JOURNAL OF RESEARCH IN SCIENCE TEACHING VOL. 36, NO. 3, PP.

321–331 (1999)

Science Nomenclature in Africa: Physics in Nguni*

Temba S. Dlodlo
Applied Physics Department, National University of Science and Technology,
P.O. Box 346, Bulawayo, Zimbabwe
Abstract: In the future, African universities will be required to use mother languages as the languages
of instruction in teaching all courses, including science and technology. This will necessitate the creation
of a modern scientific vocabulary in the various African languages. In this article I will propose and show
that the best way of creating such vocabulary is to give scientific meaning to generally accessible words
that are explanatory of the concepts, rather than borrowing from European languages by phonetic tran-
scription. I will suggest ways of constructing a Nguni nomenclature for physics. It is hoped that the same
approach will be adopted for the other African languages. The significance of developing a mother lan-
guage nomenclature for science and technology education in sub-Saharan Africa is examined. © 1999 John
Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Res Sci Teach 36: 321– 331, 1999

Archaeological excavations in various parts of sub-Saharan Africa show that ancient peo-
ples had the technologies to make tools, gather, produce, and prepare foods (Maggs, 1989). A
combination of handed-down experience and a continuous learning process helped them learn
to mold utensils, weapons, and concoct medicines for their wounded and sick. This is how var-
ious African kingdoms emerged and survived before the arrival of Europeans in Africa. This is
evidenced by the African languages spoken today, which are rich in vocabulary associated with
processing, molding, painting, manufacturing, and shaping, all of which required the applica-
tion of certain technologies. However, most of the technical vocabulary which was developed
before the arrival of Europeans has now been lost because it has not been used since then. At-
tempts to compile some of the vocabulary (Nyembezi & Nxumalo, 1996) are difficult owing to
the absence of written records.
The arrival of Europeans brought new and more advanced technologies which were unfa-
miliar to the indigenous communities. Africans began to see new tools, equipment, and weapons.
They had to create a vocabulary to name and describe these technologies. Sometimes the orig-
inal European name was borrowed and merely modified in its pronunciation. In Southern Africa,
formal education was introduced in the 19th century by missionaries, whose aims were to train
converts who would later spread the Gospel. The Bible was translated into many indigenous
languages for teaching purposes. Unfortunately, other courses such as geography, history, sci-
ence, and mathematics were not translated, but instead were taught in the European languages.
This may explain the success of Christianity in Africa. It is also reasonable to suspect that the
failure of modern science and technology to take root and spread over the past 150 years is due
to the use of nonindigenous languages as media of instruction in our schools. The very low na-

* Nguni is spoken by Ndebele, Swati, Xhosa, and Zulu, people of South Africa, Swaziland, and Zimbabwe.

© 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. CCC 0022-4308/99/030321-11

322 DLODLO

tional pass rates in the final year at secondary school in Southern Africa should perhaps be at-
tributed to, among other things, the failure by students to grasp the scientific concepts that are
explained in English. The present author’s experience in Zimbabwe is that the only subject that
children pass with ease is Bible studies. I suspect this is so largely because, although it is ex-
amined in English, almost all children receive religious instruction in their mother language, at
home and in the local churches on Sundays.
Our educational systems of the past and present do not acknowledge the incompatibility of
the language of the home and immediate community and that of the school. Rollinck and Ruther-
ford (1996, p. 93) stated that the “language duality” of a “second-language” learner results in
the student identifying “the home and school as two separate worlds and that the student too be-
comes two people.” In most English-speaking sub-Saharan Africa, the indigenous communities
are multiethnic and children learn their mother language first, then they acquire languages,
through their early social relationships, which are spoken by children from one or more of the
other ethnic groups. Thus, before children begin formal schooling they may speak three or more
languages. This means that English, which is the language of instruction, may not be the stu-
dents’ second language even after many years in the education system. Furthermore, at most
schools, students do not normally speak English to one another or with their teachers outside
the classroom. Often, the concepts students learn in the classroom do not relate to their every-
day experiences.

