In a couple centuries, the
Industrial Revolution was in full swing and many more discoveries were
made in many fields of science. The laws of classical physics are good enough to study objects that
move much slower than the speed of light, and are not microscopic. When scientists first
studied quantum mechanics, they had to create a new set of laws, which was the start of modern
physics.
Modern physics[change | change source]
As scientists researched particles, they discovered what classical mechanics could not explain.
Classical mechanics predicted that the speed of light varied, but experiments showed the speed of
light stayed the same. This was predicted by Albert Einstein's theory of special relativity. Einstein
predicted that the speed of electromagnetic radiation through empty space would always be the
same. His view of space-time replaced the ancient idea that space and time were quite separate
things.
Max Planck came up with quantum mechanics to explain why metal releases electrons when you
shine a light at it, and why matter emits radiation. Quantum mechanics applies for very small things
like the electrons, protons, and neutrons that make up an atom. People like Werner
Heisenberg, Erwin Schrödinger, and Paul Dirac continued to work on quantum mechanics and
eventually we got the Standard Model.[6][7]
Definition[change | change source]
Physics is the study of energy and matter in space and time and how they are related to each other.
Physicists assume the existence of mass, length, time and electric current and then define (give the
meaning of) all other physical quantities in terms of these basic units. Mass, length, time, and
electric current are never defined but the standard units used to measure them are always defined.
In the International System of Units (abbreviated SI from the French Système International),
the kilogram is the basic unit of mass, the metre is the basic unit of length, the second is the basic
unit of time, and the ampere is the basic unit of electric current. In addition to these four units, there
are three other ones: the mole, which is the unit of the quantity of matter, the candela which
measures the luminous intensity (the power of lighting) and the kelvin, the unit of temperature.