Lesson plan
conserved quantity
A conserved quantity is a property or value that remains constant over time in a system even when changes occur in the system. In mathematics, a conserved quantity of a dynamical system is formally defined as a function of the dependent variables, the value of which remains constant along each trajectory of the system. Not all systems have conserved quantities, and conserved quantities are not unique, since one can always produce another such quantity by applying a suitable function, such as adding a constant, to a conserved quantity. Since many laws of physics express some kind of conservation, conserved quantities commonly exist in mathematical models of physical systems. For example, any classical mechanics model will have mechanical energy as a conserved quantity as long as the forces involved are conservative.
Article summary
A conserved quantity is a property or value that remains constant over time in a system even when changes occur in the system. In mathematics, a conserved quantity of a dynamical system is formally defined as a function of the dependent variables, the value of which remains constant along each trajectory of the system. Not all systems have conserved quantities, and conserved quantities are not unique, since one can always produce another such quantity by applying a suitable function, such as adding a constant, to a conserved quantity. Since many laws of physics express some kind of conservation, conserved quantities commonly exist in mathematical models of physical systems. For example, any classical mechanics model will have mechanical energy as a conserved quantity as long as the forces involved are conservative.
Key claims
No claims recorded.
Discussion questions
- Summarise the article in your own words. Which single claim would you verify first, and why?
- Which claim in this article is most likely to be revised as the sources update? How would you check its current status?
- If two sources disagreed about one of these facts, what would you need in order to trust one over the other?
Bibliography
No sources recorded.
Key claims and bibliography are generated from the same tracked claims and sources as the article page.