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Chapter 5
The Laws of Motion

At the end of this chapter, the students

will be able to:

Identify different forces and their properties.

Establish a connection between force and motion.
Identify action/reaction pairs of forces.
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What Causes Motion?

Force What is a force?

A force can be
either a contact
force...
A force is a push or a pull.
A force is a vector.

A force requires an agent.

… or a long-range force
A force acts on an object.

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Types of Forces
Normal Force
Weight
The normal force is the force
The agent for the weight exerted by a surface (the agent)
forces is the entire earth against an object that is
pulling on an object. pressing against the surface. It
is arising from the compression
𝐹 =𝑚𝐠 of molecular bonds.

The symbol for normal force

is 𝐧

Types of Forces
Friction
Tension Force

It is a contact force
due to a rope or string. Friction, like
the normal
force, is
exerted by a
surface.
It is always in the
direction of the rope or the
string

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Check Your Understanding

A bobsledder pushes her sled across horizontal
snow to get it going, then jumps in. After
she jumps in, the sled gradually slows to a
halt. What forces act on the sled just after
she’s jumped in?

A. Gravity and kinetic friction.

B. Gravity and a normal force.
C. Gravity, a normal force, and
friction.
D. Gravity, a normal force, kinetic
friction, and the force of the push.

Check Your Understanding

If you are standing on the floor, motionless, what are

the forces that act on you?

A. Weight force.
B. Weight force and normal force.
C. Normal force and friction force.
D. Weight force and tension force.

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Newton’s First Law

If you are not wearing a seat belt and the car you are
driving hits a fixed barrier, you will hit the steering wheel
with some force. This is because:
A. The force of the collision has thrown you forward.
B. The steering wheel has been pushed back toward you.
C. You continue moving even after the car has stopped.

𝐅⃗ = 0 ⟹ 𝑎⃗ = 0 ⟹ 𝑣⃗ = constant

Newton’s Second Law

What does a force do for an object ?

A force causes an object to accelerate.

The acceleration 𝑎 is directly proportional to the force
𝐹 and inversely proportional to the mass 𝑚:
The direction of the acceleration is the same as the
direction of the force:

The SI unit of force is newton (N)

∑𝐅⃗
𝐚= 1N = 1kg m⁄s
𝑚 9

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Check Your Understanding

Q6: An object on a rope is lowered at constant speed.

Which is true?

A. The rope tension is greater than the

object’s weight.
B. The rope tension equals the object’s
weight.
C. The rope tension is less than the
object’s weight.
D. The rope tension can’t be compared
to the object’s weight.

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Newton’s Third Law

As the hammer hits the nail,
the nail pushes back on the
hammer.
The pair of forces shown in the
figure is called an
action/reaction pair.

They act on two different objects

They point in opposite directions and are equal in
magnitude

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Equilibrium
An object is in state of equilibrium if there is no
net force acts on it.

𝑭𝒏𝒆𝒕 = 𝟎
Object moving in a straight
Object at rest 𝒂=𝟎 line at a constant speed

Static Dynamic
Equilibrium Equilibrium

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Friction
𝑓 =𝜇 𝑛

µs is called the coefficient of static friction.

µk is called the coefficient of kinetic friction.

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Example

The system shown in Figure is in equilibrium. If the spring

scale is calibrated in newtons, what does it read?
(Neglect the masses of the pulleys and strings.

𝑇 = 50 N

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Example

A chair is placed on a rug. Then a book is placed on the

chair. The floor exerts a normal force

a. on all three.
b. only on the book.
c. only on the rug.
d. upwards on the rug and downwards on the chair.
e. only on the objects you have defined to be part of
the system.

