TELEVISION

Physics and Our Universe: How It All Works

Series: Great Courses
4.6
(65)
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Episodes
60
Rating
TVPG
Year
2011
Language
English
Publisher
The Great Courses

About

Physics is the fundamental science. It explains how the universe works! All you need to begin exploring physics is a grasp of high-school algebra. These lessons are intensively illustrated with diagrams, animations, graphs, and other engaging visual aids and introduce you Newtonian mechanics, oscillations and waves, thermodynamics, electricity and magnetism, optics, quantum theory, and more.

Related Subjects

Episodes

1 to 3 of 60

1. The Fundamental Science

30m

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Take a quick trip from the subatomic to the galactic realm as an introduction to physics, the science that explains physical reality at all scales. Professor Wolfson shows how physics is the fundamental science that underlies all the natural sciences. He also describes phenomena that are still beyond its explanatory power.

2. Languages of Physics

30m

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Understanding physics is as much about language as it is about mathematics. Begin by looking at how ordinary terms, such as theory and uncertainty, have a precise meaning in physics. Learn how fundamental units are defined. Then get a taste of the basic algebra that is used throughout the course.

3. Describing Motion

30m

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Motion is everywhere, at all scales. Learn the difference between distance and displacement, and between speed and velocity. Add to these the concept of acceleration, which is the rate of change of velocity, and you are ready to delve deeper into the fundamentals of motion.

4. Falling Freely

30m

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Use concepts from the previous episode to analyze motion when an object is under constant acceleration due to gravity. In principle, the initial conditions in such cases allow the position of the object to be determined for any time in the future, which is the idea behind Isaac Newton's clockwork universe.

5. It's a 3-D World!

30m

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Add the concept of vector to your physics toolbox. Vectors allow you to specify the magnitude and direction of a quantity such as velocity. The vector's direction can be along any axis, allowing analysis of motion in three dimensions. Then use vectors to solve several problems in projectile motion.

6. Going in Circles

30m

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Circular motion is accelerated motion, even if the speed is constant, because the direction, and hence the velocity, is changing. Analyze cases of uniform and non-uniform circular motion. Then close with a problem challenging you to pull out of a dive in a jet plane without blacking out or crashing.

Extended Details

  • Closed CaptionsEnglish