物理学类专业英语基础课程.docx

1、物理学类专业英语基础课程IntroductionPhysics is a natural science that involves the study of matter and its motion through spacetime(时空), as well as all applicable concepts, such as energy and force. More broadly, it is the general analysis of nature, conducted in order to understand how the world and universe b

2、ehave. Physics is one of the oldest academic disciplines(学科), perhaps the oldest through its inclusion of astronomy. Over the last two millennia(一千年), physics had been considered synonymous with philosophy, chemistry, and certain branches of mathematics and biology, but during the Scientific Revolut

3、ion in the 16th century, it emerged(显现) to become a unique modern science in its own right. However, in some subject areas such as in mathematical physics and quantum chemistry, the boundaries of physics remain difficult to distinguish.Physics is both significant and influential, in part because adv

4、ances in its understanding have often translated into new technologies, but also because new ideas in physics often resonate(共鸣) with other sciences, mathematics, and philosophy. For example, advances in the understanding of electromagnetism(电磁学) or nuclear physics led directly to the development of

5、 new products which have dramatically transformed modern-day society (e.g., television, computers, domestic appliances, and nuclear weapons); advances in thermodynamics(热力学) led to the development of motorized transport; and advances in mechanics(力学) inspired the development of calculus.Scope and ai

6、msPhysics covers a wide range of phenomena, from the smallest sub-atomic particles (such as quarks, neutrinos(中微子) and electrons), to the largest galaxies. Included in these phenomena are the most basic objects from which all other things are composed, and therefore physics is sometimes called the f

7、undamental science.Physics aims to describe the various phenomena that occur in nature in terms of simpler phenomena. Thus, physics aims to both connect the things observable to humans to root causes, and then to try to connect these causes together in the hope of finding an ultimate reason for why

8、nature is as it is. For example, the ancient Chinese observed that certain rocks (lodestone) were attracted to one another by some invisible force. This effect was later called magnetism, and was first rigorously studied in the 17th century.A little earlier than the Chinese, the ancient Greeks knew

9、of other objects such as amber, that when rubbed with fur would cause a similar invisible attraction between the two. This was also first studied rigorously in the 17th century, and came to be called electricity. Thus, physics had come to understand two observations of nature in terms of some root c

10、ause (electricity and magnetism). However, further work in the 19th century revealed that these two forces were just two different aspects of one force electromagnetism. This process of unifying forces continues today.The scientific methodPhysicists use the scientific method to test the validity(认可)

11、 of a physical theory, using a methodical approach to compare the implications of the theory in question with the associated conclusions drawn from experiments and observations conducted to test it. Experiments and observations are to be collected and matched with(与一致) the predictions and hypotheses

12、(假定) made by a theory, thus aiding in the determination or the validity/invalidity of the theory.Theories which are very well supported by data and have never failed any competent empirical(以实验为依据的) test are often called scientific laws, or natural laws. Of course, all theories, including those call

13、ed scientific laws, can always be replaced by more accurate, generalized statements if a disagreement of theory with observed data is ever found.Theory and experimentThe culture of physics has a higher degree of separation between theory and experiment than many other sciences. Since the twentieth c

14、entury, most individual physicists have specialized in either theoretical physics or experimental physics. In contrast, almost all the successful theorists in biology and chemistry (e.g. American quantum chemist and biochemist Linus Pauling) have also been experimentalists, although this is changing

15、 as of late.Theorists seek to develop mathematical models that both agree with existing experiments and successfully predict future results, while experimentalists devise and perform experiments to test theoretical predictions and explore new phenomena. Although theory and experiment are developed s

16、eparately, they are strongly dependent upon each other. Progress in physics frequently comes about when experimentalists make a discovery that existing theories cannot explain, or when new theories generate experimentally testable predictions, which inspire new experiments. It is also worth noting t

17、here are some physicists who work at the interplay(相互作用) of theory and experiment who are called phenomenologists. Phenomenologists look at the complex phenomena observed in experiment and work to relate them to fundamental theory.Theoretical physics has historically taken inspiration from philosoph

18、y; electromagnetism was unified this way. Beyond the known universe, the field of theoretical physics also deals with hypothetical issues, such as parallel universes(平行宇宙), a multiverse(多元宇宙), and higher dimensions(多维时空). Theorists invoke these ideas in hopes of solving particular problems with exis

19、ting theories. They then explore the consequences of these ideas and work toward making testable predictions.Experimental physics informs, and is informed by, engineering and technology. Experimental physicists involved in basic research design and perform experiments with equipment such as particle

20、(粒子) accelerators and lasers(激光), whereas those involved in applied(应用的) research often work in industry, developing technologies such as magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and transistors. Feynman has noted that experimentalists may seek areas which are not well explored by theorists.Relation to math

21、ematics and the other sciencesIn the Assayer (1622), Galileo noted that mathematics is the language in which Nature expresses its laws. Most experimental results in physics are numerical measurements, and theories in physics use mathematics to give numerical results to match these measurements.Physi

22、cs relies upon mathematics to provide the logical framework(结构) in which physical laws may be precisely formulated and predictions quantified. Whenever analytic solutions of equations are not feasible, numerical analysis and simulations may be utilized. Thus, scientific computation is an integral pa

