Newton’s Laws of Motion

Objectives:
 Demonstrate by definition and example an understanding of the distinction between mass and weight.
 Define the units newton and slug and be able to express them in SI and English units.
 Draw a free-body diagram for a body or a system of bodies in motion with a constant acceleration, set
the resultant force equal to the total mass times the acceleration, and solve for the unknown
parameters.
 Demonstrate an understanding of Newton's First Law of Motion.
 Demonstrate an understanding of Newton's Second Law of Motion.
 Relate Newton's First and Second Laws to kinematics.
 State specific examples to illustrate an understanding of Newton's Third Law of Motion.
 Analyze the motion of an accelerating elevator.
 Demonstrate by definition and example an understanding of the distinction between mass and weight.
 Define the units newton and slug and be able to express them in SI and English units.
 Draw a free-body diagram for a body or a system of bodies in motion with a constant acceleration, set
the resultant force equal to the total mass times the acceleration, and solve for the unknown
parameters.
 Demonstrate an understanding of Newton's First Law of Motion.
 Demonstrate an understanding of Newton's Second Law of Motion.
 Relate Newton's First and Second Laws to kinematics.
 State specific examples to illustrate an understanding of Newton's Third Law of Motion.
 Analyze the motion of an accelerating elevator.
 Determine experimentally the relationship between force, mass, and acceleration.
 Interpret and analyze a Force vs. Acceleration experimental graph.
 Design and conduct experiments that would show the variations in acceleration caused by a change in
applied force on a given mass.
 Design and conduct experiments that would show the variations in acceleration caused by a change in
the mass that is being accelerated.
 Determine the relationship between the inertial mass of a body and its gravitational mass.

Newton’s Laws
Lecture notes

Dynamics: Study of the causes of motion, in particular forces.

Force: a push or pull.
Contact forces: forces that arise from the physical contact between two objects. EXAMPLE:
Tension, friction, normal force.
Field forces or Action-at-distance forces: Forces like gravitation, electromagnetic force or the
strong nuclear force.

We arrange our knowledge of forces into three laws formulated by Isaac Newton:
 The law of inertia
 The law of force and acceleration
 The law of action and reaction
Types of forces: In nature, there are two general types of forces.
Fundamental forces
Only three fundamental forces have been discovered.
1. Gravitational force: force of attraction between any two bodies in nature.
2. Strong Nuclear force: Plays a primary role in the stability of the nucleus of
the atom.
3. Electroweak force: Manifests itself in two ways:
A. electromagnetic force that electrically charged particles exert on one
another.
 B. weak nuclear force that plays a role in the radioactive disintegration
for certain nuclei.

Nonfundamental forces: All are related to the electromagnetic force.

o Friction: Contact force that opposes motion.
Acts parallel to the surfaces in contact and antiparallel to the motion.
Friction depends upon the normal force and is independent of the surfaces in contact.
o Gravitational force (Weight): Force of attraction between any two bodies in the
universe.
mm
 Defined by: F = G 1 2 2
r
 Law of gravitation: Every particle in the universe exerts an attractive
o Mass: intrinsic property of matter and does not change as an object is moved from one
location to the next. Amount of matter in an object.
o Weight: the gravitational force acting on the object’s mass. May vary depending on
how far the object is above the earth’s surface.

o Normal Force: The normal force is one component of the force that a surface exerts on
an object with which it is in contact---namely, the component that is perpendicular to
the surface. Remember, the surface exerts the normal force. Points away from the
surface.
Like little atomic springs exerted by the surface.

If an object is resting on a horizontal surface and there are no vertically acting forces except the
object’s weight and the normal force, the magnitudes of these two forces are equal; that is, FN = W. If
other forces in addition to W and FN act in the vertical direction, the magnitudes of the normal force
and the weight are no longer equal.

Newton’s First Law of Motion:

An object at rest stays at rest or in a state of motion at a constant speed along a straight line, unless
compelled to change that state by a net force.