Indigenous and Foreign Languages in Education

Rollinck and Rutherford (1996) found that students who were allowed to speak both siSwati
and English generally only spoke English when quoting from the English language study ma-
terials or in instances where siSwati scientific words did not exist. The latter reason for switch-
ing created no problem “as the students simply used English words in conversation” (Rollinck
& Rutherford, 1996, p. 101). This study seems to suggest both that students preferred to speak
siSwati where possible and that siSwati served important functions “in voicing of alternative
conceptions, in clarifying of concepts, in eliminating misconceptions and in formulating ideas”
(p. 101). Since the English words used had no relation to students’ everyday experiences, stu-
dents may have difficulty constructing meanings of the concepts. If siSwati scientific words were
created, then students could construct correct conceptions and ideas from the beginning of the
education process.
In Zimbabwe there are two indigenous languages which are official alongside English. In
South Africa nine indigenous languages are official alongside English and Afrikaans. However,
English and Afrikaans both enjoy a higher status because they are each used as languages of in-
struction at all levels of education. In South Africa children have a choice of either English or
Afrikaans, and in Zimbabwe the only language of instruction is English. The argument that is
usually advanced to justify this state of affairs is the lack of scientific terms in the indigenous
languages. This is true and will remain so until efforts are made to create and develop a suit-
able scientific vocabulary so that the indigenous languages can be used in teaching science and
technology.
It has been observed that a student of science whose mother language has not been used in
scientific discourse has “very special additional difficulties of cognition and understanding” if
the language of instruction is English, because the student cannot “appeal to translation into the
mother tongue for resolution of doubt or the dissipation of ignorance” (Strevens 1976, p. 58).
Bamgbose (1984, p. 92) investigated what “effect the use of Yoruba as the sole medium of in-
struction throughout primary school has on the academic achievement of primary school
 PHYSICS IN NGUNI 323

pupils.” The experimental groups performed better than the control groups and the likely rea-
son for the enhanced “achievement of the experimental groups was the use of Yoruba as a medi-
um of instruction.” In this same project, it was also found that in “the promotion examinations
the experimental groups performed better, particularly in English, Yoruba, Mathematics, and
Science” (p. 91). This study should dispel the fears that are usually held by parents and policy
makers, that these “experimental children” are at a disadvantage in their further academic de-
velopment compared to the children receiving instruction in English (Bangbose, 1984).
The fact that science and technology in sub-Saharan Africa is not taught in indigenous lan-
guages means that no scientific ideas can be formulated in an African language in the present
education systems. Thus, it is unlikely that there will be any development of scientific vocabu-
lary, and hence the corresponding development and growth of original scientific ideas in sub-
Saharan Africa, unless the mother language is used as the medium of instruction. How can stu-
dents be expected to reformulate ideas in their own words in a foreign language? In any
formulation of an idea, the words that we choose must “be necessary interpretive instruments
of understanding” (Sutton 1992, p. 3). This is illustrated very clearly in an educational broad-
cast (Venter, 1997) in which a teacher discussed the water cycle with his students in English. In
this lesson, words unfamiliar to the students, such as evaporate, water vapor, condense, and at-
mosphere were used. When a student was asked what she thought of the lesson, she replied in
her mother language, “In class I did not understand because the teacher was teaching in En-
glish.” In a previous episode, the same class of students had been asked (in English) to discuss
how dams dry up. The students did not respond at all. The teacher explained this lack of re-
sponse by saying that the students “are not that free because they can not express the ideas to
one another because of their fear of being laughed at” as they tried to express the ideas, on a
topic they did not understand, in broken English.
In August 1996, African ministers of education met in Accra, Ghana, and declared their
“deep conviction that the promotion and use of African national languages in formal and non-
formal education will ensure a greater efficiency in the learning in and outside school as well
as a greater success in the training of human resources and consequently drawing fully on the
potentials of African countries for endogenous economic, social and cultural development” (Ac-
cra Declaration, 1996, p. 1). The new Constitution of the Republic of South Africa (1996) went
further in that it sought in one of its founding provisions, among other things, that a board must
be established to “promote, and create conditions for the development and use of all official lan-
guages” [Founding Provisions, Chapter 1, 6(5) (a), pp. 3–4]. The only way the objectives of
this provision and of the declaration by African ministers of education can be realized is to make
African languages the languages of instruction at schools and universities. This requires that
African scientists must begin the process of creating science nomenclature in their own lan-
guages so that these can be used as languages of instruction.

