Section 3.

1
Newtons Third Law and
Momentum

Recap
N1:

An object in motion remains in

motion and an object in rest remains in
rest unless it is acted upon by an
outside force.

N2:

F=ma

N3:

???

Newtons Third Law

For every action there is an
equal and opposite reaction.

Ohso thats why when I punch a fool

in the face my hand hurts!

Forces ALWAYS come in

pairs!
The

forces are called Action/Reaction Pairs

The forces are always equal in magnitude
and opposite in direction
The forces always act on different objects

There is no such thing as a force

that is alone
They necessarily come in pairs

http://www.youtube.com/watc
h?v=cP0Bb3WXJ_k

Question?
Remember net forces?
Why dont action and reaction forces
cancel out?

Because they act on different objects.

Forces could only cancel out if they act
on the same object.

Identifying Action/Reaction
Forces
Both

are always there whenever any

force appears
They always have the exact same
strength
They always act in opposite directions
They always act on different objects
Both are real forces and either (or
both) can cause acceleration

Describe an action/reaction pair

of forces when
Joe Mama sits in a chair.

Describe an action/reaction pair

of forces when
Joe Mama sits in a chair.
The chair exerts a force on Joe, and Joe
exerts a force on the chair
The Earth exerts a force on Joe, and Joe
exerts a force on Earth

Describe an action/reaction pair

of forces when
A baseball player hits a ball with a bat.

Describe an action/reaction pair

of forces when
A baseball player hits a ball with a bat.
The bat exerts a force on the ball, and
the ball exerts a force on the bat
Thats why the ball accelerates and the bat slows
down

Momentum

Choose Your Doom!

Would you rather:
Get hit by a snowball going 10 m/s
or
Get hit by a snowball going 40000000
m/s
??

We know that more massive objects

are harder to stop (inertia)
but what about objects with the same
mass but different speeds?

Momentum
Like inertia, momentum measures an
objects resistances to changes in its
motion
Unlike inertia, momentum accounts for the
effects of speed in addition to mass
Sadly, momentum only measures the
resistances to changes in motion of moving
objects

Momentum

Changes in Momentum
Momentum changes when velocity
changes. Since force is what changes
velocity, that means that force is also
linked to changes in momentum.
A change in momentum by a force
over a period of time is called Impulse.

Impulse = Change in
Momentum

Problem
A

net force of 100 N is applied for 5 s

to a 10-kg car that is initially at rest.
What is the speed of the car at the end
of the 5 s?

Problem
A

net force of 100 N is applied for 5 s

to a 10-kg car that is initially at rest.
What is the speed of the car at the end
of the 5 s?

Did you get 50 m/s?

Good cause thats the right answer!

Problem
A

15 N force acts for 10 s on a 1-kg

ball initially at rest. What is the balls
final momentum?

Problem
A

15 N force acts for 10 s on a 1-kg

ball initially at rest. What is the balls
final momentum?

150 kg.m/s

or

150 N.s

Problem
How

much time should a 100-N force

take to increase the speed of a 10-kg
car from 10 m/s to 100 m/s?

Problem
How

much time should a 100-N force

take to increase the speed of a 10-kg
car from 10 m/s to 100 m/s?

9s

Law of Conservation of
Momentum
N3: Equal and opposite forcescause an
acceleration, and thus change the
momentum of an object.
From this, changes in momentum must
also be equal and opposite.
This is the Law of Conservation of
Momentum

Law of Conservation of
Momentum
If interacting objects in a system are
not acted on by outside forces, the
total amount of momentum in the
system cannot change.
Forces outside the system, such as
friction and gravity, can change the
total momentum of the system.

Problem
An

astronaut floating in space throws a

2-kg hammer to the left at 15 m/s. If
the astronauts mass is 60 kg, how fast
does the astronaut float to the right
after throwing the hammer?

Problem
An

astronaut floating in space throws a

2-kg hammer to the left at 15 m/s. If
the astronauts mass is 60 kg, how fast
does the astronaut float to the right
after throwing the hammer?
Answer:

0.5 m/s

Review
Describe

action/reaction pairs.
Why dont action and reaction forces
cancel?
Use impulse to explain how force is
related to changes in momentum.
Explain the law of conservation of
momentum and how it relates to
Newtons third law.