MOTION AND FORCE:

DYNAMICS
Weve been dealing with the fact that objects move. Velocity, acceleration, projectile motion, etc.
WHY do they move? Forces act upon them, thats why! The connection between Force and motion is
DYNAMICS.
FORCE
A push or pull on an object. An object falls due to the force of gravity. Forces do not always
give rise to motion.
Spring Scale--a device used to measure force
!
Weight--a measure of the FORCE on an object, carries a unit of Newtons (N).
!
Forces--are vectors that carry a magnitude and direction.
!
NEWTONS FIRST LAW OF MOTION [Law of Inertia]
An object in motion remains in motion along a straight line path until a force acts upon that object. An
object at rest remains at rest until a force acts upon that object.

!
!
!
!
!

Inertia--tendency of a body to maintain its state of rest or uniform motion.

Friction--a force that acts against motion
Inertial Reference Frame--Newtons first law holds true. Rest a cup on a
dashboard in your car before leaving your garage--back out of the garage-splash! That is NOT an inertial frame of reference!
Mass--a property; measure of the inertia of a body (kg)
Weight--a force; Fg = mg measured in Newtons. A word that has a casual
meaning on Earth since g is relatively constant @ 9.8 m/s2. Mass and weight
have often been used interchangeably during your short lifetime!

NEWTONS SECOND LAW OF MOTION [F = ma]

The acceleration of an object is directly proportional to the net force acting on it and is inversely
proportional to its mass. The direction of the acceleration is in the direction of the net force acting on
the object.
a = EF
m
In English:
When a net force acts upon an object, its rest or uniform motion is changed. That means it experiences
an acceleration, technically defined as a change in velocity.
!
E F = ma
!
E F = net force
Force--an action capable of accelerating an object; measured in Newtons
!
1 N = kg Cm/s2
!
ONE Dimensional L F = ma
!
TWO Dimensional L Fx = max & Fy = may & Fz = maz
!

Example 4.1
Estimate the net force needed to accelerate a 1000-kg car at 1/2 g.

Example 4.2
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?

NEWTONS THIRD LAW [action-reaction]

Whenever on object exerts a force on a second object, the second object exerts an equal and opposite
force on the first object. Often stated, To every action there is an equal and opposite reaction.
The second law quantifies how forces affect motion. But, where do forces come from? A force is
exerted ON an object and BY another object. Hit a nail with a hammer--the force is applied ON the nail
BY the hammer BUT, the nail exerts a force back on the hammer. How do we know? 1) the speed of
the hammer is rapidly reduced to zero! 2) this force must be strong to so rapidly reduce the speed of the
hammer 3) the nail rarely sinks all the way into the wood on the first try!
Example 4.3
What makes a car go forward?

Rene McCormick, AP Strategies, Inc.

Forces

Example 4.4
Michelangelos assistant has been assigned the task of moving a block of marble using a sled. He says
to his boss, When I exert a forward force on the sled, the sled exerts an equal and opposite force
backward, so how can I ever start it moving? No matter how hard I pull, the backward reaction force
always equals my forward force, so the net force must be zero. Ill never be able to move this load. Is
this a case of a little knowledge being dangerous? Explain.

WEIGHT--THE FORCE OF GRAVITY; AND THE NORMAL FORCE

!
!

Weight--The force of gravity originates at the center of the Earth.

Fg = Fw = mg always directed downward, toward the center
of the Earth.
2
g--9.8 m/s

The moons gravity is 1/6 that of the Earth since the moons mass is 1/6 that of the
Earths. Your weight on the moon is 1/6 that of your weight here on Earth--I find
this a pleasant thought!
So why dont we go crashing through the floor on to the poor souls below? The
force of the floor exerts force right back at ya due to its elasticity. This force is
the normal force and is NOT a case of action-reaction!

!
!

Normal force-- normal means z (usually thought of as z to the motion!). FN

Since E F = 0 for an object at rest and g is acting downward this force often balances the force
of weight for a stationary object.

