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.
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News tagged with physics
Theorists propose a new way to shine -- and a new kind of star
Dec 14, 2009 |
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Dying, for stars, has just gotten more complicated. For some stellar objects, the final phase before or instead of collapsing into a black hole may be what a group of physicists is calling an electroweak star.
Beaming in on Warm Dense Matter (w/ Video)
Dec 17, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- The Neutralized Drift Compression Experiment II (NDCX-II) now under construction at Berkeley Lab will deliver a high-current pulse of lithium ions to a foil target almost simultaneously, momentarily heating ...
Does weak equivalence break down at the quantum level?
Dec 08, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- One of the givens in physics is the weak equivalence principle. This principle has been considered solid since Einstein proposed that it is not possible to detect the difference between uniform acceleration ...
Scientists Generate Black Hole Radiation in the Lab
Dec 07, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Due to their violent nature and long distance from Earth, black holes and their surroundings are very difficult to study. Currently, the main method to observe a black hole is to use an X-ray ...
Year's Best Gift Could Be A Job From Santa
Dec 17, 2009 |
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In this year's myriad discussions of stimulus and jobs programs, no one has yet publicly raised the idea to ask Santa Claus to take Christmas Eve off. Outsourcing his job by asking mere mortals to deliver ...
Bacteria offer insights into human decision making
Dec 08, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Scientists studying how bacteria under stress collectively weigh and initiate different survival strategies say they have gained new insights into how humans make strategic decisions that ...
Gallium nitride transistor could replace silicon
Dec 08, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- A Cornell researcher has created an extremely efficient transistor made from gallium nitride, which may soon replace silicon as king of semiconductors for power applications.
Researchers Design Triple Quantum Dot for Quantum Information Applications
Nov 30, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- While quantum dots have existed since the 1980s, only in the past decade have physicists successfully created lateral few-electron single quantum dots. These quantum dots enable physicists ...
Using superconducting probes to get a picture of what it's like inside CNTs
Nov 20, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- "Carbon nanotubes are exciting for fundamental physics, and for potential technological applications," Nadya Mason tells PhysOrg.com. "However, we are generally limited in the way that we can study them. ...
Formula to detect an author's literary 'fingerprint'
Dec 10, 2009 |
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Using literature written by Thomas Hardy, DH Lawrence and Herman Melville, physicists in Sweden have developed a formula to detect different authors' literary 'fingerprints'.
Turbulence around heat transport
Dec 03, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Heat transport in the earth's mantle and in the atmosphere is probably not as effective as previously thought.
Researchers demonstrate 100-watt-level mid-infrared lasers
Dec 01, 2009 |
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Northwestern University researchers have achieved a breakthrough in quantum cascade laser output power, delivering 120 watts from a single device at room temperature.
Monster Waves on the Sun are Real (w/ Video)
Nov 25, 2009 |
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Sometimes you really can believe your eyes. That's what NASA's STEREO (Solar Terrestrial Relations Observatory) spacecraft are telling researchers about a controversial phenomenon on the sun known as the "solar ...
A see-through surprise: Scientists make solid material transparent to terahertz waves
Dec 07, 2009 |
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Very often in science, the unexpected discovery turns out to be the most significant. Rice University Professor Junichiro Kono and his team weren't looking for a breakthrough in the transmission of terahertz signals, but ...
First Neutrino Events Observed at T2K Near Detector
Nov 24, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Physicists from the Japanese-led multi-national T2K neutrino collaboration announced today that over the weekend they detected the first events generated by their newly built neutrino beam ...