*[The net force is the vector sum of all of the forces acting on a body]. Individual forces matter only to
the extent that they contribute to the total.

The purpose served when a net force acts on an object is not to sustain the object’s velocity, but,
rather, to change it.

Inertia: The natural tendency of an object to remain at rest or in motion at a constant speed along a
straight line. The mass of an object is a quantitative measure of inertia.
SI Unit of inertia and mass: Kilogram (kg).

Inertial reference frame is on e in which Newton’s law of inertia is valid. The acceleration of an
inertial reference frame is zero, so it moves with a constant velocity. All of Newton’s laws of motion
are valid in inertial reference frames, and when we apply these laws, we will be assuming such a
reference frame. In particular, the earth itself is a good approximation of an inertial reference frame.

Newton’s laws of motion:

 Demonstrate an understanding of Newton's First Law of Motion.
 Demonstrate an understanding of Newton's Second Law of Motion.
 Relate Newton's First and Second Laws to kinematics.
  State specific examples to illustrate an understanding of Newton's Third Law of Motion.

First Law: [Law of inertia] An object at rest will stay at rest. An object in motion will stay in motion,
at the same speed and in the same direction, unless acted upon by a nonzero net force.

Description:
 Inertia: The property of matter that causes it to follow Newton’s first law.
 Inertia is comes from the Greek word meaning laziness or sluggishness.
 Inertia is the tendency of matter to resist changes in its motion.
 The law of inertia tells us what happens to an object when there are no unbalanced forces
acting on it.
 The phrase “NET FORCE” is crucial. The “Net force” is the vector sum of all forces.
 The purpose served when a net force acts on an object is NOT to sustain the object’s velocity
but, rather, to change it.
 Inertial reference frames: A frame of reference which is at rest or moving with constant
velocity; Newton’s laws are valid within any inertial reference frame. NOT valid in an
accelerating (noninertial) frame of reference.
Objective:
 Demonstrate by definition and example an understanding of the distinction between mass and
weight.
 Define the units newton and slug and be able to express them in SI and English units.
Description:
 Inertia is the property of an object that causes it to remain in its state of rest or motion at a
constant velocity; mass is a measure of inertia. Seat belts protect you from your own inertia.
 Mass is the measure of the amount of substance in an object and thus its inertia; also, the ratio
of the net force acting on an accelerating objects to its acceleration.
 Mass is the quantity of matter possessed by an object. It is an intrinsic property.
 Mass is the measure of the inertia of a body. Units for mass, thus inertia, are kilograms.
 Weight is the gravitational force acting on a mass (extrinsic property).
 Weight can vary from location to location
 Since weight is a force we can calculate it using Newton’s second law:
W = mg.
 The units for weight are newtons. [1 newton = 1
kg  m ]
s2
 The Newton is defined as: the force required to impart an acceleration of 1 m/s to a mass of 1 kg.
2

 British unit for mass is the slug and British unit for weight is the pound [1 lb = 4.45 N].
Though the British don’t actually use slugs and pounds, they use kg. Only Burma and us use
pounds and slugs.
 Slugs are defined as that mass which will undergo an acceleration of 1 ft/s2 when a
force of 1 lb is applied to it.
UNITS for MASS and FORCE
System Mass Force
SI Kilograms Newton (N)
(kg) = (kg·m/s2)
cgs Gram (g) Dyne
(gaussian) = g·cm/s2
Slug Pound (lb)
British
NEWTON’S SECOND LAW [The law of acceleration] MOST IMPORTANT LAW IN
PHYSICS!

The acceleration of a body is directly proportional to, (and in the same direction as) the net force
Fnet
applied to that body and is inversely proportional to the mass of the body. [ a  ]
m

DESCRIPTION:
 AKA The Law of Acceleration
 The acceleration of a body is directly proportional to the net force applied to that body
and inversely proportional to the mass of the object being accelerated. The acceleration
is always in the direction of the net force.
F
 In equation form, we write Newton’s second law as: Fnet = ma [or better yet: a = ,
m
where a stands for acceleration, m for the mass and F for the net force.
 Fnet and a are vectors pointing in the same direction.
 Newton’s second law relates the description of motion to the cause of motion.
 From the second law we can make a more precise definition of force as an action
capable of accelerating an object.

