Lecture 1

Introduction
 Outlines
1. Brief Revision
2. Uncertainty and Significant Figures
3. Units and Dimensional Analysis
4. Trigonometry
5. Coordinate Systems
 Classical Oscillation
Mechanics and waves

Physics Quantum
Optics
Mechanics

Electromagnetism Thermodynamics
Theories and Experiments

• The goal of physics is to develop theories based on

experiments
• A physical theory, usually expressed mathematically,
describes how a given system works
• The theory makes predictions about how a system
should work
• Experiments check the theories’ predictions
• Every theory is a work in progress
Physical Quantity
A quantity that is measurable is called a physical
quantity.
Every physical quantity is expressed as a
numerical value in a particular unit of
measurement.

Length of a meter ruler = 100 cm.

Physical Numerical
quantity value
Unit of
measurement
 Physical quantities

PHYSICAL
QUANTITIES

BASE DERIVED
QUANTITIES QUANTITIES

Length (m) Velocity (ms-1)

Mass (kg) Acceleration (ms-2)
Time (s) Density (kgm-3)
Electric current (A) Force (kgms-2 / N)
Temperature (K) Frequency (s-1 / Hz)
 SI Base Quantities and Units

SI – Systéme International
Agreed to in 1960 by an international committee.
 Fundamental Quantities and
Their Dimension
• Mechanics uses three fundamental quantities
– Length [L]
– Mass [M]
– Time [T]
• Other physical quantities can be constructed from
these three

Length mass Time

Other Systems of Measurements

• cgs – Gaussian system

• Named for the first letters of the units it uses for
fundamental quantities
• US Customary
• Everyday units
• Often uses weight, in pounds, instead of mass
as a fundamental quantity
Units in Various Systems

System Length Mass Time

SI meter kilogram second
cgs centimeter gram second
US
foot slug second
Customary
 Scientific notation
The metric system is a decimal or base-10 system.
The larger or smaller units can be obtained by
multiplying or dividing respectively by power of 10.
It is sometimes convenient to express large or small
numbers in scientific notation.

Examples:
6000 = 6  103
0.0003 = 3  10–4
Prefixes
Prefixes correspond to powers of
10.

Each prefix has a specific name.

Each prefix has a specific

abbreviation.

Examples:

50,000 m = 5 × 104 m = 50 km

0.008 s = 8 × 10–3 s = 8 ms
Length
1 nanometer = 1 nm = 10-9 m
1 micrometer = 1  m = 10-6 m
1 millimeter = 1 mm = 10-3 m
1 centimeter = 1 cm = 10-2 m
1 kilometer = 1 km = 103 m
Mass
1 microgram = 1  g = 10-6 g = 10-9 kg
1 milligram = 1 mg = 10-3 g = 10-6 kg
1 gram = 1 g = 10-3 kg
Time
1 nanosecond = 1 ns = 10-9 s
1 microsecond = 1  s = 10-6 s
1 millisecond = 1 ms = 10-3 s
 Dimensional Analysis
• Technique to check the correctness of an
equation.
• Dimensions (length, mass, time, combinations) can
be treated as algebraic quantities.
• Add, subtract, multiply, divide

• Both sides of equation must have the same

dimensions.
• Cannot give numerical factors: this is its limitation.
• Allows a check for calculations which can show up
in the units.
Note: Some constants like p, are dimensionless but
other constant like spring constant k has the
dimension (MT-2)
Exercise 1.0

Find the dimensional expression for:lae

Quantity Formulae Dimension
Area, A
Volume, V
x
Velocity, v v
t
v
Acceleration, a a
t
Force F  ma
Work W  Fd

M
Density 
V
Example 1:
Show that the expression v = v0 + at is dimensionally
correct, where v and v0 represent velocities, a is
acceleration, and t is a time interval.

v  v0   L
T
at   at   2  T 
L L
Note: Cannot add dimensions of
T T L
v0+at =2 T

Both sides of equation have same dimensions 

DIMENSIONALLY CORRECT
Example 2:
Find a relationship between a constant acceleration
a, speed v, and distance r from the origin for a
particle traveling in a circle.

a   2
L v   T 
L L
T T v
Substitute the expression for T into the equation for [a]:

a  L

v
2

L/v L
2

Substitute L = [r], and guess at the equation:

a  v
2
a
v2
r  r
Example 3:
1
1. Show that the equation s = ut + at2 is
2
dimensionally correct.

