Terminology/Classical mechanics
Classical mechanics
Classical mechanics is a physical theory describing the motion of objects such as projectiles, parts of machinery, "spacecraft", "planets", stars, and "galaxies". The development of classical mechanics involved substantial change in the methods and philosophy of physics. The qualifier classical distinguishes this type of mechanics from physics developed after the revolutions in physics of the early 20th century, all of which revealed limitations in classical mechanics.
The earliest formulation of classical mechanics is often referred to as Newtonian mechanics. It consists of the physical concepts based on the 17th century foundational works of Sir Isaac Newton, and the mathematical methods invented by Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz, Leonhard Euler and others to describe the motion of bodies under the influence of forces.
If the present state of an object that obeys the laws of classical mechanics is known, it is possible to determine how it will move in the future, and how it has moved in the past. Chaos theory shows that the long term predictions of classical mechanics are not reliable.
Classical mechanics provides better results when studying objects that are not extremely massive and have speeds not approaching the speed of light. With objects about the size of an atom's diameter, it becomes necessary to use quantum mechanics. To describe velocities approaching the speed of light, special relativity is needed. In cases where objects become extremely massive, general relativity becomes applicable. Some modern sources include relativistic mechanics in classical physics, as representing the field in its most developed and accurate form.
Three main branches
Classical mechanics was traditionally divided into three main branches.
- Statics is the branch of classical mechanics that is concerned with the analysis of force and torque acting on a physical system that does not experience an acceleration, but rather is in equilibrium with its environment.
- Kinematics describes the motion of points, bodies (objects), and systems of bodies (groups of objects) without considering the forces that cause them to move. Kinematics, as a field of study, is often referred to as the "geometry of motion" and is occasionally seen as a branch of mathematics.
- Dynamics goes beyond merely describing objects' behavior and also considers the forces which explain it. Some authors (for example, Taylor (2005) and Greenwood (1997)) include special relativity within classical dynamics.