SAMPLE PROBLEM I:
PROBLEM: Estimate the net force needed to accelerate a 1000 kg car at ½ g.

Solution: ΣF = ma = (1000kg)(5m/s2) = 5000 kg-m/s2 = 5000 N

PROBLEM II: What net force is required to bring a 1500 kg car to rest from a speed of 100
km/h within a distance of 55 m?

Solution:
Given:
vo = 100 km/h = 28 m/s
vf = 0
x = 55 m
1st determine the acceleration (a) which we assume to be constant
vf2 = vo2 + 2a(x –xo)

v 2  vo 0  (28m / s) 2
2

a=   7.1m / s 2
2( x  xo ) 2(55m)

2nd Determine the net force required

ΣF = ma = (1500 kg)(-7.1 m/s2) = - 1.1 x 104 N

The force must be exerted in the direction opposite to the initial velocity that is what the negative sign
tells us.

FREE BODY DIAGRAMS:

  Draw a free-body diagram for a body or a system of bodies in motion with a constant acceleration, set
the resultant force equal to the total mass times the acceleration, and solve for the unknown
parameters.

Free body diagrams: Vector diagrams that represent all of the forces acting on an object.
Always start a problem by drawing a free body diagram! REQUIRED

1. Draw a point or a box to represent the object in question.

2. Draw arrows to represent each force acting on a given body, being sure to include
every force acting on that body, including any unknown forces.
3. Assume all forces are acting from the center of the body.
4. Label each force, including forces you must solve for, as to its source (gravity, person,
friction, and so on).
5. If several bodies are involved, draw a free-body diagram for EACH body separately,
showing all the forces acting on that body (and only forces acting on that body).

FN

Fw

FN
Ff FT

Fw FT

FN FN

Ff FT FT
Ff
Fw Fw

Draw a free body diagram

Sketch in the x- and y- components using dotted lines.

REMEMBER: We can only work in the horizontal (x) and vertical (y), not the xy.
 Problem Set
Newton’s Laws of Motion

