CHAPTER 1

Physical quantities, measurements and units of measure

1. Physical quantities, standards and measurements
Physics is the study of natural phenomena through the denition, characterization and
experimentation of physical quantities. Physical quantities are characterized by:
A number that describes the magnitude of the quantity. If the quantity is a vector,
one needs a magnitude and a direction.
A unit of measure, which describes the nature of the quantity.
a method to perform the measurement of the physical quantity.
Relationships among physical quantities constitute the laws of physics, and they are to
be determined experimentally. Every law of physics is tentative, that is, it is true until a
counter-experiment proves it wrong. At that point, the law is no longer valid.
The primary physical quantities, or base quantities, are those that can be measured
directly by comparison with a standard. Among the primary quantities are:
Length, which expresses the distance or extent in space. The standard used for mea-
surement is a standard stick kept at the International Bureau of Weights and Stan-
dards near Paris, France. An object of the same length as the standard bar is said to
have a length of
l = 1[m] meter. A method to perform the measurement consists in assessing how
many of the standard sticks are needed to cover the extent of the object.
Mass, which expresses the quantity or amount of matter. The standard is a cyclinder
of platinum-iridium, and an object of same mass as the standard is said to have a mass
of
m = 1[kg] kilogram. A method of measurement consists in using a precision scale,
and assess how many standard cylinders are needed to balance the object.
Time. This is a rather abstract concept, which necessitates a precise denition through
a measurement procedure. The standard of time has changed with time, and now an
atomic clock is used for this purpose. Conceptually (and for illustration purposes) the
2
standard is equivalent to an actual pocket watch, and the time between two consecutive
second-hand ticks marks a time which we dene as
t = 1[s] second.
Several other physical quantities that we will encounter are dened as function of these
primary quantities.
1.1. Units of measure
The standards dene the unit of measure of a given quantity. The International System
(or SI from the French Syst`eme International) uses the meter as unit of measure of length,
and other units as in Table 1-1 of the textbook. This is the metric system that is commonly
used in science. It is common to use a prex to the units of measure, in order to indicate
that the quantity needs to be multiplied by a given power of 10. For this purpose, recall the
scientic notation of numbers:
10
5
means 1 followed by 5 zeros, or 10,000.
10
5
means 0.00001, or that the decimal point needs to be shifted by 5 places to the
right, in order to get 1.
The use of the scientic notation is that it helps avoid 99.9% of common mistakes done
when trying to put exceedingly large (or small) numbers in the calculator.
Example: 3.210
13
210
43
is easily done without a calculator. First multiply the little
numbers: 3.2 2 = 6.4. Then, add (in algebraic sense) the powers of ten: -13+43=+30.
Result: 6.4 10
30
.
Certain powers of 10 have a special name, as described in Table 1. More prexes are
shown in Table 1-2 of the textbook.
Example: A road of length 13,000 meters is said to have a length of 13 kilo-meters,
and it is indicated as 13 [km]. An atom of size 10
10
meters is said to have a size of 10
nano-meters, and it is indicated as 10 [nm].
Many non-metric units of measure are of common use, and it is often necessary to change
those units into metric units. The procedure is simple, but care needs to be exercised in
order to obtain the correct result. Consider the following example as the common guideline:
Convert 10 [lb] (pounds) into kilo-grams. The information required is that 1 [lb] = 0.45 [kg].

1[lb]
0.45[kg]
=
0.45[kg]
1[lb]
= 1
3
Table 1: Prexes of common use
Factor Prex name Symbol
10
9
nano- n
10
6
micro-
10
3
milli- m
10
3
kilo- k
10
6
mega- M
10
9
giga- G
Since it is always OK to multiply a number by 1, without aecting it, write
10[lb] = 10[lb] 1 = 10[lb]
0.45[kg]
1[lb]
Notice that one needs to pick the second relationship from the above equation. If the
conversion from [kg] to [lb] is desired, one needs to pick the rst instead. Now simplify the
units of measure as if they are regular algebraic quantities:
10[lb] = 10 0.45[kg] = 4.5[kg]
In so doing, [lb] have canceled out, and the number is now in [kg].