Creating New Terms in Nguni

Language used in the routines of commerce has been translated into Nguni and other
African languages by either borrowing or creating new words. The conventional way has been
either to use the original European word or create a Nguni word descriptive of an object. Ex-
amples are:

a. For borrowed words

i. Engine ⫽ iNjini
ii. Machine ⫽ umTshini
324 DLODLO

iii. Gas ⫽ uGesi

iv. Motor car ⫽ iMota
v. Table/Tafel ⫽ iTafula
vi. School ⫽ isiKolo

There are many others that were borrowed in this way. The translation is such that the word is
in a Nguni word format.

b. For created words

i. Gun ⫽ isiBhamu, umBhobho
ii. Airplane ⫽ iNdizamtshini
iii. Television ⫽ umaBonakude
iv. Tractor ⫽ uGandaganda
v. Telephone ⫽ uCingo

The first one in (b) mimics the noise that the gun makes when in operation. In (ii) iNdizamt-
shini ⫽ ndiza (fly) ⫹ mtshini (machine) ⫽ flying machine. These days, it is common to hear of
indiza for airplane, the word having evolved from flying machine ⫽ ifilematshini → iN-
dizamtshini → iNdiza. In (iii) umaBonakude ⫽ bona (see) ⫹ kude (far) ⫽ that which sees
from afar. In (iv) uGandaganda ⫽ ganda (to compact) ⫽ that which compacts (soil). Here, gan-
da is repeated to emphasize the repetitive nature of the compacting. In (v) uCingo ⫽ cingo ⫽
wire.
Borrowing directly from European languages, by phonetic transcription as in (a) above,
should be avoided since such borrowed words do not convey any meaning initially and such a
method produces clumsy-sounding Nguni science words. I have attempted previously to trans-
late scientific texts into a Nguni language and the results were not satisfactory because the words
were difficult to pronounce, as they were not in an acceptable Nguni word format. Furthermore,
the internal structure of the English language is so different from that of any African language
in syntax, word structure, vocabulary, and sound systems that a phonetic transcription should be
discouraged if a useful scientific vocabulary is to be created. The best route is to create new
words from and give scientific meaning to both new and existing Nguni vocabulary. In this way,
the words used at school will be familiar and meaningful to the students’ everyday experience.
Children usually learn about air and water in their first introduction to science. They are
taught in English that air is a mixture of the gases oxygen, hydrogen, carbon dioxide, and ni-
trogen, that water is a compound of “hydrogen” and “oxygen,” and that life on earth is possi-
ble through the process of photosynthesis in which a compound called chlorophyll plays an im-
portant role in the formation of new “compounds,” mainly carbohydrates. These new scientific
words do not relate to existing knowledge that the children already possess. Indigenous names
for these words ought to be created by African scientists, just as European and Asian scientists
have done. Table 1 shows how these words can be translated into the Nguni language by choos-
ing words or a combination of words that are in everyday use. The table includes translations
of these words that have been created from two of Europe’s indigenous languages: namely, Ned-
erlands (Dutch) and Suomenkieli (Finnish). Taking “oxygen” as an example, the Nguni word
iMpiliso, “that which sustains life,” is created from iMpilo (life) and the Dutch word Zuurstof,
“the sour stuff,” from the realization that this stuff was needed for making things sour.
Europeans have created and developed scientific terms from their own indigenous lan-
guages, as well as from Greek and Latin. European countries use their indigenous languages for
instruction at all levels of their education systems. They use other languages for external com-
 PHYSICS IN NGUNI 325