1. A 20.0 kg box rests on a table. (a) What is the weight of the box and the normal force acting on it? (b) A 10.0
kg box is placed on top of the 20.0 kg box. Determine the normal force that the table exerts on the 20.0 kg
box and the normal force that the 20.0 kg box exerts on the 10.0 kg box.
2. What average force is required to stop an 1100 kg car in 8.0 s if it is traveling at 90 km/h?
3. What average force is needed to accelerate a 7.00 g pellet from rest to 175 m/s over a distance of 0.700 m
along the barrel of a rifle?
4. A fisherman yanks a fish out of the water with an acceleration of 4.6 m/s 2 using very light fishing line that has
a “test” value of 22 N. The fisherman unfortunately loses the fish as the line snaps. What can you say about
the mass of the fish?
5. A 0.140-kg baseball traveling 45.0 m/s strikes the catcher’s mitt, which, in bringing the ball to rest recoils
backward 11.0 cm. What was the average force applied by the ball on the glove?
6. What is the average force exerted by a shot-putter on a 7.0 kg shot if the shot is moved through a distance of
2.8 m and is released with a speed of 13 m/s?
7. How much tension must a rope withstand if it is used to accelerate a 1200 kg car vertically upward at 0.80
m/s2? Ignore friction.
8. A 10-kg bucket is lowered by a rope in which there is 63 N of tension. What is the acceleration of the bucket?
Is it up or down?
9. An elevator (mass 4850 kg) is to be designated so that the maximum acceleration is 0.0600 g. what are the
maximum and minimum forces the motor should exert on the supporting cable?
10. A 75 kg petty thief wants to escape from a third story jail window. Unfortunately, a makeshift rope made of
sheets tied together can support a mass of only 58 kg. How might the thief use this “rope” to escape? Give
quantitative answer.
11. A person stands on a bathroom scale in a motionless elevator. When the elevator begins to move, the scale
briefly reads only 0.75 of the person’s regular weight. Calculate the acceleration of the elevator and find the
direction of the acceleration.
12. The cable supporting a 2100 kg elevator has a maximum strength of 21,750 N. What maximum upward
acceleration can it give the elevator without breaking?
13. What is the acceleration of two falling sky divers (mass 120.0 kg including parachute) when the upward force
of air resistance is equal to one fourth of their weight? (b) After popping open the parachute, the divers
descend leisurely to the ground at constant speed. What now is the force of air resistance on the skydivers and
their parachute?
14. A Saturn V rocket has a mass of 2.75 x 106 kg and exerts a force of 33 x 106 N on the gases it expels.
Determine (a) the initial vertical acceleration of the rocket, (b) its velocity after 8.0 s and (c) how long it takes
to reach an altitude of 9500 m. Ignore mass of gas expelled and assume g remains constant.
15. An exceptional standing jump would raise a person 0.80 m off the ground. To do this, what force must a 66-
kg person exert against the ground? Assume the person crouches a distance of 0.20 m prior to jumping, and
thus the upward force has this distance to act over before he leaves the ground.
16. A person jumps from the roof of a house 4.5-m high. When he strikes the ground below, he bends his knees
so that his torso decelerates over an approximate distance of 0.70 m. If the mass of his torso (excluding legs)
is 45 kg, find (a) his velocity just before his feet strike the ground, and (b) the average force exerted on his
torso by his legs during deceleration.
17. The 100 m dash can be run by the best sprinters in 10.0s. A 65-kg sprinter accelerates uniformly for the first
50 m to reach top speed, which he maintains for the remaining 50 m. (a) What is the average horizontal
component of force exerted on his feet by the ground during acceleration? (b) What is the speed of the
sprinter over the last 50 m of the race (i.e. his top speed)?

NEWTON’S Third Law [Law of action-reaction]

When a body exerts a force on a second body, the second body exerts an equal but oppositely directed
force back on the first. Forces always occur in action-reaction pairs.
 Newton's Laws and Forces and Gravitation

The central problem of mechanics is this: if we have a particle whose characteristics we know (mass,
shape, volume, charge, etc.) how can we predict that it will move? Newton answered this question
with his laws of motion and his universal law of gravitation. Newton's laws introduced the concept of
force and talked about force in terms of acceleration given to an object. The laws introduced the
concept of mass which tells us how one body differs from another body and predicts how two bodies
in the same environment can have different accelerations. The force laws give us ways to calculate the
force acting on a body using the properties of the body and its environment.

Kinematics : the study of how objects move

Dynamics : the study of why objects move
Force : a push or a pull; symbol is F; SI unit is the Newton, or N
One Newton is the force necessary to cause a one kilogram mass to accelerate at the rate of 1
m/s2 [1 N = 1 kg m/s2 ]

Statics: Statics is the study of the forces acting on and within structures that are in
equilibrium. Statics means that the body is at rest.

Conditions for static equilibrium

1. The sum of the forces acting on the body must add up to zero. (Remember, if a force
component points in the negative x, y, or z direction, it is assigned a negative value.

Fx = 0
Fy = 0
Fz = 0

2. The sum of all the torques acting on the object (calculated along any axis) must be zero.  = 0

Three basic forces:

1. Gravitational force -an attractive force that exists between all objects with mass; an object
with mass attracts another object with mass; the magnitude of the force is directly proportional
to the masses of the two objects and inversely proportional to the square of the distance
between the two objects.

