Newton’s Three

Laws of Motion
 Classical Mechanics
 Describes the relationship between the
motion of objects in our everyday world
and the forces acting on them
 Conditions when Classical Mechanics does
not apply (Quantum Mechanics & Relativity
do apply)
 very tiny objects (< atomic sizes)

 objects moving near the speed of light

 Forces
 Usually think of a force as a push or pull
 Forces can cause objects to
 speed up

 slow down

 &/or change direction

 Vector quantity
 On its own an object would not speed up,
slow down or change direction. It needs
interaction with something outside of itself.
 Force Types
 May be a contact force or a field force
 Contact forces result from “physical
contact” between two objects.
 Ex. Driving: There is physical contact

between the tires and the road.

 Field forces act between disconnected
objects via an area of influence i.e. a field.
 Also called “action at a distance”

 Ex. The Moon is pulled into orbit around

the Earth because of the Earth’s

gravitational field.
Contact and Field Forces

Contact force Force of gravity

Contact force

Force of electricity

Contact
force Force of magnetism
 Fundamental Forces
 Types
 Strong nuclear force
 keeps protons near one another
 Electromagnetic force
 Combines the electric & magnetic forces
 Weak nuclear force
 Contributes to the stability of the nucleus
 Gravity
 Fundamental Forces
 Characteristics
 All fundamental forces are field forces
 Contact forces are actually comprised of the
fundamental forces, therefore they are really
field forces. This occurs on a microscopic level.
 Listed in order of decreasing strength
 Only gravity and electromagnetic in mechanics
 Newton’s First Law
 An object moves with a velocity that is
constant in magnitude and direction,
unless acted on by a nonzero net force
 An object in motion remains in uniform
motion or an object at rest remains at rest
unless acted upon by a net external force.
 The net force is defined as the vector

sum of all the external forces exerted on

the object
External and Internal
Forces
 External force
 Any force that results from the
interaction between the object and its
environment
 Internal forces
 Forces that originate within the object
itself
 They cannot change the object’s
velocity
Inertia
 Is the tendency of an object to
continue in its original motion*
 * Constant velocity (no change in
speed or direction) or rest.
 Recall this is all relative since in one
reference frame an object may be at
rest, while in another it may be in
constant motion.
Example
 If you read a book on a train, the
book is at rest with respect to you.
 Someone on the platform would
not be able to read the words if
you & the train are moving past.
From their reference frame you are
both in motion.
The speed of light
 The only constant speed in the
universe is the speed of light. It is
the same regardless of the
reference frame.
 This is a profound concept that
Einstein’s relativity is based upon.
Mass
 A measure of the resistance of an
object to changes in its motion due
to an applied force.
 Quantifies inertia.
 “Larger” objects are more resistant
to changes in motion
 Scalar quantity
 SI units are kg
 Newton’s Second Law
 Based on the definitions of velocity and
acceleration…
 a force exerted on an object causes that

object’s velocity to change; that is, a

force causes a mass to accelerate.

 A net force will result in an object changing

it’s speed, direction or both.
 Newton’s Second Law
 Based on the definitions of velocity and
acceleration…
 a force exerted on an object causes that

object’s velocity to change; that is, a

force causes a mass to accelerate.

 A net force will result in an object changing

it’s speed, direction or both.
 Newton’s Second Law
 The acceleration of an object is directly
proportional to the net force acting on it
and inversely proportional to its mass.

 F and a are both vectors

 Can also be applied 2- or 3-dimensionally
Force and Motion
Force and Acceleration

The formula, Fnet = ma , tells you that if you

double the force, you will double the object’s
acceleration.
If you apply the same force to several different
objects, the one with the most mass will have the
smallest acceleration and the one with the least mass
will have the greatest acceleration.

If several different objects have the same

acceleration, the one with the most mass will have
the greatest net force and the one with the least
mass will have the least net force acting on it.
Force and Motion
Force and Acceleration

Net force always points in the direction of

acceleration. (Net force is defined in terms of
acceleration & mass, the mass is a scalar).

