PHYSICS
CHAPTER 4: HEAT [CONTINUATION OF NOTES]
ANSWER IN DETAIL
Question 1: What is clinical thermometer? What is the range of a clinical thermometer? Explain
why a clinical thermometer cannot be used to measure.
Answer: The thermometer used for measuring the temperature of human body is called clinical
thermometer.
Range of a clinical thermometer is 35°C to 42°C
Clinical thermometer cannot be used to measure high temperatures because it has a very short
range of temperature i.e. 35°C to 42°C.
Question 2: a. Why do people prefer to wear white clothes in summer?
b. Why is it better to wear dark clothes in winter?
Answer: a. People prefer to wear white clothes in summer because white clothes absorb less heat
from the Sun.
b. It is better to wear dark clothes in winter because dark coloured clothes absorb more heat from
the sun and keep us warm in winter season.
Question 3: a. Why is the box of a solar cooker painted black from inside?
b. In places of hot climate, it is advised that the outer walls of houses be painted white. Why?
Answer: a. The box of solar cooker is painted black from inside because a black surface is very
good absorber of heat and it will observe maximum heat radiations coming from the Sun.
b. In places of hot climate it is advised that the outer walls of the houses be painted white because
white/ light colours absorb very little sun's heat rays, it reflects most of the sun's heat rays.
Question 4: What is meant by ‘convection’? Explain with the help of an example. Why is it that
convection cannot take place in solids?
Answer: Convection is the transfer of heat from the hotter parts of a liquid to its colder parts by
the movement of the liquid itself.
Eg. The water in a beaker is heated by convection currents.
When a beaker containing water is kept over a burner, water at the bottom of beaker gets heated,
expands and becomes lighter. This hot water rises upwards and carries heat along with it and cool
water sinks downwards.
Convection does not take place in solids because the molecules in solids are tightly packed.
Question 5: Define radiation. Give any two example where heat is transferred by radiation. What
is the invisible heat rays which transfer heat by radiation?
Answer: Radiation is the transfer of heat from a hot body to a cold body by means of heat rays
without any material medium between them.
Eg. a. The hot electric bulb transfers its heat to our hand.
b. Heat reaching from sun to us.
Invisible heat rays which transfer heat by radiation are Infrared rays.
Question 6: Why can the sun's heat not reach the earth by conduction or convection?
Answer: Heat from the Sun cannot reach the earth by conduction or convection because both
these processes require a material medium (like solid liquid or gas). The sun is very far away from
the Earth and there is mainly empty space (vacuum) between the sun and the earth. So heat from
the sun reaches on the earth by the process of radiation.
DEFINITION
Land breeze- The breeze blowing from the land towards the sea is called land breeze.
Sea breeze- The breeze blowing from the sea towards the land is called sea breeze.
➢ Diagrams of land and sea breeze will be drawn from the book.
ACTIVITY SHEET
=>Questions based on Fig:1
Take a rod or flat strip of metal, say of aluminium or iron. Fix a few small wax pieces on the rod.
These pieces should be at nearly equal distances. Clamp the rod to a stand. Now heat the other
end of the rod and observe.
Q1. What happens to the wax pieces?
Q2. Do these pieces begin to fall?
Q3. Which piece falls the first?
Q4. Do you think that heat is transferred from the end nearest to the flame to the other end?
Figure:1 Figure:2
=>Questions based on Fig:2
Heat water in a beaker. Collect some articles such as a steel spoon, plastic scale, pencil and
divider. Dip one end of these articles in hot water. Wait for a few minutes. Touch the other end.
Enter your observations in the table given below:
One is solved for you.
ARTICLE MATERIALS WITH WHICH DOES THE OTHER END GET HOT
THE ARTICLE IS MADE OF YES/NO
STEEL SPOON METAL YES
=>Questions based on Fig:3
Light a candle. Keep one hand above the flame and one hand on the side of the flame.
[Be careful. Keep your hands at a safe distance from the flame so that they do not get burn]
Q1. Do your hands feel equally hot? If not which hand feels hotter? And Why?
Figure:3
=>Questions based on Fig:4
Take two identical tin cans. Paint the outer surface of one black and of the other white. Pour equal
amounts of water in each and leave them in the mid – day sun for about an hour. Now measure
the temperature of water in both the cans.
Q1. Do you find any difference in the temperatures? ( You can feel the difference by touching
water in the two cans.)
Q2. In which can is the water warmer?
Q3. Why it is more comfortable to wear white or light – coloured clothes in the summer and dark –
coloured clothes in the winter?
Figure:4
Mark in the following where the heat is being transferred by conduction, by convection
and by radiation.