Table 1
Introducing science in four languages

English Dutch Finnish Nguni (meaning)

Air Lucht Ilma uMoya

Oxygen Zuurstof Happi iMpiliso (that which sustains life)
Hydrogen Waterstof Vety iSomanzi (that which makes water)
Carbon dioxide Kolstof Hiilidioksidi iSontuthwini (that which is in
smoke)
Nitrogen Stikstof Typpi iSihitsha (that which suffocates)
Photosynthesis Fotosynthese Yhteyttaminen iNgxhubelanga (the putting together
by the sun)
Carbohydrate Kolhydrat Hiilihydraatti iNgxhutshwalanga (that which has
been put together by the sun)
Chlorophyll Chlorofyl Lehtivihrea uHlazana (the green of plants or
grass)
Compound Samenstelling Yhdiste iNhlanganiswa (from hlanganisa ⫽
put together)

munication with Africa, Asia, and the Americas. It is perhaps still possible for Africans to de-
velop their indigenous languages for scientific and other communication needs to that level of
functionality that has been witnessed in young nation states such as Finland, Israel, and
Malaysia.

Creating a Nguni Physics Nomenclature

Sutton (1992) discussed “the role that words have played in the growth of scientific ideas,
as well as their role in the growth of a learner’s understanding” (p. 4). In discussing the origin
of words connected with electric charge, Sutton stated that:

The word charge itself was borrowed from other uses—as in charging a gun with gun
powder—and it was a word which helped to firm up the idea that there might be some-
thing real and measurable—the quantity of electricity. . . . To capture, it might well re-
quire a jar-shaped container, and trails with water or lead shot—to condense it lest it
should waft away. Later however it appeared that no jar-shape was needed at all and that
two layers of metal separated by glass or even air achieved similar effects. Nevertheless
the community went on talking about the capacity of such devices for charge because the
idea of electrical matter was successful in other ways. (p. 11)

Here, we note that the words “charge,” “condense,” and “capacity” had previously been used in
nonscientific contexts.
A quotation from Lavoisier, a French chemist, which is reproduced by Sutton (1992, p. 13),
refers to matter existing in three states “either as solid or fluid or as elastic aeriform vapour.”
At this stage, there was no word for gas so that “elastic aeriform vapour,” which is a descrip-
tive phrase, was useful because the squeezability or springiness of a gas could be experienced.
This phrase was used for a long time until Jan Baptist van Helmont created the word gas from
the Greek word chaos (“g” is pronounced “chi” in Dutch—van Helmont’s language). Here, one
sees that the word “chaos” was chosen because a gas is experienced as being “chaotic” because
of its tendency to escape.
326 DLODLO