An object may have many individual forces acting on

it, but it only has one acceleration. Why?
An object only has one velocity at one instant and
one velocity in the next instant, thus there is only
one acceleration.
 Units of Force
 SI unit of force is a Newton (N) kg m
1N  1 2
s
 One unit of force causes a 1-kg mass to accelerate at 1
m/s2, so one force unit has the dimensions 1 kg·m/s2
or one newton and is represented by N.

 US Customary unit of force is a pound(lb)

 1 N = 0.225 lb (weight of an apple)

 10 N = 2.25 lb (weight of bag of apples)

Sir Isaac Newton
 1642 – 1727
 Formulated basic
concepts and laws
of mechanics
 Universal
Gravitation
 Calculus
 Light and optics
Weight
 The magnitude of the gravitational
force acting on an object of mass
m near the Earth’s surface is called
the weight w of the object
 W = m g is a special case of Newton’s
Second Law
 g is the acceleration due to gravity
More about weight
 Weight is not an inherent property
of an object
 mass is an inherent property
 Weight depends upon location,
mass does not.
Newton’s Third Law
 If object 1 and object 2 interact,
the force exerted by object 1 on
object 2 is equal in magnitude but
opposite in direction to the force
exerted by object 2 on object 1.
 F12  F21

 Equivalent to saying a single isolated

force cannot exist
 Newton’s Third Law cont.
 F12 may be called the
action force and F21
the reaction force
 Actually, either force
can be the action or
the reaction force
 The action and
reaction forces act
on different objects
 Some Action-Reaction
Pairs
 n and n '
 n is the normal force,
the force the table
exerts on the TV
 n is always

perpendicular to the
surface
 n 'is the reaction – the

TV on the table
 n  n '
 More Action-Reaction pairs

 Fg and Fg'
 F is the force the
g
Earth exerts on
the object
'
F
 g is the force the

object exerts on
the earth
 Fg  Fg'
Forces Acting on an Object
 Newton’s Law
uses the forces
acting on an
object
 n and Fg are
acting on the
object
'
 n ' and Fgare
acting on other
objects
Applications of Newton’s
Laws
 Assumptions
 Objects behave as particles
 can ignore rotational motion (for now)
 Masses of strings or ropes are
negligible
 Interested only in the forces acting
on the object
 can neglect reaction forces
Free Body Diagram
 Must identify all the forces acting
on the object of interest
 Choose an appropriate coordinate
system
 If the free body diagram is
incorrect, the solution will likely be
incorrect
 Free Body Diagram,
Example
 The force is the
tension acting on the
box
 The tension is the same
at all points along the
rope
 n and Fg are the
forces exerted by the
earth and the ground
Free Body Diagram, final
 Only forces acting directly on the
object are included in the free
body diagram
 Reaction forces act on other objects
and so are not included
 The reaction forces do not directly
influence the object’s motion
 The base of the arrow touches the
object being acted upon.
Solving Newton’s Second
Law Problems
 Read the problem at least once
 Draw a picture of the system
 Identify the object of primary interest
 Indicate forces with arrows
 Label each force
 Use labels that bring to mind the
physical quantity involved
Solving Newton’s Second
Law Problems
 Draw a free body diagram
 If additional objects are involved, draw
separate free body diagrams for each object
 Choose a convenient coordinate system for
each object
 Apply Newton’s Second Law
 The x- and y-components should be taken
from the vector equation and written
separately
 Solve for the unknown(s)
Equilibrium
 An object either at rest or moving
with a constant velocity is said to
be in equilibrium.
 The net force acting on the object
is zero (since the acceleration is
zero)

F  0
Equilibrium cont.
 Easier to work with the equation in
terms of its components:
 Fx  0 an d  Fy  0

