WHAT IS INERTIA?

INERTIA IS.

• THE PROPERTY OF AN OBJECT THAT RESISTS CHANGES IN ITS MOTION.

• AN OBJECT AT REST TENDS TO STAY AT REST.
• AN OBJECT IN MOTION TENDS TO KEEP MOVING AT A CONSTANT
SPEED IN A STRAIGHT LINE.
 MEANING OF INERTIA
INERTIA IS THE RESISTANCE, OF ANY PHYSICAL OBJECT, TO ANY CHANGE IN ITS
VELOCITY. THIS INCLUDES CHANGES TO THE OBJECT'S SPEED, OR DIRECTION OF
MOTION.
AN ASPECT OF THIS PROPERTY IS THE TENDENCY OF OBJECTS TO KEEP MOVING
IN A STRAIGHT LINE AT A CONSTANT SPEED, WHEN NO FORCES ARE UPON
THEM—AND THIS ASPECT IN PARTICULAR IS ALSO CALLED INERTIA.

THE PRINCIPLE OF INERTIA IS ONE OF THE FUNDAMENTAL PRINCIPLES IN

CLASSICAL PHYSICS THAT ARE STILL USED TODAY TO DESCRIBE THE MOTION OF
OBJECTS AND HOW THEY ARE AFFECTED BY THE APPLIED FORCES ON THEM.
INERTIA COMES FROM THE LATIN WORD, INERS, MEANING IDLE, SLUGGISH.
INERTIA IS ONE OF THE PRIMARY MANIFESTATIONS OF MASS, WHICH IS A
QUANTITATIVE PROPERTY OF PHYSICAL SYSTEMS. ISAAC NEWTON DEFINED
INERTIA AS HIS FIRST LAW IN HIS PHILOSOPHIÆ NATURALIS PRINCIPIA
MATHEMATICA,
WHERE DOES INERTIA COME FROM

•INERTIA COMES FROM MASS .

•THE OBJECTS THAT HAVE MORE MASS
HAVE MORE INERTIA.
TO UNDERSTAND INERTIA
TRY MOVING A BOWLING BALL AND GOLF BALL THAT ARE AT
REST
THE GOLF BALL HAS A MASS OF 0.05 KG WHILE THE BOWLING
BALL HAS A MASS OF 5KG THE BOWLING BALL HAS 100X MORE
MASS THAN THE GOLF BALL, SO IT HAS 100 TIMES MORE INERTIA,
TOO. NOW ASK YOURSELF WHICH NEEDS MORE FORCE TO START
MOVING? IF YOU PUSH FOR THE SAME DISTANCE THE BOWLING
BALL TAKES MUCH MORE FORCE TO GET IT MOVING AT THE
SAME SPEED AS THE GOLF BALL. THE BOWLING BALL NEEDS MORE
FFORCE BECAUSE A BOWLING BALL HAS MORE INERTIA THAN A
GOLF BALL THE GREATER THE OBJECT’S INERTIA, THE GREATER
THE FORCE NEEDED TO CHANGE ITS MOTION.
NEWTONS FIRST LAW
• NEWTON’S FIRST LAW OF MOTION EXPLAINS HOW INERTIA AFFECTS
NON MOVING AND MOVING OBJECTS.

• AN OBJECT IN MOTION TENDS TO KEEP MOVING AT A CONSTANT

SPEED IN A STRAIGHT LINE UNLESS IT IS ACTED BY AN UNBALANCED
FORCE
 ACCORDING TO NEWTON’S FIRST LAW,
AN UNBALANCED FORCE IS NEEDED TO MOVE THE BOOK ON YOUR
DESK.
YOU COULD SUPPLY THE FORCE BY PUSHING THE BOOK
AN UNBALANCED FORCE IS NEEDED TO CHANGE THE SPEED OR
DIRECTION OF THE SPACECRAFT THIS FORCE COULD BE SUPPLIED
BY THE SPACECRAFT’S ENGINES. BECAUSE OF INERTIA AN OBJECT
WILL REMAIN ATT REST UNTIL SOMETHING CASUSES IT TO MOVE
LIKEWISE A MOVING OBJECT CONTINUES TO MOVE AT THE SAME
SPEED AND IN THE SAME DIRECTION UNLESS SOMETHING ACTS ON
IT TO CHANGE ITS SPEED OR DIRECTION.
YOU CAN FEEL THE EFFECTS OF INERTIA EVERY DAY.
SUPPOSE TOU ARE RIDING A CAR WHAT HAPPENS IF THE
CAR COMES TO A SUDDEN STOP? YOUR BODY HAS INERTIA.
IF THE CAR STOPS,YOU KEEP ON MOVING FORWARD WHAT
HAPPENS WHEN THE CAR STARTS MOVING BECAUSE OF
INERTIA, YOUR BODY TENDS TO STAY AT REST WHEN THE
CAR MOVES FORWARD. IN BASEBALL, INERTIA TENDS TO
KEEP A PLAYER RUNNING IN A STRAIGHT LINE SO BASE
RUNNERS HAVE TO ‘ROUND’ THE BASES INSTEAD OF
MAKING SHARP TURNS.
TO UNDERSTAND INERTIA BETTER

INERTIA COMES FROM MASS THE MORE THE

MASS THE MORE FORCE MUST BE NEEDED TO
BE APPLIED TO MOVE THE OBJECT TO MOVE
AT A CONSTANT SPEED