Stated mathematically:
Where G is the universal gravitational constant (meaning it has the same value throughout the
universe), m1 and m2 are the masses of the objects in kilograms, and d is the distance between
them in meters G = 6.67 x 10-11 N m2 / kg2
Cavendish found the universal gravitation constant, allowing the earth to be "weighed."

2. Electroweak force -an attractive or a repulsive force between charged particles; when
charged particles are in motion, they produce magnetic forces on each other; the magnitude of
the force is directly proportional to the magnitudes of the charges and inversely proportional to
the square of the distance between the two charges. Also a force involved in the radioactive
decay of some nuclei (in the 1960’s, Weinberg theorized the existence of the electroweak
force, combing the electromagnetic and the weak nuclear force)
 3. Strong nuclear force -an attractive force between the particles in the nucleus; it is the
strongest of the four forces, but only acts over very small distances (does not obey inverse
square law for distances)

 Newton’s First Law – an object in motion remains in motion at constant speed and moving in a
straight line and an object at rest remains at rest unless acted upon by an outside force; called
the law of inertia. You do not need a force to keep a body moving at a constant velocity. Also,
a body at rest in one frame of reference could be moving at constant speed relative to another
frame of reference.

Equilibrium: an object is in equilibrium when its velocity is zero or its velocity is constant
Inertia: a measure of how an object resists changes in motion; it is a measure of an object’s
mass.

 Newton’s Second Law – An unbalanced force (or net force, ) causes an object to accelerate;
this acceleration is directly proportional to the unbalanced force and inversely proportional to
the object’s mass; called the law of acceleration : a = F / m or  F = m a

Equilibrium: an object is in equilibrium when no unbalanced force (or net force) acts on it
Mass : A measure of the inertia of a body. (SI unit is the kilogram); Mass is a property of a
body itself. It should not be confused with weight, which is a force (the force of gravity acting
on an object).

 Newton’s Third Law – When one object exerts a force on another object, the second object
exerts a force on the first object that is equal in magnitude, but opposite in direction; for every
action, there is an equal, but opposite reaction; called the law of action-reaction

Advanced Look at the 3rd Law

Where do forces come from? A force is exerted on an object and is exerted by another object. The
"action" force acts on a different body than a "reaction" force. To experience the 3rd law, push on a
desk with your hand. Your hand's shape is distorted, showing that a force is acting on it. You can feel
the force that the desk exerts on your hand. The harder that you push on the desk, the harder that the
desk pushes back on your hand. You only feel the forces exerted on you; you do not feel the forces
that you exert on something else.

Applications of Newton's Laws

Free-body diagrams represent forces (their magnitudes and their directions). In a free-body diagram,
all forces are represented using arrows. The direction of motion is considered positive (usually
assigned the right direction); the direction opposite the motion is negative (typically assigned the left
direction); up is positive and down is negative

If the sum of all the horizontal forces acting on an object is zero, then the object is in equilibrium
horizontally. If the sum of all the vertical forces acting on an object is zero, then the object is in
equilibrium vertically. If the sum of the forces in a direction is not zero, then the forces in that
direction are not balanced. We say that an unbalanced force acts in that direction. An object can be in
equilibrium in one direction and not in equilibrium in another direction.

Forces that act horizontally are independent of forces that act vertically.

To work free-body diagram problems:

 1. Draw the free-body diagram labeling all forces (their magnitudes and directions). Remember to
use the appropriate positive and negative signs.
2. Add all the forces in the vertical direction. If the sum is zero, the forces are balanced, and there
is no acceleration. If the sum is not zero, the forces are unbalanced, and there is acceleration in
the vertical direction. This sum equals the product of mass times acceleration.
3. Add all the forces in the horizontal direction. If the sum is zero, the forces are balanced, and
there is no acceleration. If the sum is not zero, the forces are unbalanced, and there is
acceleration in the horizontal direction. This sum equals the product of mass times
acceleration.

