MCAT Physics: Mastering Units, Conversions, and Fundamental Measurements

Work and energy are measured in joules, not newtons, watts, or coulombs.

Newton is the standard unit of force in the International System of Units (SI) and is defined as the force required to accelerate a mass of one kilogram at a rate of one meter per second squared.

Power is typically measured in Watts (W), not Volts (V), Amperes (A), or Ohms (Ω) which are units for voltage, current, and resistance respectively.

The correct conversion factors are: 1 Calorie (Cal) = 103 calories (cal) = 4184 Joules (J) = 3.97 British Thermal Units (BTU). The incorrect answers provided have variations in the values of either the caloric or Joules conversion which result in inaccurate equivalences.

The specific heat of water is 1 calorie per gram Celsius, which means it takes 1 calorie of energy to raise the temperature of 1 gram of water by 1 degree Celsius. This property of water helps it regulate temperature and sustain life in various ecosystems.

The specific heat of water is the amount of heat required to raise the temperature of 1 gram of water by 1 degree Celsius. The correct answer is 4186 J/kg°C, which means it takes 4186 Joules of energy to raise the temperature of 1 kilogram of water by 1 degree Celsius.

The correct answer is approximately 1 g/cm^3. Water has a density close to 1 g/cm^3 at room temperature and atmospheric pressure, making it a commonly used reference point for the density of liquids.

Pascal (Pa) is the SI unit of pressure, named after Blaise Pascal, a French mathematician, physicist, and philosopher.

Pressure is the force applied perpendicular to the surface of an object per unit area. The correct unit of pressure is Pascal (Pa), which is equal to one newton per square meter (N/m^2). Joules (J) is a unit of energy, Liters (L) is a unit of volume, and Kelvin (K) is a unit of temperature.

Viscosity is the measure of a fluid's resistance to deformation. Pascal-Second (Pa·s) is the SI unit of viscosity, representing one newton per square meter per second.

Specific gravity is the ratio of the density of a substance to the density of a reference substance. Pure water has a specific gravity of 1 as its density is 1g/cm^3. Incorrect answers provided are not accurate representations of the specific gravity of pure water.

Volts is the unit used to measure electrical potential difference, represented by the symbol V. It is defined as 1 Joule per Coulomb (J/C), which represents the amount of energy needed to move one Coulomb of charge through an electrical potential difference of one volt.

The fundamental unit of charge is defined as e = 1.60 X 10^-19 C, which is the charge of a single electron in coulombs. Any other value mentioned in the incorrect answers is not the correct fundamental unit of charge.

Coloumb's Constant represents the electrostatic force between two point charges. The correct value is obtained from the equation 1/4πε0, where ε0 is the permittivity of free space. The incorrect answers present altered values that do not correspond to the actual Coloumb's Constant.

The correct unit for Tesla (T) magnetic field strength is defined as 1 N x s/m x C based on the relationship between magnetic field strength and force on a charge moving through the field.

The conversion between tesla (T) and gauss (G) is 1 T = 104 G. Therefore, 1 tesla is equivalent to 10,000 gauss.

Permeability of Free Space is a fundamental constant in physics and is represented by the value 4π x 10-7 T x m/A.

Electric current is measured in amperes, symbolized by the unit A. One ampere is equivalent to one coulomb per second.

Resistance is measured in Ohms represented by the symbol Ω. Amps measure current, Volts measure voltage, and Watts measure power.

Capacitance is measured in Farads (F), which is defined as 1 Farad being equal to 1 Coloumb of charge per 1 Volt of potential difference.

Siemen (S) is the unit of conductance and is sometimes expressed as siemens per meter (S/m). This measurement quantifies how easily an electric current can flow through a material.

Electromotive force (emf) is measured in volts (V), specifically defined as 1 volt equalling 1 joule per coulomb (J/C). While emf shares the same unit as voltage, it should not be confused with a force measured in newtons (N) or charge measured in coulombs (C).