2. The period of a simple pendulum is measured

in time units and is given by
l
T  2p
g
where l is the length of the pendulum and g is
the free fall acceleration in units of length
divided by the square time. Show that this
equation is dimensionally correct.
1. s  L
ut   u t    T  L
L
T Note:

 
For Right hand side: can

at  a t   2  T  L
2 L 2
2 not add L to L =2L

T
Since all have same dimensions  Dimensionally correct

2. T   T
 l
1

l 
1 1
2
L 2 2

 g   12  T
   
1
  g L/T 2 2

Since both sides of equation have same dimensions 

Dimensionally correct
Example 4:
The displacement of a particle when moving under
uniform acceleration is some function of the elapsed
time and the acceleration. Suppose we write this
displacement
s = k am tn
where k is dimensionless constant. By dimensional
analysis, what is the value of m and n if this
expression is satisfied?
If s = k am t n valid, both sides of equation must
have the same dimensions.

s  ka m n
t 
m
 L 
 T   L T
m n  2m Note: The constant ,
n
L   k has no dimension.
2
T  The power of L is 1
L1 =L
m  1 and n  2m  0 The power of T is 0
T0 =1 and so n-2m=0

n  2
Example 5:
Suppose we are told that the acceleration a of a particle
moving with uniform speed v in a circle of radius r is
proportional to some power of r, say rn, and some
power of v, say vm. Determine the values of n and m.

Let a  kr v , k is a dimensionless constant

n m

   n m 
 L  n  Lm  L 
   L   
 2
  T   m 
T  T 
n  m  1 and m  2
n  1
 Unit Analysis
Using units instead of symbols in dimension analysis.
Unit analysis can used to determine the units of a
quantity from a correct equation.
Example 6:
Check the validity of the following equation by using the unit
analysis.
vu
a BE CAREFUL!
t UNIT ANALYSIS DIMENSIONAL
ANALYSIS
unit of a  ms 2
v  u ms 1
unit of   ms  2
t s
Since both sides have same unit, the equation is valid.
 Uncertainty in Measurements
• There is uncertainty (or sometimes called error) in
every measurement, this uncertainty carries over through
the calculations.
- is written with a ± sign
• We will use rules for significant figures to approximate
the uncertainty in results of calculations
• A significant figure is a reliably known digit
• All non-zero digits are significant.
• Zeros are not significant when they only locate the
decimal point
• Using scientific notion to indicate the number of significant
figures removes ambiguity when the possibility of
misinterpretation is present
 Significant Figures

The following rules summarize the significant digits:

a) Nonzero digits are always significant.

b) All final zeros after the decimal points are
significant.
c) Zeros between two other significant digits are
always significant.
d) Zeros used solely for spacing between the
decimal point are not significant.
 Examples of significant figure
i) 0.0075 m has 2 significant figures
– The leading zeros are placeholders only
– Can write in scientific notation to show more
clearly:
7.5 x 10–3 m for 2 significant figures
ii) 10.0 m has 3 significant figures
– The decimal point gives information about
the reliability of the measurement
iii) 1500 m is ambiguous
– Use 1.5 x 103 m for 2 significant figures
– Use 1.50 x 103 m for 3 significant figures
– Use 1.500 x 103 m for 4 significant figures
Operations with Significant Figures

• When multiplying or dividing two or more

quantities, the number of significant figures in the
final result is the same as the number of significant
figures in the least accurate of the factors being
combined
• Least accurate means having the lowest number of
significant figures
• When adding or subtracting, round the result to the
smallest number of decimal places of any term in the
sum (or difference)
Example:
a) 24.686 + 2.343 + 3.21 = 30.239 = 30.24
For adding and subtracting, the number of
decimal places is the important
consideration
b) 3.22  2.1 = 6.762 = 6.8
For multiplying and dividing, the number
of significant figures is the important
consideration
c) 3.6  0.3 + 2.1 = 1 + 2.1 = 3
Rounding

• Calculators will generally report many more digits

than are significant
–Be sure to properly round your results
• Slight discrepancies may be introduced by both the
rounding process and the algebraic order in which the
steps are carried out
–Minor discrepancies are to be expected and are
not a problem in the problem-solving process
• In experimental work, more rigorous methods would
be needed
ACCURACY AND PRECISION
Because theories are based on observation and
experiment, careful measurements are very
important in physics. But no measurement is
perfect. In describing the imperfection, one must
consider both a measurement’s accuracy and a
measurement’s precision.
Accuracy - a description of how close a
measurement is to the correct or accepted value of
the quantity measured.
Precision - the degree of exactness of a
measurement.
ACCURACY AND PRECISION (cont)
• Do not confuse precision with accuracy.
• E.g., a cheap digital watch which tells time as
10:35:17 is precise (as time is given in second),
but if the watch runs several minutes slow, then it
is not accurate. Compare this to a grandfather
clock which is accurate (correct time) but it does
not have a seconds hand, so it is not as precise.
• A high-quality measurement is both accurate and
precise.
Conversions
• When units are not consistent, you may need to
convert to appropriate ones
• See the inside of the front cover for an extensive list of
conversion factors
• Units can be treated like algebraic quantities that can
“cancel” each other
• Example:
2.54 cm
15.0 in   38.1cm
1in
Examples:

1 cm2 =1x (10-2 m)2 =1x10-4 m2

1 cm3 =1x (10-2 m)3 =1x10-6 m3
1 mm2 =1x (10-3 m)2 =1x10-6 m2
3 -3 3
1 mm =1x (10 m) =1x10 m -9 2

34
Example 7:
The traffic light turns green, and the driver of a high-
performance car slams the accelerator to the floor.
The accelerometer register 22.0 ms-2. Convert this
reading to kmmin-2

 1 km  60 s 
2
-2

22.0 ms  22.0 ms  2

 
 1000 m  1 min 
2
 79.2 km  min
Example 8:
A beaker of water contains 255 mL of water. What is
the volume of the water in
(a) cubic centimeters? (b) cubic meters?