Common types of forces involved in motion:

1. Weight – a measure of the gravitational force acting on an object; direction is down (toward
the earth’s center); symbol is W

W=mg

Where W is the weight of the object in Newtons, m is the mass of the object in kilograms, and
g is the acceleration due to gravity.

Letting the gravitational force equal represent the weight of an object yields,
W = (G m1 m2) / d2
or m1 g = (G m1 m2) / d2
or g = (G m2) / d2
where m2 is the mass of the earth

Advanced Look at Weight It is easy to see that the force of gravity acts on an object when it
is falling. When an object is at rest on a surface, the gravitational force still continues to act.
According to the second law, only a net force would cause the motion of the object to change.
Since the object remains at rest, the net force acting on it must be zero. Another force (the
normal force) balances the gravitational force. This is not an example of an action/reaction pair
of forces! Both forces (gravitational and normal) act on the same object. Action/reaction pairs
of forces act on different objects.

2. Normal force – the force exerted by a surface to support an object; symbol is FN; direction is
always upward; when an object rests on a horizontal surface, the normal force equals the
object’s weight; when an object is being pushed or pulled by a horizontal force, the normal
force equals the object’s weight. When a push or a pull is something other than horizontal, a
free-body diagram is used to determine the normal force (taking into account the vertical
component of the push or the pull). A normal force is a "response" force. In other words, a
surface responds to a weight resting on it by acting to oppose it to the extent necessary to
"cancel out" these forces. For our purposes, normal forces only exist on a surface (if the object
is in the air, there is no normal force). The normal force is not an action/reaction pair of forces
with the weight.

Advanced Look at the Normal Force Returning to our weight example ... An upward force
(the normal force) is exerted by the table on the object. The reaction to this is the downward
force exerted by the object on the table. Since these forces act on different objects, they are
action/reaction forces described by Newton's Third Law. What is the reaction force acting in
response to the gravitational force? The object exerts a gravitational force on the earth!
 Advanced Look at these forces in terms of the third law < >< >The object rests on the table
and is in the Earth's gravitational field. The Earth exerts a downward gravitational force on the
object equal to the object's weight. The object exerts an equal gravitational force on the Earth.
The downward gravitational force exerted by the Earth and the upward gravitational force
exerted by the object represent an action/reaction pair of forces. The table exerts an upward
force on the object. The object exerts an equal downward force on the table. These also
represent an action/reaction pair of forces. An action/reaction pair of forces never act on the
same object. Action/reaction pair of forces represent the mutal interaction of two bodies.

Famous Physics Puzzle: A man hitches a horse to a cart. The horse refuses to pull the cart,
telling the man, "No matter how hard I pull, the cart pulls back with an equal force, and it will
be impossible for me to ever pull the cart!"

Answer to puzzle: The horse exerts a force on the cart (action) and the cart exerts an equal and
opposite force on the horse (reaction). The horse exerts a force on the ground (action) and the
ground exerts an equal and opposite force back on the horse (reaction). There are two sets of
action forces acting (for the horse). If the reaction force exerted by the ground on the horse is
larger than the reaction force exerted by the sled on the horse, the horse will move forward.
The cart will move forward when the force exerted by it by the horse is greater than the
frictional force between the cart and the ground. Remember, there are two sets of forces acting
on the cart: the force exerted by the horse on the cart (action)/the force exerted by the cart on
the horse (reaction) and the force exerted by the cart on the ground (action)/the frictional force
exerted by the ground on the cart (reaction).

3. Friction – a force that usually opposes the motion of an object; symbol is Ff; direction is
negative; friction is an electromagnetic force between surface atoms

Characteristics of friction:

o Friction acts parallel to the surfaces in contact

o Friction usually acts opposite the direction of the motion. Friction opposes the applied
force.
o Friction depends upon the types of surfaces in contact (All surfaces are described by a
coefficient of friction,  , which is a characteristic of that surface.  has no units.)
o Friction is independent of the surface area in contact.(for hard surfaces)

The force of friction is proportional to the normal force between the two surfaces. The
proportionality constant is , or  = (Ff)/(FN). If the normal force increases, the frictional force
increases. The normal force and the frictional force are forces exerted by one surface on
another. The normal force acts perpendicularly to the contact surfaces; the frictional force acts
parallel to the contact surfaces.