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Example
A 5 kg object placed on a frictionless, horizontal table is connected to a
cable that passes over a pulley and then is fastened to a hanging 9 kg
object, as shown. Draw free-body diagrams of both objects. Find the
acceleration of the two objects and the tension in the string.
𝒏

∑𝐹 𝑻
𝑎=
𝑚
𝑚 g
𝑎=
m +m 𝑻
𝒎𝟏 g
9 10
𝑎= = 6.4 m/s
5+9

𝑇=𝑚 𝑎
𝑇 = 5 6.4 = 32 N 𝒎𝟐 g

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Example: The Atwood Machine

Determine the magnitude of the acceleration of the two objects and the tension in
the lightweight string

∑𝐹
𝑎=
𝑚
𝑚 g−𝑚 g
𝑎=
m +m
𝑚 −𝑚
𝑎= g
m +m

𝑇−𝑚 g=𝑚 𝑎
𝑇 =𝑚 g+𝑎
𝑚 −𝑚 2𝑚 𝑚 g
𝑇=𝑚 g+ g =
𝑚 +𝑚 𝑚 +𝑚

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Example
A 72 kg man stands on a spring scale in an elevator. Starting from rest, the
elevator ascends, attaining its maximum speed of 1.20 m/s in 0.8 s. It travels
with this constant speed for the next 5 s. The elevator then undergoes a
uniform acceleration in the negative y direction of 1.5 m/s and comes to
rest. What does the spring scale register
a) before the elevator starts to move?

𝑎=0
𝑛 − 𝑚g = 0
𝑛 = 𝑚g = 720 N
mg

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Example
A 72 kg man stands on a spring scale in an elevator. Starting from rest, the
elevator ascends, attaining its maximum speed of 1.20 m/s in 0.8 s. It travels
with this constant speed for the next 5 s. The elevator then undergoes a
uniform acceleration in the negative y direction of 1.5 m/s and comes to
rest. What does the spring scale register
b) during the first 0.800 s?

𝑣 = 𝑣 + 𝑎𝑡
1.2 = 0 + 𝑎 0.8
1.2
𝑎= = 1.5 m/s
0.8
mg
𝑛 − 𝑚g = 𝑚𝑎
𝑛 = 𝑚𝑎 + 𝑚g
𝑛 = 72 1.5 + 10 = 828 N

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Example
A 72 kg man stands on a spring scale in an elevator. Starting from rest, the
elevator ascends, attaining its maximum speed of 1.20 m/s in 0.8 s. It travels
with this constant speed for the next 5 s. The elevator then undergoes a
uniform acceleration in the negative y direction of 1.5 m/s and comes to
rest. What does the spring scale register
c) while the elevator is traveling at constant speed?

Constant speed
𝑎=0
𝑛 − 𝑚g = 0 mg
𝑛 = 𝑚g = 720 N

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Example
A 72 kg man stands on a spring scale in an elevator. Starting from rest, the
elevator ascends, attaining its maximum speed of 1.20 m/s in 0.8 s. It travels
with this constant speed for the next 5 s. The elevator then undergoes a
uniform acceleration in the negative y direction of 1.5 m/s and comes to
rest. What does the spring scale register
d) during the time it is slowing down?

𝑎 = −1.5 m/s

𝑛 − 𝑚g = 𝑚𝑎
𝑛 = 𝑚𝑎 + 𝑚g mg
𝑛 = 72 −1.5 + 10 = 612 N

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Example
A 3 kg block starts from rest at the top of a 37° incline and slides 2 m
down the incline in 2 s. Find
a) the magnitude of the acceleration of the block,
b) the friction force acting on the block,
c) the coefficient of kinetic friction between block and plane, and
d) the speed of the block after it has slid 2 m.

1
Δ𝑥 = 𝑣 𝑡 + 𝑎 𝑡
2
1
2 = 0 + 𝑎 (2)
2
𝑎 = 1 m/s

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Example
A 3 kg block starts from rest at the top of a 37° incline and slides 2 m
down the incline in 2 s. Find
a) the magnitude of the acceleration of the block,
b) the friction force acting on the block,
c) the coefficient of kinetic friction between block and plane, and
d) the speed of the block after it has slid 2 m.
𝑎 = 1 m/s, 𝑎 = 0

𝑚g sin 𝜃 − 𝑓 = 𝑚𝑎
𝑓 = 𝑚g sin 𝜃 − 𝑚𝑎
𝑓 = 3(10 sin 37 − 1)
𝑓 = 3 6 − 1 = 15 N

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Example
A 3 kg block starts from rest at the top of a 37° incline and slides 2 m
down the incline in 2 s. Find
a) the magnitude of the acceleration of the block,
b) the friction force acting on the block,
c) the coefficient of kinetic friction between block and plane, and
d) the speed of the block after it has slid 2 m.
𝑎 = 1 m/s, 𝑎 = 0, 𝑓 = 15 N
𝑓 =𝜇 𝑛
𝑛 − 𝑚g cos 𝜃 = 0
𝑛 = 𝑚g cos 𝜃
𝑛 = 3 10 0.8 = 24 N
𝑓 15
𝜇 = = = 0.625
𝑛 24

