Physics – Class 11 | Chapter – 1 | Physics Short Notes Series PDF for NEET & JEE
Physics: The word Science originates from the Latin verb Scientia meaning ‘to know’. The Sanskrit word Vijñãn and the Arabic word Ilm convey similar meaning, namely ‘knowledge’. Science, in a broad sense, is as old as human species.
What is Science ?
Science is a systematic and logical approach to discovering new knowledge, understanding the natural world, and explaining phenomena through empirical evidence and the scientific method. It involves the observation and investigation of natural phenomena, the formulation of hypotheses and theories, and the testing and validation of these theories through experiments and observations. Science seeks to explain the underlying laws and mechanisms of the natural world, and it encompasses a wide range of fields, including physics, chemistry, biology, and others.
Scientific Method
The scientific method is a systematic process used by scientists to investigate and understand the natural world. It involves the following steps:
- Observation: Scientists observe natural phenomena and collect data.
- Formulation of a hypothesis: Based on their observations, scientists formulate a testable explanation or prediction about the natural phenomenon being studied.
- Experimentation: Scientists conduct experiments to test their hypothesis and collect data.
- Analysis of data: Scientists analyze the data collected from their experiments to determine if their hypothesis is supported or rejected.
- Draw conclusion: Based on the analysis of data, scientists draw a conclusion about the validity of their hypothesis.
- Replication and peer review: Other scientists attempt to replicate the experiments to determine if the results can be independently confirmed. The findings are also subject to peer review, where they are evaluated by other experts in the field.
This process is iterative, and new observations and data can lead to the revision or rejection of existing hypotheses and the formation of new ones. The scientific method is the foundation of scientific inquiry and is used to ensure that scientific findings are robust, reliable, and subject to rigorous scrutiny.
What is Physics?
Physics is a natural science that studies matter and its motion, energy and force, and the interactions between them. It encompasses a wide range of phenomena, from the smallest subatomic particles to the largest structures in the universe. The aim of physics is to understand how the universe behaves and to develop theories and models to explain this behavior.
Scope of Physics
Physics is a natural science that studies the properties and behavior of matter and energy in the universe. The scope of physics is broad and encompasses a wide range of phenomena, from the smallest subatomic particles to the largest structures in the universe. Some of the key areas of study within physics include:
- Classical Mechanics: Deals with the motion of objects and the forces that cause that motion, such as gravity, friction, and tension.
- Electromagnetism: Studies electric and magnetic fields, their interactions with charged particles, and the behavior of electric circuits.
- Thermodynamics: Deals with heat, temperature, and their relationship to work and energy.
- Quantum Mechanics: Studies the behavior of particles at the atomic and subatomic level, and explains the strange and unpredictable behavior of matter and energy at this scale.
- Relativity: Deals with the relationship between space and time, and the behavior of objects traveling at high speeds.
- Astrophysics: Studies the properties and behavior of celestial objects, such as stars, galaxies, and black holes, and their interactions with light and other forms of energy.
These are just a few examples of the areas of study within physics, and the field continues to evolve and expand as new technologies and discoveries are made. The scope of physics is essential for understanding the underlying laws of nature and for explaining and predicting the behavior of the natural world.
What is the Excitement of Physics?
The excitement of physics explains the constant curiosity in the field of science and physics, which helps in the development and advancement of discoveries every day. A few recent advances which have unfolded in physics are mentioned below:
- Plasma Physics: This branch of physics deals with the study of the interaction of the electric and magnetic fields with charged particles and fluids. This branch has been widely applied in the fields of space and astrophysics, controlled fusion, accelerator physics, and beam storage.
- Cosmic Rays Physics: Cosmic rays are high-power radiations that are emitted in outer space. They are generated by the explosions in stars. Cosmic rays are mainly composed of protons.
- Astrophysics: Astrophysics is a branch of physics that deals with the study of space. It applies the laws of both physics and chemistry to explain the origin, existence, and destruction of stars, planets, galaxies, nebulae, and other objects in the universe and space. Astrophysics creates physical theories for all the small to medium-size structures in the universe.
- Acoustics: Acoustics is a branch of physics that deals with the study of mechanical waves in all the states of matter, gases, liquids, and solids along with other phenomena such as vibration, sound, ultrasound, and infrasound. Acoustics primarily studies the levels of pressure and the frequencies in the sound wave and further how this wave interacts with the environment. It studies the nature of the propagation of sound waves.
- Computational Physics: Computational physics is the branch of physics that deals with the study of scientific problems related to physics using computational methods, that is, it combines computer science, physics, and applied mathematics to develop scientific solutions to complex scientific problems. Computational physics tries to combine the areas of bookish theory and experimentation of a traditional scientific investigation to produce fruitful results.
Principal thrusts in Physics
The two main principal thrusts in physics are: Unification and Reduction.
- Unification: It is the process of unifying the various distinct laws of physics into a single theory that explains or validates all the different phenomena. In other words, we can say that the diverse phenomena of nature are expressed in few terms of laws and concepts.
For example, the law of gravitation explains falling of objects on earth, planetary motion, motion of moon, etc. - Reduction: It is the process of breaking a complex system of the equations into simpler parts. The simpler equations are derived from the complex systems from its constituent parts. The laws of physics can be applied to these systems and we understand the working of the complex system.
Example: Temperature of a system is reduced to average kinetic energy.
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