Rene McCormick, AP Strategies, Inc.

Forces

Example 4.5
A friend has given you a special gift, a box of mass 10.0 kg with a mystery surprise inside.
Its a reward for your fine showing on the physics final. The box is resting on a smooth
(frictionless) horizontal surface of a table.
a) Determine the weight of the box and the normal force acting on it.

b) Now your friend pushes down on the box with a force of 40.0 N. Again determine
the normal force acting on the box.

c) If your friend pulls upward on the box with a force of 40.0 N, what now is the
normal force on the box?

Notice that the normal force is elastic in origin! THATS WHY IS NOT AN ACTION-REACTION
PAIR WITH THE WEIGHT!

Example 4.6
What happens when a person pulls upward on the box in Example 4.5 c) with a
force equal to, or greater than, the boxs weight, say Fp = 100.0 N rather than the
40.0 N shown in figure 4-16 c)?

Rene McCormick, AP Strategies, Inc.

Forces

SOLVING PROBLEMS WITH NEWTONS LAWS:

VECTOR FORCES AND FREE-BODY DIAGRAMS
Net force = vector sum = E F and is % to acceleration of
an object

Example 4.7
Calculate the sum of the two forces acting on the boat shown in Fig. 4-19a.

Free-Body diagram:
Show all forces acting on EACH object involved
!
Point masses for now..... until we start rotating stuff!
!
Example 4.8
A hockey puck is sliding at constant velocity across a flat
horizontal ice surface that is assumed to be frictionless.
Which of the sketches is the correct free-body diagram for
this puck? What would your answer be if the puck was
slowed down?

Rene McCormick, AP Strategies, Inc.

Forces

Example 4.9
Suppose a friend asks to examine the 10.0 kg box you were given earlier, hoping to guess whats inside.
You respond, Sure, pull the box over to you. She then pulls the box over by an attached
ribbon/string/cord/rope along the smooth surface of the table. The magnitude of the force exerted by the
person is 40.0 N and is exerted at a 30.0 angle with the table top. Calculate
a) the acceleration of the box.

b) the magnitude of the upward force, FN exerted by the table on the box. Assume that friction can be
neglected.

Tension--FT--when a flexible cord/rope/etc. pulls on an object it is said to be under tension.

These can only pull, NOT push since they are flexible pieces of matter!

Example 4.10
Two boxes are connected by a lightweight cord and are resting on a table. The boxes have masses of
12.0 kg and 10.0 kg. A horizontal force Fp of 40.0 N is applied by a person to the 10.0 kg box. Find
a) the acceleration of each box

Rene McCormick, AP Strategies, Inc.

Forces

b) the tension in the cord.

Example 4.11
Two masses suspended over a pulley by a cable is sometimes referred to as an
Atwoods machine. Consider the real-life application of an elevator (m1) and
its counterweight (m2). To minimize the work done by the motor to raise and
lower the elevator safely, m1 and m2 are similar in mass. We leave the motor
out of the system for this calculation, and assume the cables mass is negligible
and the pulley is frictionless and massless, which assures that the tension, FT, in
the cord has the same magnitude on both sides of the pulley. Let the mass of
the counterweight be m2 = 1,000 kg. Assume the mass of the empty elevator is
850 kg, and its mass when carrying 4 passengers is m1 = 1150 kg. For the latter
case (m1= 1150 kg), calculate
a) the acceleration of the elevator and

b) the tension in the cable.

Rene McCormick, AP Strategies, Inc.

Forces

Example 4.12
Muscleman is trying to lift a piano (slowly) up to a second-story apartment. He is using a rope looped
over two pulleys as shown. How much of the pianos 2000 N weight does he have to pull on the rope?

Example 4.13
Finding her car stuck in the mud, a bright graduate student of a good physics course ties a strong rope to
the back bumper of the car, and the other end to a tree. She pushes at the midpoint of the rope with her
maximum effort, which she estimates to be a force Fp . 300 N. The car just begins to budge with the
rope at an angle 2 which she estimates to be 5. With what force is the rope pulling on the car? Neglect
the mass of the rope.

