Part IV. Professional Communication

Unit 1. Physics

Exercise 1. Read and translate the text. While you read, look for the words that are similar in your language.

Physics (from Ancient Greek: φύσις physis "nature") is a part of  a natural science that involves the study of matter and its motion through space and time, along with related concepts such as energy and force. More broadly, it is the general analysis of nature, conducted in order to understand how the universe behaves.

Physics is one of the oldest academic disciplines, perhaps the oldest through its inclusion of astronomy. Over the last two millennia, physics was a part of natural philosophy along with chemistry, certain branches of mathematics, andbiology, but during the Scientific Revolution in the 17th century, the natural sciences emerged as unique research programs in their own right. Physics intersects with many interdisciplinary areas of research, such as biophysics and quantum chemistry, and the boundaries of physics are not rigidly defined. New ideas in physics often explain the fundamental mechanisms of other sciences, while opening new avenues of research in areas such as mathematics and philosophy.

Physics also makes significant contributions through advances in new technologies that arise from theoretical breakthroughs. For example, advances in the understanding of electromagnetism or nuclear physics led directly to the development of new products which have dramatically transformed modern-day society, such as television, computers,domestic appliances, and nuclear weapons; advances in thermodynamics led to the development of industrialization; and advances in mechanics inspired the development of calculus.

Exercise 2. Find the key words and give the main idea of the text.

Exercise 3. Make a report about Physics using your own experience and knowledge of the subject.

Unit 2. Phase (matter)

Exercise 1. Read and translate the text. While you read, look for the words that are similar in your language.

In addition to the specific chemical properties that distinguish different chemical classifications chemicals can exist in several phases. For the most part, the chemical classifications are independent of these bulk phase classifications; however, some more exotic phases are incompatible with certain chemical properties. A phase is a set of states of a chemical system that have similar bulk structural properties, over a range of conditions, such as pressure or temperature.

Physical properties, such as density and refractive index tend to fall within values characteristic of the phase. The phase of matter is defined by the phase transition, which is when energy put into or taken out of the system goes into rearranging the structure of the system, instead of changing the bulk conditions.

Sometimes the distinction between phases can be continuous instead of having a discrete boundary, in this case the matter is considered to be in a supercritical state. When three states meet based on the conditions, it is known as a triple point and since this is invariant, it is a convenient way to define a set of conditions.

The most familiar examples of phases are solids, liquids, and gases. Many substances exhibit multiple solid phases. For example, there are three phases of solid iron (alpha, gamma, and delta) that vary based on temperature and pressure. A principal difference between solid phases is the crystal structure, or arrangement, of the atoms. Another phase commonly encountered in the study of chemistry is the aqueous phase, which is the state of substances dissolved in aqueous solution (that is, in water).

Exercise 2. Find the key words and give the main idea of the text.

Exercise 3. Make a report about matter using your own experience and knowledge of the subject.

Unit 3.Energy

Exercise 1. Read and translate the text. While you read, look for the words that are similar in your language.

Energy, like mass, is a scalar physical quantity. The word energy derives from the Greek ἐνέργεια energeia, which possibly appears for the first time in the work of Aristotle in the 4th century BC. (Ancient Greek: ἐνέργεια energeia "activity, operation"^[2])

In physics, energy is an indirectly observed quantity. In the context of physical sciences, several forms of energy have been defined. These include: Thermal energy,Chemical energy,Electric energy,Radiant energy(the energy of electromagnetic radiation),Nuclear energy,Magnetic energy,Elastic energy,Sound energy,Mechanical energy,Luminous energy,Mass (E=mc²).

These forms of energy may be divided into two main groups; kinetic energy and potential energy. Other familiar types of energy are a varying mix of both potential and kinetic energy.

Energy may be transformed between different forms at various efficiencies. Items that transform between these forms are calledtransducers.

The above list of the known possible forms of energy is not necessarily complete. Whenever physical scientists discover that a certain phenomenon appears to violate the law of energy conservation, new forms may be added, as is the case with dark energy, a hypothetical form of energy that permeates all of space and tends to increase the rate of expansion of the universe.

Classical mechanics distinguishes between potential energy, which is a function of the position of an object within a field, and kinetic energy, which is a function of its movement. Both position and movement are relative to a frame of reference, which must be specified: this is often (and originally) an arbitrary fixed point on the surface of the Earth, theterrestrial frame of reference. It has been attempted to categorize all forms of energy as either kinetic or potential, but as Richard Feynman points out:

Exercise 2. Find the key words and give the main idea of the text.

Exercise 3. Make a report about energy using your own experience and knowledge of the subject.

Unit 4. Motion

Exercise 1. Read and translate the text. While you read, look for the words that are similar in your language.

In physics, motion is a change in position of an object with respect to time and its reference point. Motion is typically described in terms of displacement, velocity, acceleration, and time. Motion is observed by attaching a frame of reference to a body and measuring its change in position relative to another reference frame.

A body which does not move is said to be at rest, motionless, immobile, or to have constant (time-invariant) position. An object's motion cannot change unless it is acted upon by a force, as described by Newton's first law. An object's momentum is directly related to the object's mass and velocity, and the total momentum of all objects in aclosed system (one not affected by external forces) does not change with time, as described by the law of conservation of momentum.

As there is no absolute frame of reference, absolute motion cannot be determined. Thus, everything in the universe can be considered to be moving.

