The visual guide to
AP® Physics 1: Algebra-Based
8 units, 136 topics. Each topic is explained in writing, drawn as a lesson you can watch, and checked with practice questions.
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Each unit is as wide as its share of the exam's multiple-choice section.Filled: topics you've opened.
Unit 1Kinematics
- Scalars, Vectors, and What a Minus Sign Means
- Adding and Subtracting Vectors Along a Line
- Distance versus Displacement
- Average and Instantaneous Velocity
- Acceleration and the Sign Trap
- Free Fall
- Position-Time Graphs and Their Slopes
- Velocity-Time Graphs: Slope and Area
- Translating Between Motion Graphs
- The Kinematic Equations
- Motion Diagrams and Dot Traces
- Lab Skill: Linearizing Motion Data
- Reference Frames
- Relative Motion in Two Dimensions
- Vector Components
- Projectile Motion: Horizontal Launch
- Projectile Motion: Angled Launch
Unit 2Force and Translational Dynamics
- Systems and What Counts as an Internal Force
- Center of Mass
- Motion of the Center of Mass
- Contact and Long-Range Forces
- Drawing a Free-Body Diagram
- The Normal Force
- Tension and Ideal Strings
- Newton's Third Law and Force Pairs
- Why Third-Law Pairs Never Cancel
- Newton's First Law and Equilibrium
- Solving Translational Equilibrium Problems
- Newton's Second Law as a Net-Force Equation
- Inclined Planes
- Connected Systems and Atwood Machines
- Elevators and Apparent Weight
- Lab: Acceleration versus Force and versus Mass
- Newton's Law of Universal Gravitation
- Gravitational Field and Weight
- Inertial versus Gravitational Mass
- Static Friction
- Kinetic Friction
- Friction on an Incline
- Hooke's Law and Spring Force
- Springs in Series and in Parallel
- Centripetal Acceleration
- Centripetal Force Is a Role, Not a New Force
- Vertical Circles
- Lab: The Conical Pendulum
Unit 3Work, Energy, and Power
- Translational Kinetic Energy
- The Work-Energy Theorem
- Work as Force Along a Displacement
- Work at an Angle and Negative Work
- Work as the Area Under a Force-Distance Graph
- Work Done by Friction
- Gravitational Potential Energy
- Elastic Potential Energy in a Spring
- Potential Energy Curves and Turning Points
- Conservative and Nonconservative Forces
- Energy Bar Charts
- Conservation of Mechanical Energy
- Energy When Friction Is in the System
- Roller Coasters, Loops, and Minimum Speeds
- Choosing the System Boundary for Energy
- Lab: Spring Launcher Energy Transfer
- Power as Energy per Time
- Power as Force Times Velocity
Unit 4Linear Momentum
- Momentum as Mass Times Velocity
- Momentum Is a Vector
- Impulse as Force Times Time
- Impulse as the Area Under a Force-Time Graph
- Why Crumple Zones and Airbags Work
- Momentum Bar Charts
- Conservation of Momentum in an Isolated System
- Explosions and Recoil
- Two-Dimensional Collisions
- Lab: Cart Collisions and Impulse
- Perfectly Inelastic Collisions
- Elastic Collisions
- Collisions in the Center-of-Mass Frame
- The Ballistic Pendulum
Unit 5Torque and Rotational Dynamics
- Angular Position, Velocity, and Acceleration
- The Rotational Kinematic Equations
- Angular Motion Graphs
- Connecting Linear and Rotational Motion
- Tangential and Centripetal Acceleration
- Belts, Pulleys, and Rolling Contact
- Torque and the Lever Arm
- Torque from a Force at an Angle
- Net Torque and Sign Conventions
- Rotational Inertia Depends on Where the Mass Sits
- Rotational Inertia from Point Masses
- Rotational Inertia of Common Shapes
- Rotational Equilibrium and Balanced Torques
- Static Equilibrium of a Loaded Beam
- Newton's Second Law in Rotational Form
- Pulleys with Mass
Unit 6Energy and Momentum of Rotating Systems
- Rotational Kinetic Energy
- Total Kinetic Energy of a Rolling Object
- Work Done by a Torque
- Rotational Power
- Angular Momentum of a Rotating Body
- Angular Momentum of an Object Moving in a Straight Line
- Angular Impulse
- Conservation of Angular Momentum: The Spinning Skater
- Collisions That Start a Rotation
- Rolling Without Slipping
- The Race Down the Incline
- Lab: Measuring Rotational Inertia by Rolling
- Circular Orbits
- Elliptical Orbits and Angular Momentum
- Orbital Energy
Unit 7Oscillations
- What Makes a Restoring Force Simple Harmonic
- The Mass-Spring Oscillator
- The Simple Pendulum
- Period, Frequency, and Amplitude
- Period of a Mass on a Spring
- Period of a Pendulum
- The Sinusoidal Position Graph
- Position, Velocity, and Acceleration Together
- Simple Harmonic Motion as the Shadow of a Circle
- Lab: Linearizing Pendulum Period Data
- Energy Trading in an Oscillator
- Energy versus Position Curves
Unit 8Fluids
- Density
- Internal Structure of Solids, Liquids, and Gases
- How Temperature Changes Density
- Pressure as Force per Area
- Pressure in a Column of Fluid
- Absolute and Gauge Pressure
- Pascal's Principle and the Hydraulic Lift
- Manometers and Barometers
- The Buoyant Force
- Archimedes' Principle
- Floating, Sinking, and Fraction Submerged
- Apparent Weight and Accelerating in a Fluid
- The Continuity Equation
- Bernoulli's Equation
- Bernoulli in Action
- Torricelli's Law and Draining Tanks