electron: A negatively charged particle, usually found orbiting the outer regions of an atom; also, the carrier of electricity within solids.

fundamental: Something that is basic or serves as the foundation for another thing or idea.

infinity: An abstract concept in which something has no end.

model: A simulation of a real-world event (usually using a computer) that has been developed to predict one or more likely outcomes. Or an individual that is meant to display how something would work in or look on others.

particle: A minute amount of something.

photon: A particle representing the smallest possible amount of light or other type of electromagnetic radiation.

physical: (adj.) A term for things that exist in the real world, as opposed to in memories or the imagination. It can also refer to properties of materials that are due to their size and non-chemical interactions (such as when one block slams with force into another). (in biology and medicine) The term can refer to the body, as in a physical exam or physical activity.

physics: The scientific study of the nature and properties of matter and energy. Classical physics is an explanation of the nature and properties of matter and energy that relies on descriptions such as Newton’s laws of motion. Quantum physics, a field of study that emerged later, is a more accurate way of explaining the tiny motions and behavior of matter about the size of electrons. A scientist who works in such areas is known as a physicist.

quantum: (pl. quanta) A term that refers to the smallest amount of anything, especially of energy or subatomic mass.

quantum physics: A branch of physics that uses quantum theory to explain or predict how a physical system will operate on the scale of atoms or sub-atomic particles.

scenario: A possible (or likely) sequence of events and how they might play out.

sensor: A device that picks up information on physical or chemical conditions — such as temperature, barometric pressure, salinity, humidity, pH, light intensity or radiation — and stores or broadcasts that information. Scientists and engineers often rely on sensors to inform them of conditions that may change over time or that exist far from where a researcher can measure them directly.

spawn: To quickly cause something to come into being. (in biology) To release or fertilize eggs in an aquatic environment.

superposition: (in quantum physics) The ability of some minute subatomic-scale particle to be more than one place at the same time. It has to do with particles in the quantum world having the weird capacity to exist in all possible states (or positions) at once. (in geology) An understanding that unless subsurface strata of soil and rock have been disturbed somehow, the age of the materials will get successively older with depth.

swarm: A large number of animals that have amassed and now move together. People sometimes use the term to refer to huge numbers of honeybees leaving a hive.

system: A network of parts that together work to achieve some function. For instance, the blood, vessels and heart are primary components of the human body’s circulatory system. Similarly, trains, platforms, tracks, roadway signals and overpasses are among the potential components of a nation’s railway system. System can even be applied to the processes or ideas that are part of some method or ordered set of procedures for getting a task done.

theory: (in science) A description of some aspect of the natural world based on extensive observations, tests and reason. A theory can also be a way of organizing a broad body of knowledge that applies in a broad range of circumstances to explain what will happen. Unlike the common definition of theory, a theory in science is not just a hunch. Ideas or conclusions that are based on a theory — and not yet on firm data or observations — are referred to as theoretical. Scientists who use mathematics and/or existing data to project what might happen in new situations are known as theorists.

universe: The entire cosmos: All things that exist throughout space and time. It has been expanding since its formation during an event known as the Big Bang, some 13.8 billion years ago (give or take a few hundred million years).

wave: A disturbance or variation that travels through space and matter in a regular, oscillating fashion.