 This could be extended to three

dimensions.
Equilibrium Example –
Free Body Diagrams
 Inclined Planes
 Choose the
coordinate
system with x
along the incline
and y
perpendicular to
the incline
 Replace the force
of gravity with its
components
Multiple Objects –
Example
 When you have more than one
object, the problem-solving
strategy is applied to each object
 Draw free body diagrams for each
object
 Apply Newton’s Laws to each
object
 Solve the equations
Multiple Objects –
Example, cont.
Normal Force, Fn
 A reaction force.
 It results from pressure being
applied to a surface.
 It originates at the molecular level
and allows the object to seemingly
(at the macroscopic level)
maintain it’s shape.
 At the microscopic level there is
deformation.
Normal Force, Fn
 The force is always perpendicular
i.e. normal to the surface.
 It is NOT a fundamental force of
nature, it’s really electric bonding
forces of molecules.
 Normal Force

When a box rests on a table, the

table must exert enough upward When we push
force to support the box, otherwise, down with a force of
the table will collapse. This upward 40 N the normal
force is called the normal force FN force will increase
because it is normal to the surface. by 40 N.
 Normal force
 When an object lies on a table or on
the ground, the table or ground must
exert an upward force on it, the
normal force, otherwise gravity would
accelerate it down.
 Either FN or N may denote the normal
force.N
m In this particular case,
N = mg.

mg So, Fnet = 0; hence a = 0.

Normal forces aren’t always up
“Normal” means perpendicular. A normal force is
always perpendicular to the contact surface.

N For example, if a
flower pot is setting
on an incline, N is
not vertical; it’s at a
right angle to the
incline. Also, in this
case, mg > N.
mg
Normal force directions
 Up
 You’re standing on level ground.
 You’re at the bottom of a circle while flying
a loop-the-loop in a plane.
 Sideways
 A ladder leans up against a wall.
 You’re against the wall on the “Round Up”
ride when the floor drops out.
 At an angle
 A race car takes a turn on a banked track.
 Down
 You’re in a roller coaster at the top of a
loop.
Cases in which N  mg
1. Mass on incline
2. Applied force acting on the mass
3. Nonzero acceleration, as in an elevator or
launching space shuttle

N FA N
N a

mg
mg mg
When does N = mg ?
If the following conditions are satisfied,
then N = mg:
 The object is on a level surface.
 There’s nothing pushing it down or
pulling it up.
 The object is not accelerating vertically.
 Apparent Weight & Scales

 A scale is NOT necessarily a weight meter.

 A scale is a normal force meter.
 A scale might lie about your weight if
 you’re on an incline.

 someone pushes down or pulls up on you.

 you’re in an elevator.

 You’re actual weight (mass x gravity) doesn’t

change in the above cases.
 Apparent weight is a scale’s reading
(measurement), which may not be your actual
weight.
Weight in a Rocket
You’re on a rocket excursion
standing on a purple
U bathroom scale. You’re still
S near enough to the Earth so
that your actual weight is
A
unchanged.
The scale, recall, measures
normal force, not weight.
Your apparent weight
depends on the acceleration
of the rocket.
At rest on the launch pad

During the countdown

to blast off, you’re not
U a=0 accelerating. The scale
S v=0 pushes up on you just
A as hard as the Earth
N pulls down on you. So,
the scale reads your
actual weight.
m

mg
Rocket: Blasting Off
During blast off your
acceleration is up, so the
net force must be up (no
a  matter which way v is).
U
v 
S Fnet = m a
A N
 N - mg = m a

 N = m (a + g) > mg
 Apparent weight > Actual weight

mg
velocity

If v = constant, then a = 0.
If a = 0, then Fnet = 0 too.
U a=0 If Fnet = 0, then N must be
equal in magnitude to mg.
S v
A This means that the scale
N reads your normal weight
(same as if you were at rest)
regardless of how fast you’re
m going, so long as you’re not
accelerating.
mg
Rocket: Engines on low
As soon as you cut way back on the
engines, the Earth pulls harder on
you than the scale pushes up. So
you’re acceleration is down, but you’ll U a
still head upward for a while. S v
Choosing down as the positive
direction, A

Fnet = m a N

 mg - N = m a m

 N = m (g - a) < mg mg
 Apparent weight < Actual
weight
 Example) A 65-kg woman ascends in
an elevator that briefly accelerates at 1.0
m/s2 upward when leaving a floor. She
stands on a scale that reads in N.
F ma
FN  m g  m a