Rene McCormick, AP Strategies, Inc.

Forces

APPLICATIONS INVOLVING FRICTION; INCLINES

Friction--exists between 2 solid surfaces because even the smoothest looking
surface is quite rough on a microscopic scale. When we try to slide an object
across another surface, these microscopic bumps impede motion. Additionally,
the atoms snuggle up next to one another and have interactions of an attractive
nature and can further impede motion.
kinetic friction--sliding friction; the friction that persists
even once the object is in motion. This force acts
opposite to the bodys velocity and is determined by the
nature of the two surfaces. The force of kinetic friction is
approximately proportional to the normal force. [the normal force is the force
that either object exerts on the other perpendicular to their common surface of
contact]

Ff % FN insert a proportionality constant and presto, an equals sign appears along with a constant!

Ff = :K FN

:K--the coefficient of kinetic friction; its value depends on the nature of the 2 surfaces; its an
approximation since polishing/ sanding, etc. alters the surfaces.

This is not a vector equation since the two vectors act z to one another. It is also an experimental
relationship NOT a fundamental law. The force of friction depends very little on surface area. It
doesnt matter whether you slide your book flat along the table or on its spine along the table--its
frictional force is essentially unaffected.
Rene McCormick, AP Strategies, Inc.
Forces

Static friction--force applied to get an object moving; it is always present between 2

stationary objects and increases when the force applied increases until the force
applied overpowers the static frictional force and the kinetic frictional force takes
over. At the point it begins to move you have applied the maximum force of static
friction

FMAX # :S FN

youve probably noticed its easier to keep an object moving

than get it to move!

Example 4.14
Our 10.0 kg mystery box rests on a horizontal floor. The coefficient of static friction is :s = 0.40 and the
coefficient of kinetic friction is :K = 0.30. Determine the force of friction, Ff, acting on the box if a
horizontal external applied force FA is exerted on it of magnitue [answer in 2 sig. figs for each part!]
a) 0 N

b) 10 N

c) 20 N

d) 38 N

e) 40 N

Rene McCormick, AP Strategies, Inc.

Forces

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Notice that BOTH the normal force and the

frictional forces are exerted by one surface ON
another.
FN is perpendicular to the contact surface
Ff is parallel to the contact surface and in the
opposite direction of the x velocity.

Example 4.15
Your little sister wants a ride on her sled. If you are on flat ground, will ou exert less force if you push
her or pull her? Assume the same angle 2 in each case.

Example 4.16
Two boxes are connected by a cord running over a pulley. The coefficient of kinetic friction between
box I and the table is 0.20. We ignore the mass of the cord and pulley and any fricion in the pulley,
which means we can assume that a force applied to one end of the cord will have the same magnitude at
the other end. We wish to find the acceleration, a, of the system, which will have the same magnitude
for both boxes assuming the cord doesnt stretch. As box II moves down, box I moves to the right.

Rene McCormick, AP Strategies, Inc.

Forces

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OBJECTS MOVING ON AN INCLINE

Easier to choose the xy coordinate system so that the x-axis is parallel to the
incline surface and the y-axis is therefore, perpendicular to the incline. This
helps because then a has only one component and if friction is present, two of the
forces will have only one component: Ff along the plane, opposite ot the objects
velocity, and FN which is NOT vertical but is perpendicular to the plane. A
picture will help!

FN = FW cos
Fapplied = FW sin = mg sin
Example 4.17
A skier has just begun descending a 30.0 slope. Assuming the coefficient of kinetic friction is 1.10,
a) draw the free body diagram

b) calculate her acceleration

c) calculate the speed she will reach after 4.0 seconds.

Example 4.18
Suppose the snow is slushy and the skier moves down the 30.0 slope at constant speed. Determine the
coefficient of friction, :K?

Rene McCormick, AP Strategies, Inc.

Forces

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