23、rt of physics, and the field of computational physics is an active area of research.A key difference between physics and mathematics is that since physics is ultimately concerned with descriptions of the material world, it tests its theories by comparing the predictions of its theories with data pro

24、cured from observations and experimentation, whereas mathematics is concerned with abstract patterns, not limited by those observed in the real world. The distinction, however, is not always clear-cut. There is a large area of research intermediate(中间的) between physics and mathematics, known as math

25、ematical physics.Physics is also intimately related to many other sciences, as well as applied fields like engineering and medicine. The principles of physics find applications throughout the other natural sciences as some phenomena studied in physics, such as the conservation of energy, are common

26、to all material systems. Other phenomena, such as superconductivity(超导电性), stem from these laws, but are not laws themselves because they only appear in some systems.Physics is often said to be the fundamental science (chemistry is sometimes included), because each of the other disciplines (biology,

27、 chemistry, geology, material science, engineering, medicine etc.) deals with particular types of material systems that obey the laws of physics. For example, chemistry is the science of collections of matter (such as gases and liquids formed of atoms and molecules) and the processes known as chemic

28、al reactions that result in the change of chemical substances.The structure, reactivity, and properties of a chemical compound(化合物) are determined by the properties of the underlying molecules, which may be well-described by areas of physics such as quantum mechanics, or quantum chemistry, thermodyn

29、amics, and electromagnetism参考译文：导论物理学是研究物质(包括由分子原子组成的实物、各种各样的场等)及其在四维时空中运动的一门自然科学,其研究领域包括能量、力等所有的概念和应用。更广义的说：物理学是对自然的一种广义分析和了解的学科，其最终目的是理解世界和宇宙的一切现象。物理学是最古老的研究学科之一，也许最早的研究领域是宇宙学。在过去的两千年中，物理学和哲学、化学以及数学和生物学的一些分支具有相近的研究领域。但是，经过十六世纪自然科学的飞速发展，物理学迅速发展成为了具有鲜明特征的一门现代自然科学分支。但是，在一些特殊的研究领域，如数学物理和量子化学等，物理学和其它学科

30、的界限还是很难区分的。这些领域通常称之为交叉学科。物理学研究意义重大，影响深远。一方面是因为物理学的发展经常导致新技术的涌现，另一方面是因为物理学的新思想往往和其它自然学科产生共鸣，比如数学和哲学。举一个例子：为了更好的电磁学和核物理的发展，直接导致改变现代生活的许多新产品和新技术的出现，如电视、计算机和其它家用电器、原子武器等。热力学的发展直接导致了机动车辆的出现；力学的研究催生了微积分的出现。物理学的研究范围和研究目的物理学的研究范围相当广泛，从比原子小的微观粒子（如夸克，中微子和电子），到巨大的宇宙天体。这些研究对象的所有现象都是物理学的研究范畴，所以物理学有时被称为基础科学。物理学的研

31、究目的是用最简单的语言解释自然界发生的所有现象。从这个意义上说，物理学的目的不仅要要找出能够观测的现象发生的根本原因，还要综合这些起因，去探索发现自然界为什么是现在这个样子。例如，古代的中国人发现了一些天然磁石相互吸引的现象，这些现象后来被称为磁性，并在17世纪得到了广泛的研究，找出了其中的物理学原理。比中国人更早些的古希腊人发现了诸如琥珀之类的物体，被毛皮摩擦后能够相互吸引。这个现象在17世纪得到了广泛的研究也得到了广泛的研究，得到了电学的基本规律。从此，电学和磁学使人们理解了电和磁的有关现象。然而，19世纪更加深入的研究发现，电力和磁力只不过是电磁力的两个方面，人们现在正在寻找更大范围的力

32、场统一理论。科学方法科学家利用科学方法检验物理理论的正确性，用系统的方法去比对理论和相应的实验观测，再用更多的实验观测去检验假说和理论的正确性，最终确定理论是否成立。如果理论和实验数据符合的非常好，并且能够解释到目前为止的所有观测事实的话，这种理论通常被称为科学定理或者自然定理。当然，如果有新的观测数据和现有理论不符的话，所有理论，包括所谓的科学定理，都会被更精确、更广义的理论所取代。理论和实验在物理学界，试验和理论的界限比任何学科都分明。从20世纪以后，每一个物理学家都局限在一个特殊的理论或者实验领域。相反的，几乎所有成功的生物学和化学领域的理论工作者，同时又是成功的实验工作者。例如美国的量

33、子化学和生物学家Linus Pauling。这种情况将来也许会发生变化，但至少目前是这种情况。理论物理学家致力于发展数学模型，使其及与现存的实验事实相符合，又能成功预测一些其它结果。同时，实验物理学家致力于设计实验，验证这些理论预言并探索新的现象。虽然理论和实验都独立的各自发展，但是它们又具有很强的相互依赖性。当实验物理学家发现了一些现行理论不能解释的实验事实时，或者新的理论预言了一些可以检验的新实验时，物理学就会在理论和实验的相互推动下不断向前发展。同时需要关注的是：有一些物理学家工作在理论和实验相互影响的领域，他们关注的是复杂的实验现象，以及这些现象和物理学基本原理的联系。理论物理在其发展历史中一直从哲学吸取灵