FN  m a  m g  m ( a  g ) FN

FN  65 kg (1.0 m 2  9.8 m 2 )  700 N 

s s mg
When acceleration is zero, the scale reads her
weight:
FN  (65 kg) ( 9.8m 2 )  640 N
s
Force of Friction
 When an object is moving along a
surface, there will be a resistance
to the motion
 This is due to the microscopic
interactions between the object and
the surface
 This resistance to motion is called
friction.
 Friction Ff   F N

 Ff - frictional force; SI unit: N, newtons

 FN -normal force; SI unit: N, newtons
 μ -coefficient of kinetic friction; unitless!!!
 depends on materials in contact
 Ff   F N
Friction
 Friction is proportional to the normal
force, FN.
 The greater the normal force, Fn, the more
contact an object has with the surface it is moving
along.
 The contact slows the object down as it moves, it does
not push it along.
 Friction is proportional to the coefficient
of friction, µ.
 depends on the surfaces in contact.
 The rougher the surfaces, the greater the coefficient of
friction.
 More About Friction
 The force of static friction is generally
greater than the force of kinetic friction
 Law of Inertia – it’s easier to keep an object in
motion, than to get it in motion
 The direction of the frictional force is
opposite the direction of motion
 The coefficients of friction are nearly
independent of the area of contact
Static Friction, ƒs
 Static friction acts
to keep the object
from moving
 If F increases, so
does ƒs
 If F decreases, so
does ƒs
 ƒs  µs n
 ƒs, max = µs n
Kinetic Friction, ƒk
 The force of
kinetic friction
acts when the
object is in
motion
 ƒk = µk n
 Variations of the
coefficient with
speed will be
ignored
Forces of Friction
Frictional Force…

 … is proportional to the normal

force
 … points in the direction to resist
the motion
 … two types - static & kinetic
 Static Friction
….

f s (max)  sn

 s depends on materials


 s is the coefficient of static
friction
 Kinetic Friction

f k  k n
 k depends on materials

k is the coefficient of kinetic friction



 Which is larger s or k ?

 Some Coefficients of Friction
s k
Teflon on 0.04 0.04
Teflon
Steel on ice 0.1 0.05
 
Wood on wood 0.5 0.3

Car tires on wet 0.7 0.5

concrete
Car tires on dry 1.0 0.7-0.8
concrete
Question
You are pulling a wooden block across the table at
constant speed. You decide to turn the block on end,
reducing by half the surface area in contact with the
table. In the new orientation, to pull the same block
across the table at the same speed, the force that you
apply must be about

1. four times as great

2. twice as great
3. equally great
4. half as great
5. one-fourth as great

as the force required required before you changed the

crate’s orientation.
 v

Problem:
How much force must a person apply to the box
on the ground such that the box moves with
v = 3 m/s?

1st - Solve for the force required for the box to move
from rest.
2nd - Solve for the force required for the box to
continue in motion.

Given: µk = .3, µs = .5 m = 100 kg

 Problem : Eraser on Incline
The angle of the inclined plane is
slowly increased. In terms of the
coefficient of friction, at what angle
does the eraser slip? (In this
problem, the frictional force is non-
negligible)


 Block on a Ramp, Example
 Axes are rotated as
usual on an incline
 The direction of
impending motion
would be down the
plane
 Friction acts up the
plane
 Opposes the motion
 Apply Newton’s Laws
and solve equations
 y

 FN
F fr

 x
Inclined Planes mg 
•An inclined plane exerts a normal force FN which is
perpendicular to the surface.
•There may also be a frictional force which opposes the motion.
•It should also be noted that the angle between the weight and the
normal  is the same as the angle of the incline .
 y
Example 4-5 A block of wood 
 FN
accelerates down a wooden board. F fr

Derive the equations of motion

 x
mg 
F  0
F
y

 ma
F  mg cos  0
N
x

mg sin   F fr  ma
FN  mg cos
mg sin    m g cos   ma

F fr   FN   mg cos 
 y
Example 4-5 A block of wood rests on 
 FN
a wooden board. One end of the board F fr

is raised until the block starts to slip.

