Physics

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Physics (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

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Turbulence around heat transport

Turbulence around heat transport

Physics / General Physics

created 22 hours ago | popularity 5 / 5 (4) | comments 3

(PhysOrg.com) -- Heat transport in the earth's mantle and in the atmosphere is probably not as effective as previously thought.


Wizard at circuits, physics

Wizard at circuits, physics

Physics / General Physics

created 10 hours ago | popularity 5 / 5 (5) | comments 0

(PhysOrg.com) -- Donhee Ham, Gordon McKay Professor of Electrical Engineering and Applied Physics, uses his personal energy and understanding of physics to design innovative integrated circuits.


Spinons -- confined like quarks

Physics / General Physics

created Nov 29, 2009 | popularity 4.5 / 5 (15) | comments 2

The concept of confinement is one of the central ideas in modern physics. The most famous example is that of quarks which bind together to form protons and neutrons. Now Prof. Bella Lake from Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin (Germany) ...


Researchers Design Triple Quantum Dot for Quantum Information Applications

Researchers Design Triple Quantum Dot for Quantum Information Applications

Nanotechnology / Nanophysics

created Nov 30, 2009 | popularity 4.7 / 5 (16) | comments 0

(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 ...


Researchers demonstrate 100-watt-level mid-infrared lasers

Physics / Quantum Physics

created Dec 01, 2009 | popularity 4.7 / 5 (12) | comments 0

Northwestern University researchers have achieved a breakthrough in quantum cascade laser output power, delivering 120 watts from a single device at room temperature.


All decked out: Networks of chitin filaments are integral components of diatom silica shells

Chemistry / Biochemistry

created Dec 01, 2009 | popularity 5 / 5 (1) | comments 0

(PhysOrg.com) -- A whole microcosm of various bizarrely shaped life forms opens up when you look at diatoms, the primary component of ocean plankton, under a microscope. The regularly structured silica shells of these tiny ...


Scientists demonstrate multibeam, multi-functional lasers

Scientists demonstrate multibeam, multi-functional lasers

Physics / General Physics

created Nov 30, 2009 | popularity 5 / 5 (6) | comments 0

An international team of applied scientists from Harvard, Hamamatsu Photonics, and ETH Zürich have demonstrated compact, multibeam, and multi-wavelength lasers emitting in the invisible part of the light spectrum ...


Monster Waves on the Sun are Real

Monster Waves on the Sun are Real (w/ Video)

Space & Earth / Astronomy

created Nov 25, 2009 | popularity 4.9 / 5 (20) | comments 2

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 ...


Using superconducting probes to get a picture of what it's like inside CNTs

Nanotechnology / Nanophysics

created Nov 20, 2009 | popularity 4.4 / 5 (9) | comments 0

(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. ...


First Neutrino Events Observed at T2K Near Detector

First Neutrino Events Observed at T2K Near Detector

Physics / General Physics

created Nov 24, 2009 | popularity 4.8 / 5 (24) | comments 2

(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 ...


Mystery of the Solar Tsunami -- Solved

Mystery of the Solar Tsunami -- Solved (w/ Video)

Space & Earth / Astronomy

created Nov 19, 2009 | popularity 4.9 / 5 (27) | comments 9

(PhysOrg.com) -- Sometimes you really can believe your eyes. That's what NASA's Solar Terrestrial Relations Observatory (STEREO) is telling researchers about a controversial phenomenon on the sun known as ...


Turning heat to electricity

Turning heat to electricity... efficiently

Physics / General Physics

created Nov 18, 2009 | popularity 4.8 / 5 (64) | comments 9

(PhysOrg.com) -- In everything from computer processor chips to car engines to electric powerplants, the need to get rid of excess heat creates a major source of inefficiency. But new research points the way ...


Nanotube defects equal better energy and storage systems

Nanotube defects equal better energy and storage systems

Nanotechnology / Nanomaterials

created Nov 19, 2009 | popularity 4.5 / 5 (11) | comments 2

(PhysOrg.com) -- Most people would like to be able to charge their cell phones and other personal electronics quickly and not too often. A recent discovery made by UC San Diego engineers could lead to carbon ...


Stars Fueled by Dark Matter Could Hold Secrets to the Universe

Stars Fueled by Dark Matter Could Hold Secrets to the Universe

Physics / General Physics

created Nov 03, 2009 | popularity 4.4 / 5 (58) | comments 44

(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 ...


Tiny Music Player Made from Wire Bridge

Tiny Music Player Made from Wire Bridge (w/ Video)

Physics / General Physics

created Nov 04, 2009 | popularity 4.2 / 5 (18) | comments 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 ...