Types of friction:

o Starting friction (Static Friction) opposes the beginning of motion of an object; is

always greater than sliding friction

Advanced Look at Static Friction If an object is resting on a surface, there is no

frictional force because there is no horizontal force. A person now pushes horizontally
on the object, but not hard enough to make it move. The force of static friction exerted
by the surface on the object prevents it from moving. The object does not move until
you push hard enough (Fmax)to overcome static friction.
 Fmax = sFN where s is the coefficient of static friction.

o Sliding friction (Kinetic Friction) – opposes the motion of an object

Friction can be described mathematically:

Ff =  FN

Advanced Look at Kinetic Friction When a body is in motion along a rough surface, the
force of kinetic friction acts opposite the direction of the motion.

Ff = kFN

In AP Physics, we will refer to a smooth surface as one without friction and a rough surface as
one with friction.

4. Applied force – the push or pull that "you" use to move an object; symbol is Fapp
5. Unbalanced force (or net force ) – the sum of all the forces in a direction; it is what causes
the acceleration of an object (I usually refer to it as UBF – this is not official, it is just me!)

F=ma

6. Tension - a force usually associated with a rope or a cable; it is a "response" force. In other
words, if one pulls on a rope, the rope "fights back" by resisting being stretched. If the rope has
negligible mass, the force exerted at one end is transmitted undiminished to each adjacent piece
of rope along its entire length to the other end. Note: ropes, cords, and string can only pull.
They cannot push because they bend.

AP example Two boxes, mass 10 kg and mass 20 kg, are connected by a massless string on a
smooth surface. A horizontal force, Fapp pulls the 20 kg box. How would you find the
acceleration of each and the tension in the cord? First, draw a free diagram for each box. Four
forces are involved in the free body diagram for the 20 kg box: Fapp pulls the box horizontally
to the right, the Tension (T)pulls to the left, the normal force acts up, and the gravitational
force (the weight) acts down. Only the tension and the applied force act parallel to the motion.
Apply Newton's second law to the 20 kg box: F = Fapp - T = (20 kg)a. Draw a free body
diagram for the 10 kg box. Three forces are involved in the free body diagram for the 10 kg
box: the Tension (T)pulls to the right, the normal force acts up, and the gravitational force (the
weight) acts down. (Since we said the surface was smooth, there is no friction). Only the
tension acts parallel to the motion. Apply Newton's second law to the 10 kg box: F = T = (10
kg)a. Since the boxes are connected, the two boxes have the same acceleration. We "add" the
two equations and get Fapp =(30 kg)a. Once the acceleration is known, you can solve for the
tension.

7. Forces involved in springs: Most mass/spring systems obey a simple relationship between
force and displacement (x), known as Hooke's Law. The restoring force (F) is proportional to
the displacement (x). The spring constant (k) is the proportionality constant.
 Felastic = -kx

Forces on an Inclined Plane

The normal force exerted by the incline to support the weight, W. The parallel force is the part
of the object's weight that tends to make it slide down the incline.
FN = W cos 
FP = W sin 

Inclined plane problems are easier to work if one chooses the direction parallel to the incline
surface as your x-axis. The y-axis is then perpendicular to the incline surface. If an object
slides down an incline, three forces act on it: the normal force, the frictional force, and the
gravitational force (or the object's weight).

The gravitational force can be resolved into its x and y components. Its x component is called
the parallel force. Its y component is equal in magnitude and opposite in direction to the
normal force exerted by the surface on the object.