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Example
A 3 kg block starts from rest at the top of a 37° incline and slides 2 m
down the incline in 2 s. Find
a) the magnitude of the acceleration of the block,
b) the friction force acting on the block,
c) the coefficient of kinetic friction between block and plane, and
d) the speed of the block after it has slid 2 m.
𝑎 = 1 m/s, 𝑎 = 0, 𝑓 = 15 N, 𝜇 = 0.625
𝑣 =𝑣 +𝑎 𝑡
𝑣 = 0 + 1 2 = 2 m/s

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Example
A 2 kg block is pushed up an inclined plane with a constant
acceleration of 2 m/s . Find the resultant force acting on the block

𝐹 = 𝑚𝑎

𝐹 =2 2 =4N

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Example
If F = 5 N, what is the magnitude of the force exerted by block 2 on
block 1? Assume frictionless surface

25 − 𝐹 = 𝑚 + 𝑚 𝑎 For block 1
25 − 5 = 2 + 3 𝑎 25 − 𝑃 = 𝑚 𝑎
20 𝑃 = 25 − 𝑚 𝑎
𝑎= = 4 m/s 𝑃 = 25 − 2(4)
5
𝑃 = 17 N

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Example
A 40 N crate rests on a rough horizontal floor. A 12-N horizontal
force is then applied to it. If the coefficients of friction are 𝜇 = 0.5
and 𝜇 = 0.4, the magnitude of the frictional force on the crate is:

𝑓, =𝜇 𝑛
= 𝜇 𝑚g
= 0.5 40 = 20 N

No motion
𝑓 =𝐹 = 12 𝑁

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Example

A crate rests on a horizontal surface and a woman pulls on it with a

10 N force. No matter what the orientation of the force, the crate
does not move. Rank the situations shown below according to the
magnitude of the frictional force of the surface on the crate, least to
greatest.

𝑓 <𝑓 <𝑓

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Example

In the figure, if the tension in string 1 is 34 N and the

tension in string 2 is 24 N, what is the mass of the object
shown?

𝑇 cos 40 𝑇 cos 𝜃
𝑇 sin 40 = 𝑇 sin 𝜃
34 0.64 = 24 sin 𝜃
𝜃 = 65.5
𝑇 sin 40 𝑇 sin 𝜃

𝑇 cos 40 + 𝑇 cos 65.5 = 𝑀g

34 0.766 + 24(0.423)
𝑀= = 3.6 kg
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Example
The horizontal surface on which the objects slide is frictionless.
If M = 2.0 kg, the tension in string 1 is 12 N. Determine F.

𝑇 12
𝑇 = 3𝑀𝑎 𝑎= = = 2 m/s
3𝑀 3(2)

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Example
The horizontal surface on which the objects slide is frictionless.
If M = 2.0 kg, the tension in string 1 is 12 N. Determine F.

𝑇 12
𝑇 = 3𝑀𝑎 𝑎= = = 2 m/s
3𝑀 3(2)
𝐹 = 5𝑀𝑎 𝐹 = 5 2 2 = 20 N

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Example
An object of mass M is held in place by an applied force F and a pulley system as
shown in Figure. The pulleys are massless and frictionless.
a) Draw diagrams showing the forces on each pulley.
b) Find the tension in each section of rope.
c) Find the magnitude of F

𝑇 = 𝑀g 𝑇 =𝑇 𝑇 =𝑇
No rotation, no friction
2𝑇 = 𝑇 = 𝑀g
𝑀g
𝑇 =𝑇 =𝑇 =
2

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Example
An object of mass M is held in place by an applied force F and a pulley system as
shown in Figure. The pulleys are massless and frictionless.
a) Draw diagrams showing the forces on each pulley.
b) Find the tension in each section of rope.
c) Find the magnitude of F

3𝑀g
𝑇 =𝑇 +𝑇 +𝑇 =
2

𝑀g
𝐹=𝑇 =
2

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