Light, dark and sound
We need light to see, and sounds tell us what is going on around us.
- Light and dark
- Things that give light
- Shadows
- Sounds around us
- Making sounds
- Ears and hearing
6 chapters planned
Energy, light and sound
Every book on this topic, lowest level first. Each one builds on the book above it. If a book feels hard, go back up the ladder to the one before.
NextYou are here Light and shadows
Light comes from sources, travels in straight lines and makes shadows when something blocks it.
- Where light comes from
- Light goes in straight lines
- How we see
- Opaque, translucent, transparent
- Big and small shadows
- A shadow stick through the day
- Mirrors and shiny things
7 chapters
NextYou are here Sound
Sounds are made when things vibrate, and they travel through air, water and solids to our ears.
- Sounds come from vibrations
- Sound travels
- Echoes
- A string telephone
- Loud and quiet
- High and low notes
- How we hear
- Noise and our ears
8 chapters
NextYou are here Energy stores and transfers
Energy is stored in food, fuel and moving things, and it moves from one store to another.
- Energy stores
- Energy transfers
- Energy is never used up
- Heat and temperature
- How heat travels
- Keeping warm and cool
- Energy from food
- Fuels and energy resources
8 chapters
NextYou are here Light, colour and sound
Light bounces, bends and splits into colours, and sound is a wave that needs something to travel through.
- Reflection
- Refraction
- Lenses and the eye
- The colours of light
- Why things have colour
- Sound as a wave
- The speed of sound
- Pitch, loudness and hearing
8 chapters
Energy, work and power
Energy can be calculated, and work and power tell us how much moves and how fast.
- Calculating energy stores
- Springs and elastic energy
- Work done
- Power
- Efficiency
- Specific heat capacity
- Energy resources
- Energy at home
8 chapters planned
Waves
Waves carry energy from place to place, and light, sound and radio are all waves.
- Kinds of waves
- Measuring waves
- Waves on water
- Sound and ultrasound
- Reflection and refraction
- Lenses
- The electromagnetic spectrum
- Waves in communication and health
8 chapters planned
Waves
Waves add up, bend and spread, and this explains music, rainbows and the light from stars.
- Progressive waves
- Superposition and interference
- Stationary waves
- Diffraction and gratings
- Young's double slits
- Refraction and optical fibres
- Lenses and optical instruments
- The Doppler effect
8 chapters planned
Thermal physics
Thermal physics links the motion of tiny particles to temperature, pressure and heat.
- Internal energy and temperature
- Specific and latent heat
- The gas laws
- Kinetic theory
- The laws of thermodynamics
- Heat engines and heat pumps
- Rates of heat transfer
7 chapters planned