It is perhaps appropriate that we should start by proposing a Nguni word for physics. From
the English definition, physics is the “study of natural phenomena” ⫽ iNfundo yeZenzeko
zeMvelo or uLwazi lweZenzeko zeMvelo: Nfundo ⫽ study, Zenzeko ⫽ phenomena, Mvelo ⫽ na-
ture, and Lwazi ⫽ knowledge.
The task is to come up with a single word from this definition. In the interest of brevity, the
first word in the definition can be omitted: thus, the combination: Zenzeko ⫹ mvelo ⫽ iZen-
zekozemvelo ⫽ “physics.” INfundo and uLwazi have been assumed to be understood. A mere
phonetic transcription would yield iFiziki ⫽ “physics.” Although in this format the word Fiziki
is Nguni pronounceable and looks neat and brief, it is new and meaningless, whereas iZen-
zekozemvelo is a word made up of words that are accessible as they are used in everyday lan-
guage. The idea is to create words that are combinations of those that are found in the existing
vocabulary so as to enhance understanding. This has been done in most translations of physics
terms from the languages of science, such as English, French, and German, into other languages,
as shown in Table 1. In China, where the alphabetic system of writing is not used, a combina-
tion of characters is used to create new ones in Chinese physics nomenclature (Zhao, 1990).
To avoid long words and phrases, a phonetic transcription may be preferred when the new
word is in an acceptable Nguni format and has no meaning in everyday language, such as iFizi-
ki for Physics. In this case, a meaning is then given to the word. Table 2 offers a listing of En-
glish scientific terms for which acceptable Nguni is required to teach the concepts of internal
energy and work. For example, by creating a word imolenkulu ⫽ “molecule,” the word imo-
lencane ⫽ “atom” can be created, since the suffixes -nkulu ⫽ “big” and -ncane ⫽ “small,”
whereas “mole” ⫽ itshatha (spot). Therefore, a molecule is a big spot and an atom a small spot.
This is consistent with the fact that molecules are made up of smaller atoms. “Mole” can then
be given a Nguni meaning as a material particle smaller than the usual macroscopic particle (uh-
lanjana). “Mole” can then be used as a collective name for subatomic particles. To write iath-
omu for “atom” is not allowed in that two vowels must be separated by a consonant. We would
have to write iyathomu as one of the proposals for “atom.”
English words such as body, mass, motion, force, incline, friction, plane, temperature, ve-
locity, acceleration, volume, and pressure have acquired scientific meaning through their use in
physics. Since physics has never been taught in any of the Nguni languages, suitable words have
to be created for some and translations given scientific meaning for others. In the Nguni lan-
guages, the same word can mean two or more concepts. An example is amandla, which is used
to mean “force,” “energy,” and “power.” These words have acquired distinct scientific meaning
in the English language. In a physics context, amandla ⫽ “power.” Amandla is usually used in
comparative terms—one who has amandla can easily lift or pull heavier objects in a shorter
time than the one without power (⫽ ongenamandla). In physics, knowing the distinction be-
tween the words “energy,” “power,” and “force” is valuable for a student. There is therefore a
need to create specific terms in Nguni for each of the above terms so that the concepts of ener-
gy, power, and force are clearly distinguishable to assist the student in the learning process. In
the majority of languages that use the alphabetic system of writing, many important physics
terms such as “energy,” “entropy,” “electricity,” “magnetism,” “atom,” “neutron,” “molecule,”
“electron,” and “proton” are similar. If African languages adopt such a system of translation,
then the physics that is in these words will be lost. If we are to create physics terminology from
these English scientific terms, then we must ask ourselves the following questions. For equip-
ment and other objects, (a) What does it do? (b) How does it work? For concepts and phenom-
ena, (a) What effects if any does it have? (b) Does it have an analogy? The answers to these and
other questions must be in the language for which nomenclature is being sought. In the most
difficult of cases, there will usually be a number of words from which to choose. The selection
 PHYSICS IN NGUNI 327

Table 2
Tentative Nguni scientific terms

Scientific term Ngubi term (meaning)

Force udli (use power)

Particle uhlanjana (very small grain)
System uhlelo (a program, an arrangement, a set)
Energy isidlakela (ability to use force)
State isimo (the way things are or look)
Process isenzeko (that which happens)
Sum isihlanganiswa (that which is a result of adding)
Term siqa (a piece of)
Exchange kwabelana (distribute that which each one has to the other)
Positive (work) eya phambili (going forward)
Negative (work) eya emuva (going backward)
Opposite phambana (pass the same point in opposite directions)
Thermodynamics isiDlakhoza/uNyakazokhoza (heat energy/heat motion)
Heat ikhoza (heat)
Equation isilinganisa (that which equates)
Measure linganisa (make equal)
Motion unyakazo (small movements)
Numbers iminwe (fingers)
Mechanisms izindlela (ways of doing)
Gas umoyana (part of air)
Piston isivimbonduku (a stick with a stopper head)
Pressure ushicelo/umfutho (pressing force/pushing force)
Electric current umsinga wombane (current of lighting)
Resistor inqabela/izabalazo (precentor/that which resists)
Sun’s radiation imitha /inhlamvu zelanga (rays/particles of the sun)
Displace gudluka (move out a little)
Macroscopic force indlovula (large force, from indlovu ⫽ elephant)
Area ibangabanzi (ibanga ⫽ distance ⫹ banzi ⫽ width)
Integral isihlanganisa (that which sums up)
Abscissa umdwanta (straight horizontal line)
Ordinate umdwampo (vertical/upright line)
Molecule imolenkulu (big spot)
Atom imolencane/iyathomu (small spot)

