Newton's Second Law of Motion tells us that the force required to accelerate an object can be calculated by multiplying the mass of the object by the acceleration that is required (F=ma). We also know that acceleration is simply the rate of change of velocity (the change in velocity divided by the time taken for … Continue reading Momentum
Heisenberg and Sheldon; speed and uncertainty
In my very last Y11 lesson of last term I did a 15-minute dash through some of the weirder bits of physics, including Heisenberg's uncertainty principle. This says that, for example, you cannot know the exact values of an object's position and speed (actually its momentum). More excitingly, you cannot know the exact energy of … Continue reading Heisenberg and Sheldon; speed and uncertainty
Thawing a frozen balloon
The pressure, volume and temperature of a gas are all linked so it makes sense to keep one of them constant when investigating the interdependence of the other two. But we didn't do that when we watched the effect of liquid nitrogen on a partially-inflated balloon - as shown in the animation below. Before viewing … Continue reading Thawing a frozen balloon
Newton’s Third Law
Newton's Third Law is all about situations where two objects are interacting with each other. A common way of stating Newton's Third Law is to say that for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction. This means different things in different situations. If the two objects are stationary, such as a person sitting … Continue reading Newton’s Third Law
Mr Tarrant's physbang 'blog 