Temperature
hideIn physics, temperature is a physical property of a system that underlies the common notions of hot and cold; something that feels hotter generally has the higher temperature. Temperature is one of the principal parameters of thermodynamics. If no heat flow occurs between two objects, the objects have the same temperature; otherwise heat flows from the hotter object to the colder object. This is the content of the zeroth law of thermodynamics. On the microscopic scale, temperature can be defined as the average energy in each degree of freedom in the particles in a system. Because temperature is a statistical property, a system must contain a few particles for the question as to its temperature to make any sense. For a solid, this energy is found in the vibrations of its atoms about their equilibrium positions. In an ideal monatomic gas, energy is found in the translational motions of the particles; with molecular gases, vibrational and rotational motions also provide thermodynamic degrees of freedom.
Temperature is measured with thermometers that may be calibrated to a variety of temperature scales. In most of the world (except for Belize, Myanmar, Liberia and the United States), the Celsius scale is used for most temperature measuring purposes. The entire scientific world (these countries included) measures temperature using the Celsius scale and thermodynamic temperature using the Kelvin scale, which is just the Celsius scale shifted downwards so that 0 K= −273.15 °C, or absolute zero. Many engineering fields in the U.S., notably high-tech and US federal specifications (civil and military), also use the kelvin and degrees Celsius scales. Other engineering fields in the U.S. also rely upon the Rankine scale (a shifted Fahrenheit scale) when working in thermodynamic-related disciplines such as combustion.
For more information about Temperature, read the full article at
Wikipedia.
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News tagged with temperature
Leaked document stirs anger at climate summit
Dec 08, 2009 |
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(AP) -- A leaked Danish document at the U.N. climate conference provoked angry criticism Tuesday from developing countries who feared it would shift more of the burden to curb greenhouse gases on poorer countries.
Super cool atom thermometer
Dec 07, 2009 |
5 / 5 (2) |
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As physicists strive to cool atoms down to ever more frigid temperatures, they face the daunting task of developing new, reliable ways of measuring these extreme lows. Now a team of physicists has devised ...
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Snowflake chemistry could give clues about ozone depletion
Chemistry / Analytical Chemistry
Dec 07, 2009 |
5 / 5 (1) |
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There is more to the snowflake than its ability to delight schoolchildren and snarl traffic.
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 ...
Ubiquitous health: Enabling telemedicine to cut hospital visits, save money
14 hours ago |
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A ubiquitous health monitoring system that automatically alerted the patient's family or physician to problematic changes in the person's vital signs could cut hospital visits and save lives, according to Japanese researchers ...
Scientists Generate Black Hole Radiation in the Lab
Dec 07, 2009 |
4.3 / 5 (23) |
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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 ...
Robot completes first underwater crossing of Atlantic Ocean
Space & Earth / Earth Sciences
15 hours ago |
4.1 / 5 (7) |
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Spain on Wednesday handed back to the United States a robot which last week completed the first underwater crossing of the Atlantic Ocean to help monitor climate change by tracking temperatures.
3 Questions: Henry Jacoby on Copenhagen
13 hours ago |
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The co-director of MIT’s Global Change program discusses what to expect from the U.N. Climate Change Conference, and the effects of 'Climategate.'
List of 'unsung' wildlife affected by climate change released
Dec 07, 2009 |
5 / 5 (2) |
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The Wildlife Conservation Society today released a list of animals facing new impacts by climate change, some in strange and unexpected ways.
Penn State scientist at center of a storm
Space & Earth / Earth Sciences
11 hours ago |
3.9 / 5 (7) |
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A few words culled from some hacked e-mails in Britain have generated chaos in the world of climate science -- throwing dark clouds over Pennsylvania State University and stirring up negative publicity for the field that ...
New imaging nano-technique to change the way we see disease
Nanotechnology / Bio & Medicine
Dec 08, 2009 |
5 / 5 (1) |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- New nano-technology being developed by physicists at Macquarie University could help medical professionals better understand and more effectively treat cancer and other diseases.
Panasonic Develops A Gallium Nitride (GaN) Inverter IC for Motor Drive with High Efficiency
Dec 08, 2009 |
5 / 5 (2) |
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Panasonic today announced the development of a Gallium Nitride (GaN) -based monolithic inverter integrated circuit (IC) for motor drive. The integrated six GaN-based transistors can be independently driven ...
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