criteria should be such as to preserve and ensure (a) clarity of meaning—the chosen word must
be that which explains; (b) universality—preference ought to favor a word that is common to
all the versions of the Nguni language; (c) accessibility—specific meaning must be given to fa-
miliar words; and (d) brevity—do not use two words where one will do. Since the words we
create involve concepts and ideas, and words that have no meaning in the routines of daily life
have the disadvantage of requiring more time before they are generally accepted and assimilat-
ed into a language, they cannot be used in explaining concepts and sharing ideas as often hap-
pens in teaching and learning. “To provide a ‘name’ alone does not necessarily establish un-
derstanding of a concept” (Strevens, 1976, p. 58). Phonetic transcription therefore should be
employed only when everything else has failed. The English terms for the gases in Table 1 were
taken, in this way, from the terms used by the French chemists “because there was no easy way
to translate them into less Latinate alternatives” (Sutton, 1992, p. 9). The Nguni text in the Ap-
pendix is a translation of a portion of a text focusing on internal energy and work (Alonso &
Finn, 1990). The proposed Nguni scientific terms in the text are explained in Table 2.
328 DLODLO

Discussion and Conclusions

Appendix A shows that it is possible to attach specific meaning either to new words or old
ones that are used differently in a nonscientific context. In the first category we have such words
as isibunjwa (body) from ibumba ⫽ clay, isiDlakhoza (thermodynamics) from isiDlakela (en-
ergy) ⫹ iKhoza (heat); or uNyakazokhoza (thermodynamics) from uNyakazo (motion) ⫹
iKhoza (heat); ibangabanzi (area) from ibanga (length) ⫹ banzi (width); and isihlanganisa (in-
tegral) from hlanganisa (make a summation). In the second category are phambili (positive) and
emuva (negative), which ordinarily mean forward and backward, respectively; moyana (gas)
from umoya (air); and isiqa (term), which means a piece or part of. It is not difficult to see that
it would be easier to explain to Nguni-speaking physics students the terms isihlanganisa (inte-
gral) and isiDlakhoza (thermodynamics) in their own language than to explain the correspond-
ing English terms in English, a language which most of them learn with much difficulty. Pho-
netic transcription yields iintegirali (integral) and iThermodayinamiki (thermodynamics). Such
words are meaningless because they are difficult to put in a Nguni word format. Two vowels
must be separated by a consonant in “standard” Nguni, and “The” and “r” do not have the same
pronunciation as in English. “r” is only found in isiXhosa, but then it is equivalent to the Dutch
“g.” Thus, words such as iintegirali and Thermodayinamiki are a mere collection of letters with-
out meaning. In teaching and learning, both being understood and understanding terminology
are required aspects of communication. It would seem that mother language is probably best for
both.
According to a report of the South African National Department of Education (NDE, 1998),
the 1997 national average pass rate was 47%. The report shows that pass rates were significantly
different per province, ranging from 31% to 76%. The country has a very large population of
nonindigenous South Africans and their descendants, whose home or mother language is either
Afrikaans or English—the languages of instruction at school. The distribution of this popula-
tion per province and per school within a province is also significantly different. It should there-
fore be important and interesting to carry out an investigation into the role that the language of
instruction plays in the differences in these pass rates. The question to be answered is whether
children whose home or mother language is Afrikaans or English do significantly better in
school than children whose home or mother language is one of the other nine official languages
of South Africa. Such an investigation would likely confirm the results of prior research (e.g.,
Bamgbose, 1984; Rollinck & Rutherford, 1996). Alternatively, the SABC TV educational broad-
cast episodes cited previously should offer sufficient motivation for any effort that promotes the
use of mother languages as the medium of instruction in sub-Saharan Africa.
The use of mother languages of instruction in sub-Saharan Africa should facilitate the ex-
tension of educational opportunities in science and technology at colleges and universities, par-
ticularly to those students from rural communities whose command of the English language is
limited. This in turn should increase the numbers of students aspiring for higher education,
bringing about a demand for more and better institutions for secondary and tertiary education.
The cumulative effects of an affordable education, the use of mother tongue as the medium of
instruction, and the provision of more and better institutions may contribute to the growth of lit-
eracy rates in African societies. This in turn may give a great leap to education transformation,
giving every child the opportunity to discover his or her abilities and talents. Through educa-
tion, students must gain access to information on science and technology. If African scientists
were educated in African contexts, then perhaps Africa would see an increase in science and
technology research and development appropriate to the African continent. Such reforms ought
to contribute to the economic empowerment of the majority of the people.
 PHYSICS IN NGUNI 329