Centripetal Force Another force is always the source of the centripetal force. For example,
when a car rounds a flat curve, the frictional force between the tires and the curve provide the
centripetal force. The gravitational force between the moon and the earth provides the
centripetal force for the moon's orbit around the earth. Remember, the centripetal force's
direction is always toward the center of the circle (or arc). In both of these examples, the
centripetal force did no work on the object because it is perpendicular to the velocity vector.

Advanced calculations

When you apply Newton's laws of motion to solve problems, you must think them out.

1. What is involved in the problem? Identify all forces involved.

2. What law of physics does this problem involve?
3. If Newton's Second Law is applied to this problem, to what particles is it applied?
4. Represent all forces as a free-body diagram.
5. Combine equations to solve problems.
6. Does your answer make sense in terms of physics?

Multiple Choice Questions

1. Be able to draw and interpret free body diagrams (FBDs) that represent all forces acting
on an object! The following are examples of FBDs you must interpret:
o A weight hangs from two strings which make angles 1 or 2 with the horizontal
or with the vertical. There are three forces acting: the weight of the object, W,
acts down toward the center of the earth, and the upward components of the
 tensions in each string. You should be able to state which string has the greater
tension (judge it by how much of the weight it supports). Or, you might be
asked to solve for tension in terms of angle and weight.
o A weight W is on an inclined plane with a rough surface. If W slides down the
plane, there are three "real" forces (not components!) acting: W, N (for the
normal force), and f (for the frictional force). Be able to draw a FBD showing
each of these forces and the directions they act in. Be able to solve for any one
of the three forces in terms of the other two. Be able to apply Newton's Second
Law to the motion of the block.
o A weight W is on an inclined plane with a rough surface. If W is pushed up the
plane, there are four "real" forces (not components!) acting: W, N (for the
normal force), F for the applied force (the push!), and f (for the frictional force).
Be able to draw a FBD showing each of these forces and the directions they act
in. Be able to solve for any one of the four forces in terms of the other three. Be
able to apply Newton's Second Law to the motion of the block.
o A weight W is pulled across a rough horizontal surface by a force F applied at
angle  to the horizontal. Draw the FBD for the three "real" forces acting (not
components!). Be able to solve for one force (usually normal force) in terms of
the other two forces.
o A weight W is pushed across a rough horizontal surface by a force F applied at
angle  to the horizontal. Draw the FBD for the three "real" forces acting (not
components!). Be able to solve for one force (usually normal force) in terms of
the other two forces.
o A mass m is connected by a weightless cord which passes over a frictionless
pulley to mass M which rests on a smooth table. Be able to use Newton's
Second Law and your FBDs to write an expression for the acceleration of the
system. Be able to do this for a rough surface.
o Two unequal masses are connected by a cord and are pulled by a rope along a
smooth surface. Be able to use Newton's Second Law and your FBDs to write
and expression for the acceleration of the system. Be able to do this for a rough
surface.
o An weight W falls through the air, experiencing a retarding force F due to air
friction. Be able to use Newton's Second Law and your FBD to write an
expression for the acceleration of the weight.
2. Be able to do simple calculations using Hooke's Law.
3. Be able to recognize the definitions of simple terms such as acceleration and inertia.
4. Be able to recognize when an object is accelerating and be able to determine the
unbalanced force causing the acceleration.
5. Be able to determine the direction of the net force (unbalanced force) causing the
acceleration.
6. Be able to recognize the conditions for translational equilibrium.
7. Be able to recognize a motion graph that for an object in translational equilibrium or for
an object that is accelerating.

Free Response Questions

1. Be able to draw FBDs! In an FBD, only show "real" forces, not components. For
example, if you have a force applied at an angle, only show that force at the angle, not
its horizontal and vertical components. You must lable the forces and give their signs.
Always use the given nomenclature. For example, if they say block 4 M rests on a
table, its weight must be shown as 4 Mg. Notice, if a capital letter is given, use the
capital letter!
2. Be able to apply Newton's Second Law and interpret your FBD for all the cases listed
above. Also, we will study other forces in later units that will be asked on AP Free
Response Questions.