A famous relation in physics relates 'moving mass' m to the 'rest mass' m0 of a particle in terms of its speed v and the speed of light, c. (This relation first arose as a consequence of special relativity due to Albert Einstein). A boy recalls the relation almost correctly but forgets where to put the constant c. He writes:
m = m0 / (1-v2)½
Given the relation,
m = m0 / (1-v2)½
Dimension of m = M1 L0 T0
Dimension of = M1 L0 T0
Dimension of v = M0 L1 T-1
Dimension of v2 = M0 L2 T-2
Dimension of c = M0 L1 T-1
The given formula will be dimensionally correct only when the dimension of L.H.S is the same as that of R.H.S. This is only possible when the factor, (1-v2)½ is dimensionless i.e., (1 - v2) is dimensionless. This is only possible if v2 is divided by c2. Hence, the correct relation is
m = m0 / (1-v2/c2)½ .
State the number of significant figures in the following:
(a) 0.007 m2
(b) 2.64 x 1024 kg
(c) 0.2370 g cm-3
(d) 6.320 J
(e) 6.032 N m-2
(f) 0.0006032 m2
Fill in the blanks by suitable conversion of units:
(a) 1 kg m2s–2= ....g cm2 s–2
(b) 1 m =..... ly
(c) 3.0 m s–2=.... km h–2
(d) G = 6.67 × 10–11 N m2 (kg)–2=.... (cm)3s–2 g–1.
A physical quantity P is related to four observables a, b, c and d as follows :
The percentage errors of measurement in a, b, c and d are 1%, 3%, 4% and 2%, respectively. What is the percentage error in the quantity P ? If the value of P calculated using the above relation turns out to be 3.763, to what value should you round off the result ?
The mass of a box measured by a grocer's balance is 2.300 kg. Two gold pieces of masses 20.15 g and 20.17 g are added to the box. What is
(a) the total mass of the box,
(b) the difference in the masses of the pieces to correct significant figures?
When the planet Jupiter is at a distance of 824.7 million kilometers from the Earth, its angular diameter is measured to be 35.72" of arc. Calculate the diameter of Jupiter.
The photograph of a house occupies an area of 1.75 cm2 on a 35 mm slide. The slide is projected on to a screen, and the area of the house on the screen is 1.55 m2. What is the linear magnification of the projector-screen arrangement?
It is a well known fact that during a total solar eclipse the disk of the moon almost completely covers the disk of the Sun. From this fact and from the information you can gather from examples 2.3 and 2.4, determine the approximate diameter of the moon.
Fill in the blanks
(a) The volume of a cube of side 1 cm is equal to.....m3
(b) The surface area of a solid cylinder of radius 2.0 cm and height 10.0 cm is equal to ... (mm)2
(c) A vehicle moving with a speed of 18 km h–1covers....m in 1 s
(d) The relative density of lead is 11.3. Its density is ....g cm–3 or . ...kg m–3.
Explain this common observation clearly : If you look out of the window of a fast moving train, the nearby trees, houses etc. seem to move rapidly in a direction opposite to the train's motion, but the distant objects (hill tops, the Moon, the stars etc.) seem to be stationary. (In fact, since you are aware that you are moving, these distant objects seem to move with you).
Some of the most profound statements on the nature of science have come from Albert Einstein, one of the greatest scientists of all time. What do you think did Einstein mean when he said : “The most incomprehensible thing about the world is that it is comprehensible”?
The sign of work done by a force on a body is important to understand. State carefully if the following quantities are positive or negative:
(a) work done by a man in lifting a bucket out of a well by means of a rope tied to the bucket.
(b) work done by gravitational force in the above case,
(c) work done by friction on a body sliding down an inclined plane,
(d) work done by an applied force on a body moving on a rough horizontal plane with uniform velocity,
(e) work done by the resistive force of air on a vibrating pendulum in bringing it to rest.
A geyser heats water flowing at the rate of 3.0 litres per minute from 27 °C to 77 °C. If the geyser operates on a gas burner, what is the rate of consumption of the fuel if its heat of combustion is 4.0 x 104 J/g?
Estimate the fraction of molecular volume to the actual volume occupied by oxygen gas at STP. Take the diameter of an oxygen molecule to be 3Å.
Estimate the total number of air molecules (inclusive of oxygen, nitrogen, water vapour and other constituents) in a room of capacity 25.0 m3 at a temperature of 27 °C and 1 atm pressure.
( i ) The time period of a body having simple harmonic motion depends on the mass m of the body and the force constant k:
T =2π √m/k
A simple pendulum exhibits simple harmonic motion. Then why does the time period of a pendulum not depend upon its mass?
( ii ) For small angle oscillations, a simple pendulum exhibits simple harmonic motion ( more or less). For larger angles of oscillation, detailed analysis show that T is greater than 2π√ l/g. Explain.
( iii ) A boy with a wristwatch on his hand jumps from a helicopter. Will the wrist watch give the correct time during free fall?
( iv ) Find the frequency of oscillation of a simple pendulum that is free falling from a tall bridge.
A wire stretched between two rigid supports vibrates in its fundamental mode with a frequency of 45 Hz. The mass of the wire is 3.5 x 10-2 kg and its linear mass density is 4.0 x 10-2 kg m-1. What is
(a) the speed of a transverse wave on the string, and
(b) the tension in the string?
Which of the following functions of time represent (a) simple harmonic, (b) periodic but not simple harmonic, and (c) non-periodic motion? Give period for each case of periodic motion (ω is any positive constant):
(a) sin ωt - cos wt
(b) sin3 ωt
(c) 3 cos (π/4 - 2ωt)
(d) cos ωt + cos 3ωt + cos 5ωt
(e) exp (-ω2t2)
A narrow sound pulse (for example, a short pip by a whistle) is sent across a medium.
(a) Does the pulse have a definite (i) frequency, (ii) wavelength, (iii) speed of propagation?
(b) If the pulse rate is 1 after every 20 s, (that is the whistle is blown for a split of second after every 20 s), is the frequency of the note produced by the whistle equal to or 0.05 Hz?
Estimate the average thermal energy of a helium atom at
(i) room temperature (27 °C),
(ii) the temperature on the surface of the Sun (6000 K),
(iii) the temperature of 10 million Kelvin (the typical core temperature in the case of a star).
An aircraft executes a horizontal loop at a speed of 720 km/h with its wings banked at 15°. What is the radius of the loop?
A car moving along a straight highway with a speed of 126 km h–1 is brought to a stop within a distance of 200 m. What is the retardation of the car (assumed uniform), and how long does it take for the car to stop?
Earthquakes generate sound waves inside the earth. Unlike a gas, the earth can experience both transverse (S) and longitudinal (P) sound waves. Typically the speed of S wave is about 4.0 km s-1, and that of P wave is 8.0 km s-1. A seismograph records P and S waves from an earthquake. The first P wave arrives 4 min before the first S wave. Assuming the waves travel in straight line, at what distance does the earthquake occur?
A rocket with a lift-off mass 20,000 kg is blasted upwards with an initial acceleration of 5.0 m s–2. Calculate the initial thrust (force) of the blast.