 10-3 L 1000 cm3 

(a) 255 mL   255 mL   
 mL 1L 
 255 cm 3

3
 1 m  1 m 3
(b) 255 cm  255 cm  
3 3
 
  255 cm  3
3 3
 100 cm  100 cm
4
 2.55 10 m 3 255 cm3 =225(10-2m)3
=225x10-6 m3
=2.25x10-4 m3
Estimates
• Can yield useful approximate answers
• An exact answer may be difficult or impossible
• Mathematical reasons
• Limited information available
• Can serve as a partial check for exact
calculations
Order of Magnitude
• Approximation based on a number of assumptions
• May need to modify assumptions if more precise results are
needed
• Order of magnitude is the power of 10 that applies
Example 9: Breaths in a Lifetime
Estimate the number of breaths taken during an average
human lifetime.
We start by assuming/guessing/estimating that the typical
human lifetime is about 70 years.

Think about the average number of breaths that a person

takes in 1 min. This number varies depending on whether the
person is exercising, sleeping, angry.
To the nearest order of magnitude, we shall choose
10 breaths per minute as our assumption/estimation.

Find the approximate number of minutes in a year:

 400 days  25h  60 min 

1 yr 

 

 
  6 10 min
5

 1 yr  1day  1 h 
Example(cont): Breaths in a Lifetime
Find the approximate number of minutes in a 70-year lifetime:
number of minutes  (70 yr)(6105 min/yr)
 4 107 min

Find the approximate number of breaths in a lifetime:

number of breaths  (10 breaths/min)(4 107 min )
 4 10 breaths
8

Therefore, a person takes on the order of 109 breaths in a

lifetime.

Notice how much simpler it is in the first calculation above to

multiply 400 × 25 than it is to work with the more accurate
365 × 24.
Example 10:
Estimate the number of steps a person would take walking
from Pulau Pinang to Kuala Lumpur.
We start by guessing that the distance between Pulau Pinang to
Kuala Lumpur is about 300 km.
Think about the average number of steps that a person takes in
1 m. We choose 4 steps per meter as our estimate.
Find the approximate number of steps in 1 km.
(1000 m/km)(4steps/m)  4000 steps/km
Find the approximate number of steps a person would take walking
from Pulau Pinang to Kuala Lumpur:
(3102 km)(4 103 steps/km)  1.2 106 steps
So if we intend to walk from Penang to KL, it will take us on the
order of one million steps. This estimate is almost certainly too
small because we have not accounted for curving roads and going
up and down hills and mountains.
Trigonometry Review

Pythagorean Theorem:
r2 = x2 + y2
Example 11:
A person measures the height of a building by walking out a
distance of 46.0 m from its base and shining a flashlight
beam toward the top. When the beam is elevated at an
angle of 39.0° with respect to the horizontal, as shown in
figure below, the beam just strikes the top of the building.
(a) If the flashlight is held at a height of 2.00 m, find the
height of the building.
(b) Calculate the length of the light beam.
 y
(a) tan 39.0 


46.0 m
y  tan 39.0 46.0 m  37.25006553 m ~ 37.3 m


height  37.3 m  2.00 m  39.3 m

(b) r  x 2  y 2  (37.3 m) 2  (46.0 m) 2

 59.2 m
 Coordinate System
(a) 2D – Cartesian coordinate system

Also called rectangular coordinate system.

Points are labeled (x,y).
(b) Plane polar coordinate system

Origin and reference line

are noted

Point is at distance r
from the origin in the
direction of angle , ccw
(counterclockwise) from
the reference line

Points are labeled (r,)

Rectangular  Polar

• Rectangular to polar
• Given x and y, use Pythagorean theorem to find
r
• Use x and y and the inverse tangent to find
angle
• Polar to rectangular
x = r cos 
y = r sin 
Various units of angle:
Degrees
Radians
360° = 2 π rad

Definition of radian
θ = s/ r
s is the length of arc
r is the radius

s and r must be measured in

the same units
Example 12:
(a) The Cartesian coordinates of a point in the xy-
plane are (x, y) = (-3.50 m, -2.50 m). Find the
polar coordinates of this point.

(b) Convert (r, ) = (5.00 m, 37.0o) to rectangular

coordinates.
(a) r  x 2  y 2  ( 3.50 )2  ( 2.50 )2
r  4.30 m
y  2.50
tan     0.714
x  3.50
  tan1 (0.714)  35.5  180  216

(r,θ )  (4.30 m , 216 )

r
y
x  r cos   ( 5.00 ) cos 37.0  3.99 m
 0
(b) 37

y  r sin   ( 5.00 ) sin 37.0  3.01m x

( x, y)  (3.99 m, 3.01m)
50