Determine the coefficient of static
friction if θ = 250 when it starts to slip.  x
mg 

mg sin    m g cos   ma
At the point where it starts to slip a ≈ 0 and  = s.

g sin   s g cos  0
sin 
   tan
cos
s

 s  tan 250  0.47

 Connected
Objects
 Apply Newton’s Laws
separately to each
object
 The magnitude of the
acceleration of both
objects will be the
same
 The tension is the
same in each diagram
 Solve the simultaneous
equations
More About Connected
Objects
 Treating the system as one object
allows an alternative method or a
check
 Use only external forces
 Not the tension – it’s internal
 The mass is the mass of the system
 Doesn’t tell you anything about
any internal forces
Application: Ropes and
Pulleys

 
FT 1 FT 2


m1 g 
m2 g

• A pulley changes the direction of the tension in the rope.

• If the pulley is frictionless and massless then the
tension in the left rope is the same as the right
 
FT 1  FT 2
Example 4-3 Two masses hang from a massless, frictionless pulley as shown. Draw
free-body diagram for each of the masses. Derive a formula for the acceleration of
the masses. Assume m1 = 0.250 kg and m2 = 0.200 kg.
 
FT FT DOWN   for m1 

 UP   for m2 
m2 g
 so a is the same for both m2 m1
m1 g

F  m a
F  ma
y 2

F m g ma y 1

m g  F  ma
T 2 2

F mgma
1 T 1

T 2 2

m g  m g  m a  ma
1 2 2 1

m m 
a    g
1 2

m m  1 2
Example 4-3 Two masses hang from a massless, frictionless pulley as shown.
Draw free-body diagram for each of the masses. Calculate the acceleration of the
masses and the tension. Assume m1 =0.250 kg and m2 = 0.200 kg.

 
FT FT


m2 g
 m2 m1
m1 g
m m 
a    g
1 2

m m 
1 2

 0.250 kg  0.200 kg  m
a   9.8 2  1.09 m 2

 0.250kg  0.200 kg  s s

F  m g  m a  m2 ( g  a )
T 2 2

FT  ( 0.200 kg ) ( 9.80 m 2  1.09 m 2 )  2.18 N

s s
Static Friction
If we gradually increase the applied force
by adding water, the static friction force
matches it until the object starts to move.
Once it is sliding, the friction is kinetic and
is constant.

Static Friction: arises as a result of an

external force even when the body is not
yet moving:

Fs   s FN
Example
4-4 From the data in the graph, determine µk and µk.

FN  mg  28 kg 9.80 m s   270 N
FN  
FT  Ffr

 Fk   k FN  30 N
mg

Fk 30 N
k    0.11
FN 270 N

Fs   s FN
Just before the box starts to move

Fs   s FN  39 N
Fk
k  
39 N
 0.14
FN 270 N
 Example 4- 6 One 2.80 kg paint bucket (m1) is hanging by a massless cord
from a 3.50 kg paint bucket (m2), also hanging by a massless cord. If the two
buckets are pulled upward with an acceleration of 0.700 m/s2 by the upper cord,
calculate the tension in each cord.
F  ma 1

F  m g  ma
T1 1 1

 F  m ( g  a)
FT 2 T1 1

m2g FT 1  ( 2.80kg)(9.8 m 2  0.700 m )  29 N

s s2
 F  m a 2
F T1
F m g F ma
T2 2 T1 2

F T1 F  m ( g  a)  F
T2 2 T1

FT 2  (3.50kg)(9.8 m 2  0.70 m 2 )  29 N
m1 g s s
FT 2  66 N
Comments on Example 4-12 in Book
Treat as a single mass:

 F  m  m a
x A B

FP  mA  mB a
FP 40.0 N
a  1.82 m
(m A  mB ) (10.0 kg  12.0 kg) s

•Each box has the same acceleration

aA = aB = 1.82 m/ s2
• FT is not equal to FP
• FP = 40 N
• FT = (12 kg) ( 1.82 m/s2 ) = 22 N