More generally, the term motion signifies a continuous change in the configuration of a physical system. For example, one can talk about motion of a wave or a quantum particle (or any other field) where the configuration consists of probabilities of occupying specific positions.

Motions of all large scale and familiar objects in the universe (such as projectiles, planets, cells, and humans) are described by classical mechanics which is fundamentally based on Newton's Laws of Motion. Whereas the motion of very small atomic and sub-atomic objects is described by quantum mechanics.

Exercise 2. Find the key words and give the main idea of the text.

Exercise 3. Make a report about motion using your own experience and knowledge of the subject.

Unit 5. Force

Exercise 1. Read and translate the text. While you read, look for the words that are similar in your language.

In physics, a force is any influence that causes an object to undergo a certain change, either concerning its movement, direction, or geometrical construction. It is measured in the SI unit of newtons and represented by the symbol F. In other words, a force can cause an object with mass to change its velocity (which includes to begin moving from a state of rest), i.e., to accelerate, or a flexible object to deform, or both. Force can also be described by intuitive concepts such as a push or a pull. A force has bothmagnitude and direction, making it a vector quantity.

The original form of Newton's second law states that the net force acting upon an object is equal to the rate at which its momentum changes with time. If the mass of the object is constant, this law implies that the acceleration of an object is directly proportional to the net force acting on the object, is in the direction of the net force, and is inversely proportional to the mass of the object. As a formula, this is expressed as:

where the arrows imply a vector quantity possessing both magnitude and direction.

Exercise 2. Find the key words and give the main idea of the text.

Exercise 3. Make a report about force using your own experience and knowledge of the subject.

Unit 6. Nuclear physics 

Exercise 1. Read and translate the text. While you read, look for the words that are similar in your language.

Nuclear physics is the field of physics that studies the constituents and interactions of atomic nuclei. The most commonly known applications of nuclear physics are nuclear power generation and nuclear weapons technology, but the research has provided application in many fields, including those in nuclear medicine and magnetic resonance imaging, ion implantation in materials engineering, and radiocarbon dating in geology and archaeology.

The history of nuclear physics as a discipline distinct from atomic physics starts with the discovery of radioactivity by Henri Becquerel in 1896, while investigating phosphorescence in uranium salts. The discovery of the electron by J. J. Thomson a year later was an indication that the atom had internal structure. In 1905, Albert Einstein formulated the idea of mass–energy equivalence. While the work on radioactivity by Becquerel and Marie Curie predates this, an explanation of the source of the energy of radioactivity would have to wait for the discovery that the nucleus itself was composed of smaller constituents, the nucleons.

A heavy nucleus can contain hundreds of nucleons which means that with some approximation it can be treated as a classical system, rather than a quantum-mechanical one. In the resulting liquid-drop model, the nucleus has an energy which arises partly from surface tension and partly from electrical repulsion of the protons. The liquid-drop model is able to reproduce many features of nuclei, including the general trend of binding energy with respect to mass number, as well as the phenomenon of nuclear fission.

Much of current research in nuclear physics relates to the study of nuclei under extreme conditions such as high spin and excitation energy. Nuclei may also have extreme shapes (similar to that of Rugby balls) or extreme neutron-to-proton ratios. Experimenters can create such nuclei using artificially induced fusion or nucleon transfer reactions, employing ion beams from an accelerator.

Exercise 2. Find the key words and give the main idea of the text.

Exercise 3. Make a report about nuclear physics using your own experience and knowledge of the subject.

Unit 7. Biophysics

Exercise 1. Read and translate the text. While you read, look for the words that are similar in your language.

Biophysics is an interdisciplinary science that uses the methods of, and theories from physics to study biological systems. Biophysics spans all levels of biological organization, from the molecular scale to whole organisms and ecosystems. Biophysical research shares significant overlap with biochemistry, nanotechnology, bioengineering, agrophysics, and  systems biology.

Molecular biophysics typically addresses biological questions similar to those in biochemistry and molecular biology, but more quantitatively. Scientists in this field conduct research concerned with understanding the interactions between the various systems of a cell, including the interactions between DNA, RNA and protein biosynthesis, as well as how these interactions are regulated. A great variety of techniques are used to answer these questions.

Fluorescent imaging techniques, as well as electron microscopy, x-ray crystallography, NMR spectroscopy and atomic force microscopy (AFM) are often used to visualize structures of biological significance. Conformational change in structure can be measured using techniques such as dual polarization interferometry and circular dichroism. Direct manipulation of molecules using optical tweezers or AFM can also be used to monitor biological events where forces and distances are at the nanoscale. Molecular biophysicists often consider complex biological events as systems of interacting units which can be understood through statistical mechanics, thermodynamics and chemical kinetics. By drawing knowledge and experimental techniques from a wide variety of disciplines, biophysicists are often able to directly observe, model or even manipulate the structures and interactions of individual molecules or complexes of molecules.

In addition to traditional (i.e. molecular and cellular) biophysical topics like structural biology or enzyme kinetics, modern biophysics encompasses an extraordinarily broad range of research, from bioelectronics to quantum biology involving both experimental and theoretical tools. It is becoming increasingly common for biophysicists to apply the models and experimental techniques derived from physics, as well as mathematics and statistics (see biomathematics), to larger systems such as tissues, organs (see cardiophysics),populations and ecosystems. Additionally, biophysics is a bridge between biology and physics.

Exercise 2. Find the key words and give the main idea of the text.

Exercise 3. Make a report about biophysics using your own experience and knowledge of the subject.