Classical Mechanics Quiz

Classical Mechanics: A Summary

• Classical mechanics is a physical theory that describes the motion of macroscopic objects such as projectiles, machinery parts, and astronomical objects.

• The earliest formulation of classical mechanics is Newtonian mechanics, which uses foundational works of Sir Isaac Newton and mathematical methods invented by Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz, Joseph-Louis Lagrange, and Leonhard Euler.

• Later, more abstract methods were developed, leading to the reformulations of classical mechanics known as Lagrangian mechanics and Hamiltonian mechanics.

• Classical mechanics provides accurate results when studying large objects that are not extremely massive and speeds not approaching the speed of light.

• For objects that are extremely massive, general relativity becomes applicable, and for objects with the size of an atom diameter, quantum mechanics is necessary.

• The motion of a point particle is determined by its position, mass, and the forces applied to it.

• Classical mechanics uses common sense notions of how matter and forces exist and interact.

• Velocity is defined as the rate of change of displacement with time and is directly additive and subtractive.

• An inertial frame is an idealized frame of reference within which an object with zero net force acting upon it moves with a constant velocity.

• A force is any action that causes an object's velocity to change, and Newton's second law states that the net force on a particle is equal to the rate of change of the momentum of the particle with time.

• Work is defined as the scalar product of the force and displacement vectors, and conservative forces can be expressed as the gradient of a scalar function known as the potential energy.

• Lagrangian mechanics and Hamiltonian mechanics bypass the concept of "force," instead referring to other physical quantities, such as energy, speed, and momentum, for describing mechanical systems in generalized coordinates.Classical Mechanics: A Summary

• Classical mechanics is one of the oldest and largest subjects in science, engineering, and technology.

• It is a branch of physics that deals with the motion of macroscopic objects and systems without taking into account the effects of quantum mechanics.

• Classical mechanics is based on three laws of motion proposed by Sir Isaac Newton: the law of inertia, the second law of acceleration, and the law of action and reaction.

• Newton also enunciated the principles of conservation of momentum and angular momentum.

• Classical mechanics is useful for the study of the motion of non-quantum mechanical, low-energy particles in weak gravitational fields.

• Classical mechanics is an approximate theory to the more general quantum mechanics.

• The study of the motion of bodies is an ancient one, making classical mechanics one of the oldest and largest subjects in science, engineering, and technology.

• Some Greek philosophers of antiquity, among them Aristotle, founder of Aristotelian physics, may have been the first to maintain the idea that "everything happens for a reason" and that theoretical principles can assist in the understanding of nature.

• Johannes Kepler's Astronomia nova, published in 1609, was the first published causal explanation of the motions of planets.

• Classical mechanics became a principal field of study in mathematics as well as physics after Newton's Principia.

• The resolution of problems related to compatibility with electromagnetic theory led to the special theory of relativity, often still considered a part of classical mechanics.

• Classical mechanics is a theory useful for the study of the motion of non-quantum mechanical, low-energy particles in weak gravitational fields.