ABSTRACT
This chapter is designed to provide an understanding of the scientific principles of solids when applied to the practical issues, which underpin exercise and sport. After reading this chapter, you should be able to:
Aims of the chapter 51
Introduction 52
Key applications to exercise and sport 52
Scientific principles of solids 53
Transfer of heat in a solid 54
Categories of a solid 56
Application of science to exercise and sport 58
Radiation from the body at rest 58
Bone as a solid 60
Self-test 62
Conclusion 62
Key points 63
Bibliography 64
Further reading 64
CHAPTER CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION
A solid is defined as ‘the physical state of matter in which the constituent molecules, atoms or ions have no translatory motion although they vibrate about the fixed positions that they occupy in a crystal lattice’ (Uvarov and Isaacs, 1986: 376). A solid, such as metal, possesses the property of stiffness or rigidity. This is because of the atoms possessing order and being held in approximately fixed positions. Molecules forming a solid are typically arranged in an orderly fashion known as a lattice. Most solids will thus keep their shape and, unlike a liquid, a solid will not take the shape of a container that it is placed into. Although the human eye sees a solid as a fixed state of matter, on a molecular scale the picture is very different. The atoms of a solid are in fact moving continuously and rapidly. Solids cannot move as quickly as gases because the movement of the molecules is limited by the attraction between molecules. Unlike gases, this means that there is limited distance over which the molecules move. There is a large amount of kinetic energy in a solid.
