Science Glossary - Part 8

SCIENCE GLOSSARY - PART 8

351.    Telescope:    It is a device for collecting and focusing light and other forms of electromagnetic radiation form distant objects.

352.    Temperature:    A measure of the average amount of kinetic energy of the particles in an object

353.    Terminal velocity:    The final, maximum velocity of a falling object.

354.    Theory:    In science, a set of widely accepted explanations of observations and phenomena. A theory is a well-tested explanation that is consistent with all available evidence

355.    Thermal energy:    The energy an object has due to the motion of its particles; the total amount of kinetic energy of particles in an object

356.    Thermometer:    It is a device used measures temperature of hotness.

357.    Thermostat:    It is a device used to keep the temperature in some place with in a set range.

358.    Tide:    It is the rise and fall of sea level due to the gravitational forces of the Moon and Sun.

359.    Transformer:    It is a device whose normal use is to transfer electrical energy with a change in voltage between input and output.

360.    Transistor:    It is a device for controlling the flow of minute electric current. It serves as a rectifier or as an amplifier of current.

361.    Transmission:    The passage of a wave through a medium

362.    Transponder:    It is a transmitter cum-receiver which receive radio signals and retransmits them automatically often at a different frequency after amplification.

363.    Transverse wave:    A type of wave in which the disturbance moves at right angles, or perpendicular, to the direction in which the wave travels.

364.    Troposphere:    It is the lowest part, of the earth’s atmosphere in which most of the weather phenomena occur.

365.    Trough:    The lowest point, or valley, of a wave

366.    UFO:    It is an unidentified Flying Object.

367.    Ultrasonics:    It is the study and application of the sound and vibration produced by ultrasonic pressure waves.

368.    Ultraviolet light:    The part of the electromagnetic spectrum that con- sists of waves with frequencies higher than those of visible light and lower than those of x-rays

369.    Uranium:    Radioactive metallic element (system U) of proton number 92 and relatives atomic mass 238.029.

370.    Vacuum:    A space containing few or no particles of matter

371.    Vaporization:    It is the change of state of a substance from liquid to vapour.

372.    Variable:    Any factor that can change in a controlled experiment, observation, or model

373.    Velocity:    It is the speed of an object in a given direction, or the rate of change of an object’s displacement.

374.    VHF:    It is very High frequency referring to radio waves that have very short wavelengths.

375.    Vibration:    A rapid, back-and-forth motion.

376.    Viscosity:    Resistance of fluids (liquids and gases) to flow. It is caused by friction between the fluid molecules moving against each other.

377.    Visible light:    The part of the electromagnetic spectrum that consists of waves detectable by the human eye

378.    Voltage:    It is the electrical pressure or potential difference measured in volts.

379.    Voltmeter:    It is an electrical instrument which measures voltage.

380.    Volume:    An amount of three-dimensional space, often used to describe the space that an object takes up.

381.    Vortex:    It is intense circular or whirling motion of a fluid.

382.    Warhead:    It is the part of a missile, usually placed at the tip. Containing a chemical explosive or incendiary charge and a mechanism for setting it off. It may also carry a nuclear device.

383.    Water cycle:    It is the continuous movement water between the ocean, atmosphere and the land. Water from the ocean evaporates by Sun’s heat and enters the atmosphere as water vapour. The water vapour condenses and comes down as rain from where it flows through streams and rivers into the ocean, thus completing the cycle.

384.    Watt:    It is the unit or power, the rate of energy transfer.

385.    Wave:    A disturbance that transfers energy from one place to another without requiring matter to move the entire clistance

386.    Wavelength:    The distance from one wave crest to the next crest; the distance from any part of one wave to the identical part of the next wave.

387.    Wedge:    A simple machine that has a thick end and a thin end. A wedge is used to cut, split, or pierce objects, or to hold objects together

388.    Weight:    The force of gravity on an object

389.    Wheel and axle:    A simple machine that is a wheel attached to a shaft, or axle

390.    Work:    The use of force to move an object over a distance

391.    X-rays:    The part of the electromagnetic spectrum that consists of waves with high frequencies and high energies; electromagnetic waves with frequencies ranging from more than 1016 hertz to more than 1021 hertz