Physics

Accelerate your understanding of how matter and energy work. These physics resources introduce the history of the field and simplify its major theories and laws.

  • Sky divers
    The Difference Between Terminal Velocity and Free Fall
  • girl doing math at blackboard
    Introduction to Vector Mathematics
  • Close up of moving water.
    An Introduction to Brownian Motion
  • graphic symbolizing entropy
    What Is Entropy and How to Calculate It
  • Light streaks going around a corner to represent speed.
    What Speed Actually Means in Physics
  • Velocity is a measure of distance per unit time. It is a vector quantity, with both magnitude and direction.
    What Is Velocity in Physics?
  • Density
    An Introduction to Density: Definition and Calculation
  • Torque
    Calculating Torque
  • Illustration of an iron on a piece of clothing, with the definition of heat energy above it
    A Scientific Way to Define Heat Energy
  • One good definition of matter is that it has mass and takes up space.
    What Is the Definition of "Matter" in Physics?
  • I-sub-P equals the sum of i from 1 to N of the quantity m-sub-i times r-sub-i squared
    Moment of Inertia Formulas
  • Newton's Cradle
    Introduction to the Major Laws of Physics
  • Man checking tire pressure with a gauge
    Pressure Definition, Units, and Examples
  • Artistic renditions of pulleys, levers, and inclined planes
    6 Kinds of Simple Machines
  • The high surface tension of water permits some spiders and insects to walk across it without sinking.
    Surface Tension - Definition and Experiments
  • galaxy survey image.
    The 4 Fundamental Forces of Physics
  • thermometer
    Temperature Definition in Science
  • Abandoned car engine
    Thermodynamics: Adiabatic Process
  • Crashed car
    Car Crash Physics: What Happens When Two Cars Collide?
  • Newton under an apple tree
    Hypothesis, Model, Theory, and Law
  • An illustration of Huygen's principle of diffraction.
    Huygens' Principle of Diffraction
  • Man opening a paint can using a lever.
    How Does a Lever Work and What Can It Do?
  • High frequency sine waves on oscilloscope screen
    Oscillation and Periodic Motion in Physics
  • Lab tech wearing safety goggles with testing equipment
    What Is Viscosity in Physics?
  • Hair-raising science
    How Physics Works
  • Blue dye in water against a white background demonstrating fluid dynamics
    Understanding What Fluid Dynamics is
  • old scales painted gold with weights and green apples
    What Is Mass?
  • A nuclear isomer occurs when protons or neutrons in an atomic nucleus become excited, but don't decay immediately
    Nuclear Isomer Definition and Examples
  • child with hair standing up from static electricity
    The Basics of Physics in Scientific Study
  • The deployment of scientific experiments by Astronaut Edwin Aldrin Jr. is photographed by Astronaut Neil Armstrong.
    Movies That Realistically Present Physics
  • Neon atomic structure, full color computer illustration.
    Stellar Nucleosynthesis: How Stars Make All of the Elements
  • Wave interference patterns on the water's surface
    Interference, Diffraction & the Principle of Superposition
  • A glass of water with dry ice
    What Is Dry Ice?
  • Artwork of bubble universes
    Multiverse Definition and Theory
  • Rider and horse jumping in competition.
    Understanding Momentum in Physics
  • Pressure volume graph of adiabatic process
    What Is an Isothermal Process in Physics?
  • Newton's cradle
    Understanding Time Dilation Effects in Physics
  • Black sports car driving on a dry lake bed
    How to Define Acceleration
  • Man using electronics
    What You Should Know About Electronics and Electricity
  • The sum of all the voltages around a loop is equal to zero. v1 + v2 + v3 - v4 = 0
    Kirchhoff's Laws for Current and Voltage
  • Newton's cradle
    Definition of Force in Physics
  • Schoolgirls Experimenting with Alkaline Acid pH at Chemistry Class
    What Is Isobaric Process?
  • Batter Hitting Baseball
    Impulse - Force Over Time
  • Water Boiling In Teapot
    Quantum Zeno Effect
  • Newton's cradle
    What Is the Definition of Work in Physics?
  • Holiday dinner with turkey
    Turkey Cooking: Physics and Thermodynamics
  • Torque
    Definition of Torque in Physics
  • milky way at dawn and silhouette of a telescope
    The Different Fields of Physics
  • Physicists need to know how to work with math, solve problems, and think creatively.
    What Skills Do I Need to Study Physics?
  • Hand Operating Newton's Cradle
    Inertia and the Laws of Motion
  • An artist's conception of the universe.
    What Is the Steady-State Theory in Cosmology?
  • Kinetic energy
    Energy: A Scientific Definition
  • PITTSBURGH, PA - Dec. 23, 2012: Antonio Brown #84 of Pittsburgh Steelers tries to escape the diving tackle of Rey Maualuga #58 of Cincinnati Bengals.
    Perfectly Inelastic Collision
  • Constant volume
    The Isochoric Process
  • A model of the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) tunnel
    Superconductor Definition, Types, and Uses
  • Faraday's electromagnetic induction experiment, including many cylinders, tubes, and weirs, in illustrated form
    How Electromagnetic Induction Creates Current
  • Red Race Car on Drag Strip
    Defining Power in Physics
  • Television set
    Cathode Ray History
  • Artist rendering of protons on a black background.
    Definition of Quarks in Physics
  • A photon is a bundle or packet of light.
    What Is a Photon in Physics?
  • Thermal conduction.
    What Is Conduction?
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