It is hoped that in the future, better ways of creating Nguni scientific terms will be devel-
oped. This might result in similar efforts being made in other African languages. Here, I hope
that I have justified and shown the feasibility and desirability of creating a Nguni Physics
nomencture to enhance comprehension for the benefit of students engaged in the learning
process.

Appendix A

Isidlakela Sangaphakathi noMsebenzi

Kusigaba 14.5 sibone ukuthi uma kungekho odli bendle abasebenza ehlelweni lwenhlan-
jana (lokhu yikuthi uma uhlelo lungenabudlelwano nokwenzeka ngaphandle) isidlakela san-
gaphakathi kasiguquki. Ngamanye amazwi singathi; Isidlakela sangaphakathi sohlelo lwenhlan-
jana ezingenabudlelwano nezinye kasinanguquko.
Uma ekhona udli wendle osebenza enhlanjaneni zaloluhlelo, isidlakela sangaphakathi
singabanayo inguquko. Kulesi isahluko isidlakela sangaphakathi sizathiwa ngu U ongena sijo-
belelo “pk.” Kasithi isimo saloluhlelo ngolwenza isidlakela sangaphakathi ekuqaleni sithiwe ngu
Uo. Ngokusebenzisa odli bendle lesisimo singaguquka ngemva kwesikhatshana senze isidlakela
sibe ngu U. Singathi wonke umsebenzi owenziwe ngodli laba ngaleso sikhatshana ungu Wndle
sizabona ukuthi u Wndle yinhlanganiswa yemsetshenzana eyenziwa ngodli bendle ezinhlanja-
neni ngayinye njalo lokhu kukhombisa ukwabelwana kwesidlakela phakathi kohlelo namapheth-
elo alo. Ngesilinganisa 14.13 ukongeka kwesidlakela kusho ukuthi:

U ⫺ Uo = Wndle noma ⌬U = Wndle (A1)

Lokhu yikuthi:

Umehluko wesidlakela sangaphakathi sohlelo lwezinhlanjana ngesimo sazo esisha nan-

gesidala, kulingana nomsebenzi owenziwa ohlelweni ngodli bendle.

