I began the definitions assignment by selecting a term in my field (Physics) commonly referenced in everyday life. The concept of weight came to mind, because it is often confused with mass. Defining a scientific concept to the layperson was interesting. I found that, when defining weight, I relied on other physics concepts that would most likely not be known to the layperson. Thankfully, I was able to rely on parenthetical and sentence definitions within my expanded definition to clarify secondary concepts.

The peer review assignment was, in my opinion, the most useful task thus far. As I helped my classmate with her document, I felt I was learning how to improve my own writing. I saw many writing and formatting techniques that I could adopt. Alternatively, finding errors in my peer’s document made me reflect back on my work, had I committed the same mistake? I also found that reading my peers’ work gave some insight into how they structured their ideas. Perhaps, regular peer reviewing of teammates’ work could help improve communication?

As for my self-editing strategies, I have not changed my process. I still think the best way to self-edit my work is to read it out loud. I find this technique is helpful to avoid awkward-sounding and/or long sentences.

The objective of this assignment is to get ENGL 301 students acquainted with the 3 types of definitions and how to write a proper example of each one. For the purpose of this exercise, I have chosen to define the concept of weight in Physics. I will write a parenthetical, sentence, and expanded definition for weight. My target audience is the educated layperson. I will assume that my audience has some familiarity of Math, but no significant knowledge of Physics.

Parenthetical definition: A rectangular box has a mass of 100Kg, what is the weight (force exerted by gravity) of the box?

Sentence definition: Weight is the force produced by gravity on an object. The magnitude of this force is directly proportional to the mass of the object.

Expanded definition: In Physics, weight is defined as the force produced by gravity on a body, which should not be confused with an object’s mass. The latter is a measurement of the amount of matter in units of kilograms, while weight quantifies the effect of gravity on matter in units of Newtons (hyperphysics, 2016). The mathematical definition for weight (w) is the product of an object’s mass (m) times the acceleration of gravity (g):

w = m*g

For example, if a man has a mass of 70 Kg, what is his weight?

w = 70Kg * 9.81 m/s^2

w = 686.7 N

The previous example is very simple. A more realistic application of the weight formula is for calculating the apparent weight of a body. Apparent weight is the sum of weight produced by gravity plus the “false weight” induced by some external acceleration. You may recall this effect from going up and down on elevators:

W_apparent = m * (g * acceleration_elevator)

Newton’s third law of motion states that, for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction (NASA, 2016). On the surface of the Earth, the normal force counteracts weight (Fig. 1).

Figure 1. Weight (mg) and normal force (N) acting on a box of mass (m) (wikimedia, 2016).

This fundamental relationship between weight and normal force is what keeps our feet on the ground without breaking through the floor.

Bibliography:

Mass and Weight. (n.d.). Retrieved September 26, 2016, from http://hyperphysics.phy-astr.gsu.edu/hbase/mass.html

File:WeightNormal.svg. (2014, May 25). Retrieved September 26, 2016, from https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:WeightNormal.svg

Newton’s Laws of Motion. (2015, May 05). Retrieved September 26, 2016, from https://www.grc.nasa.gov/www/k-12/airplane/newton.html

Important: This post does not reflect the formatting of the Word version. Please find Word doc here: engl301-definitions-draft2

Link to peer’s review of my first draft: http://engl301.arts.ubc.ca/2016/09/28/review-of-samuel-navarros-assignment-1-3/