MATH Excellence Academy of Binalonan, Inc.

Canarvacanan, Binalonan, Pangasinan

Senior High School Department
Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics
General Physics 1

1.1 Measurement as a Comparison

The physical laws that govern the natural world are often expressed in mathematical
form. While mathematics deals with abstract numbers, physics deals with the real aspects of a
material universe. These physical quantities have to be expressed first in clear, well-defined, and
numerical terms before mathematical methods are applied, leading to the formulation of physical
laws.

In physics, taking measurements is important. These are the steps in taking

measurements:

 Know what quantity to measure, e.g., height of a person

 Identify the standard unit to use, e.g., meter
 Use a method or means of measuring, e.g., measuring tape or meterstick.

Measurement is the scientific comparison of an

initially unknown quantity with a known standard
unit

A standard is a well-defined and accepted convention, setup by mutual agreement. If

there is a standard unit of measurement for length called a “cubit”, everyone must know exactly
how long that unit is. All subsequent measurements will then be carefully based on this unit
through a comparison.

1.2 Fundamental and Derived Quantities

The following table shows the basic or fundamental quantities and their corresponding
standard units:

Derived quantities are quantities whose units are build up from the fundamental
quantities. Some derived quantities are area (m2), volume (m3), density (km/m3), and speed (m/s).
Table of Fundamental Quantities
Quantities Standard Unit

Length Meter (m)

Mass Kilogram (kg)
Time Seconds (s)
Temperature Kelvin (K)
 Amount of substance Mole (mol)
Electric current Ampere (A)
Luminous intensity Candela (cd)

Length

The standard unit of length is the meter (m). the standard meter used to be based on the
length of a special rust-resistant metal bar. Today, the standard meter is based on specific
number of wavelengths of light emitted by certain heated gases such as krypton-86.

Time

When we speak of time, we usually ask two things: when did the event happen and how
long did the event last.

The standard unit of time is second (s). the second is used to be based on a natural event
such as the period of rotation of the earth. But since the rotation of the earth is slowing down,
scientists had to look for other ways to determine the second.

Today, the standard second is based on a specific number of vibrations made by a

cesium-133 atom. Very accurate atomic clocks have enabled scientists to adopt a Universal Time
(UT) for the whole world.

Mass

The standard unit od mass is the kilogram (kg). The kilogram is usually shortened to kilo,
a very familiar term we use when we buy rice, fish, meat, and other foodstuff in the market.

Speed

Speed is defined as how fast an object is moving. It is computed by dividing distance by

time.

distance
Speed=
time

Volume

Volume is defined as the amount of space a body occupies. Being a quantity derived