Uma umsebenzi usenziwa ehlelweni (u Wndle esiya phambili) isidlakela sangaphakathi siyanda
(U ⬎ Uo) kodwa uma uhlelo luyilo olwenza umsebenzi (u Wndle esiya emuva) isidlakela san-
gaphakathi siyaphunguka (U ⬍ Uo). Uma sisebenzisa injini yekhoza kungabangcono uma singa-
bala umsebenzi wendle nje ngowenziwa luhlelo siwuthi ngu Whle kunokubala umsebenzi wen-
dle owenziwa ehlelweni u Wndle. Njengoba yomibili le imisebenzi ilingana nesidlakela
esabiwayo kodwa ihambelana nabodli abalingana njalo bephikisana, imisebenzi le nayo iyalin-
gana ngobukhulu noma iphambana; yikho,

Whle ⫽ ⫺Wndle

Sizabhala u W endaweni ka Whle sisisho umsebenzi owenziwa luhlelo. Inhlelo esizikhangeleyo,

kusiDlakhoza, zinehlanjana eziyiminwe eminingi kakhulu. Yikho ukubala umsebenzi wendle
njengesihlanganiswa semisetshenzana yezihlanjana ngayinye
kusilethela ubunzima obukhulu, ngalokho kutholakala ukuthi kungcono sibhale u Wndle njen-
genhlanganiswa yeziqa ezimbili ezingabalwa njalo zipinywe ngendlela ezilula. Esinye salezi
ziqa sithiwa liKHOZA esinye sibizwa ngalo eloMSEBENZI.
330 DLODLO

IsiDwetshwa A1. uKwabiwa kwesidlakela sohlelo.

Inhlelo Ezinezinhlanjana Eziningi—uMsebenzi

Uma uhlelo lwabelana isidlakela namaphethelo, lokho kwabelana kungaba ngendlela
eziningi. Njengomzekeliso singakhangela umoyana osemgqhonyeni one sivimbonduku P esinga
nyakaza ngenxa yomfutho womoyana lo (isiDwetshwa A1).
Esidwetshweni ilangabi F lithinta umgqhonyana, umsinga wombane ufudumeza izabalazo
R elisemgqhonyaneni ohlatshwa zinhlamvu zelanga S. Kuzo zonke lezi izindlela kubanokwa-
belana isidlakela nama molenkulu omoyana. Noma kunjalo yinye yalezindlela ehambelana
nokugudluka okulinganiseka ngodli wonyakazo lwesivimbonduku P olubangwa ngumfutho
womoyana.
Yikho kuphela ukwabiwa kwesidlakela okungabalwa njengo dli x ngudluko, noma njen-
gomsebenzi kungaphathwanga imolenkulu ngayinye. Kuzoba yinjwayelo ukuthi sithi umseben-
zi yikwabiwa kwesidlakela sohlelo lwezinhlanjana eziningi okungabalwa ngendlovula nange
ngudluko yazo. Kwakuthiwe ngumsebenzi womshini ngoba uluhlobo lwemsebenzi eyenziwa
ngemishini.
Kasithi umfutho womoyana ngu p, ibangabanzi lesivimbonduku ngu A. Udli osebenza kuso
isivimbonduku ngu F ⫽ pA (isiDwetshwa A2). Umsebenzi owenziwa ngumoyana uma isivim-
bonduku sisunduzwa ibanga dx uyi dW ⫽ Fdx ⫽ pAdx.Ngoba u dV ⫽ Adx ngumahluko wom-
thamo womoyana singabhala sithi

dW ⫽ pdV (A2)

Uma umthamo womoyana usuka ekubeni ngu Vo usiya ekubeni ngu V umsebenzi owenziwa
ngumoyana uyi

V
W= ∫V
o
n
pdV (A3)

Lesi sibalo siqinisekile noma umoyana usesitsheni esinomthamo oguqulwa ngezinye ezindlela.
Ukuze sibale isihlanganisa esikusilinganisa A3 kumele sazi ukuhambelana kuka p no V
ngasosonke isikhathi kusenzeka inguquko yesimo. Nxa lokhu ukuhambelana kusaziwa sinakho
 PHYSICS IN NGUNI 331

IsiDwetshwa A2. uMsebenzi owenziwa nxa umoyana unwebeka.

ukutshengisa inani lika p no V esidwetsheni lapho umthamo ungumudwanta, umfutho ungu-

mudwampo. Lokhu kubizwa ngokuthi yisifanekiso P-V.

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