On Aug 6, 1:05 pm, Dallas wrote:
Brought over from RAS:

Assuming that all other variables remain constant:

An increase in temperature will result in a higher atmospheric pressure - a
higher temperature speeds up the movement of the air molecules, thereby
raising the pressure they exert on the surrounding atmosphere.

A) True
B) False


Well, the answer is false but it is a rather bogus problem, mainly
because the atmosphere is not fully contained; in other words, the
volume CAN change. The way this is worded, the fluid (atmospheric gas)
is also being used as the container. Pressure is a measurement of
normal (perpendicular) force against a surface, you can't have a
pressure without a surface against which an equal and opposite
pressure can be exerted. Since the atmosphere can expand (because it
is not closed), it doesn't have anything to exert pressure against
EXCEPT for the earth's surface.

But I invite you to think about: Of what is a temperature a
measurement, how does force relate to potential energy and mass, how
pressure relates to force and mass, how potential and kinetic energy
is related, how kinetic energy is related to velocity, what the laws
of conservation of energy entail, and what "atmospheric pressure" is).

Hint: "atmospheric pressure" is a measurement of the pressure of the
air due to the acceleration of gravity on the mass of column of air
directly above it, not as a measure of pressure against the
"surrounding" atmosphere.