Physics
hidePhysics (Greek: physis – φύσις meaning "nature") is a natural science; it is the study of matter and its motion through spacetime and all that derives from these, such as energy and force. More broadly, it is the general analysis of nature, conducted in order to understand how the world and universe behave.
Physics is one of the oldest academic disciplines, perhaps the oldest through its inclusion of astronomy. Over the last two millennia, physics had been considered synonymous with philosophy, chemistry, and certain branches of mathematics and biology, but during the Scientific Revolution in the 16th century, it emerged to become a unique modern science in its own right. However, in some subject areas such as in mathematical physics and quantum chemistry, the boundaries of physics remain difficult to distinguish.
Physics is both significant and influential, in part because advances in its understanding have often translated into new technologies, but also because new ideas in physics often resonate with the other sciences, mathematics and philosophy.
For example, advances in the understanding of electromagnetism led directly to the development of new products which have dramatically transformed modern-day society (e.g., television, computers, and domestic appliances); advances in thermodynamics led to the development of motorized transport; and advances in mechanics inspired the development of calculus.
For more information about Physics, read the full article at
Wikipedia.
This text uses material from Wikipedia and is available under the GNU Free Documentation License.
News tagged with physics
New type of supernova explosion reported; predicted by theoretical physicists at UCSB
Nov 05, 2009 |
4.2 / 5 (5) |
0
A new class of supernova was discovered by scientists at Berkeley and may be the first example of a new type of exploding star. A team of astrophysicists at UC Santa Barbara had predicted this kind of explosion in their t ...
Materials scientists find better model for glass creation
Nov 04, 2009 |
3.5 / 5 (6) |
0
(PhysOrg.com) -- Harvard materials scientists have come up with what they believe is a new way to model the formation of glasses, a type of amorphous solid that includes common window glass.
Tiny Music Player Made from Wire Bridge (w/ Video)
Nov 04, 2009 |
4.2 / 5 (14) |
1
(PhysOrg.com) -- In 2008, scientists built a loudspeaker made of carbon nanotubes that produced sound and music based on the thermoacoustic effect. Now, a different team of scientists has built a loudspeaker ...
Stars Fueled by Dark Matter Could Hold Secrets to the Universe
Nov 03, 2009 |
4.5 / 5 (51) |
41
(PhysOrg.com) -- The first stars in the universe may have been very different from the stars we see today, yet they may hold clues to understanding some of the mysterious features of the universe. These "dark ...
Powerful laser sheds light on fast ignition and high energy density physics
Nov 02, 2009 |
4.5 / 5 (4) |
0
A new generation of high-energy (>kJ) petawatt (HEPW) lasers is being constructed worldwide to study high intensity laser matter interactions, including fast ignition. Fast ignition is a laser-based technique ...
Superstring theory useful for experimental physics
Oct 30, 2009 |
3.8 / 5 (24) |
9
Superstring theory aims to explain the laws of physics from extremely small strings in various states. Theoretical superstring theory is therefore normally not considered to be particularly relevant for practical ...
New technology may cool the laptop, prof says (w/ Video)
Oct 29, 2009 |
3.7 / 5 (6) |
5
Does your laptop sometimes get so hot that it can almost be used to fry eggs? New technology may help cool it and give information technology a unique twist, says Jairo Sinova, a Texas A&M University physics professor.
Roadrunner supercomputer models nonlinear physics of high-power lasers
Oct 28, 2009 |
4 / 5 (4) |
1
For years scientists have struggled with the difficult physics of inertial confinement fusion. This is the attempt to compress a target capsule containing isotopes of hydrogen with high-powered lasers to high enough pressure ...
Harvesting Energy from Natural Motion: Magnets, Cantilever Capture Wide Range of Frequencies
Oct 28, 2009 |
4.1 / 5 (11) |
4
(PhysOrg.com) -- By taking advantage of the vagaries of the natural world, Duke University engineers have developed a novel approach that they believe can more efficiently harvest electricity from the motions ...
PhD student solves decade-long mystery of magnetism
Oct 27, 2009 |
4.2 / 5 (31) |
2
(PhysOrg.com) -- A PhD student from the London Centre for Nanotechnology has won a prize for solving a decade-long mystery central to understanding modern magnetic systems.
Highlight: Capturing quasiparticles
Oct 23, 2009 |
4 / 5 (2) |
0
(PhysOrg.com) -- A physics research team from the University of St Andrews and Cornell University in the USA has managed to 'photograph' the traces left by orbiting electrons in a special oxide material, and their observations ...
A new technique identifies versions of the same song
Oct 22, 2009 |
4 / 5 (3) |
4
A team of researchers from Pompeu Fabra University (UPF, Spain) has developed a system to identify common patterns in versions of songs, which will help to quantify the similarity of musical pieces. The technique, ...
Breakthrough with light could help viral research
Oct 20, 2009 |
5 / 5 (3) |
0
(PhysOrg.com) -- Researchers have developed a method using the force of light to gently trap, manipulate and study tiny, active objects as miniscule as viruses -- opening doors to expanded viral research.
3 Questions: Steven Nahn on the elusive Higgs boson
Oct 19, 2009 |
4.3 / 5 (39) |
10
(PhysOrg.com) -- Troubles at the Large Hadron Collider have led some physicists to suggest the Higgs boson is sabotaging its own discovery. Nahn explains why he disagrees.
On the road to fusion energy, an accelerator to study warm dense matter
Oct 16, 2009 |
4.4 / 5 (10) |
2
Imagine yourself at the core of Jupiter, a planet 300 times the mass of Earth. At 35,000 degrees Fahrenheit, you and I might think it's hot in here, but to a physicist it's merely warm - warm dense matter, ...
