N NW,
C = 8 N N and D = 3 N E.
Example:
Find mathematically the resultant force when 15 lb force west and a 30 lb force north.
Example:
Two vectors of 8.0 units and 5.0 units make an angle of 30o with each other. What is their vector
sum?

RESOLVING A FORCE VECTOR USING COMPONENT METHOD

A resultant of a given vector forces may be solved using component method, by solving each
component of a given vector force in other words, solving the x and y component of a vector force.
Sign convention for each component
At quadrant 1 x and y components are positive
At quadrant 2 x component is negative and y component positive
At quadrant 3 x and y components are negative
At quadrant 4 x component is positive and y component is negative
Example:
What are the x and y component of a given vector force. F = 100 N acting 60o NW
Example:
Solve examples above using component method

Many important problems confronting the physicist and engineers involve in several forces acting
on a body under circumstances in which they produce no change in the motion of the body. The
state in which there is no change in the motion of a body is called equilibrium. A body in
equilibrium may be at rest but not necessarily to be at rest, it may be moving with uniform speed
in a straight line or rotating uniformly around a fixed axis.