Physics - Newton's First Law of Motion

Vocabulary flashcards covering key concepts from Chapter 2 of Conceptual Physics related to Newton's First Law of Motion and associated principles.

Natural motion

The type of motion where every object seeks its proper place as determined by the four elements: earth, water, air, and fire.

Violent motion

Motion produced by external pushes or pulls on an object.

Inertia

A property of matter that resists changes in motion.

Net force

The combination of all forces acting on an object.

Vector quantity

A quantity that has both magnitude and direction.

Scalar quantity

A quantity that has magnitude but no direction.

Equilibrium

A state of no change with no net force acting on an object.

Support force (normal force)

An upward force on an object that opposes the force of gravity.

Static equilibrium

A condition where an object is at rest with no net force acting on it.

Dynamic equilibrium

A condition where an object is moving at a constant speed in a straight line.

Galileo

A scientist who challenged Aristotle’s ideas and introduced the concept of inertia.

Aristotle's classification of motion

Divided into natural and violent motion.

Inclined planes

Used by Galileo to demonstrate the concept of inertia.

Magnitude

The amount or size of a quantity.

Direction

The path along which something moves or points.

Resultant vector

The sum of two or more vectors.

Pythagorean Theorem

Used to find the resultant of two perpendicular vectors.

Friction

The force that opposes motion between two surfaces in contact.

Free fall

The motion of an object under the influence of gravitational force only.

Newton's First Law of Motion

An object remains at rest or in uniform motion unless acted upon by a net force.

Force

A push or pull that can cause an object to accelerate.

Weight

The force of gravity acting on an object's mass.

Tension force

A force transmitted through a string, rope, or wire when it is pulled tight.

Parallelogram rule

A method for finding the resultant vector of two vectors acting at an angle.

Acceleration

The rate of change of velocity of an object.

Weightlessness

The condition of having no net weight, often experienced in free fall.

Force due to gravity

The gravitational force acting on an object, directed towards the center of the Earth.

Equilibrium of moving things

A state where an object in motion continues to move at a constant speed in a straight line.

Acceleration of free fall

The acceleration experienced by an object due solely to gravity.

Air resistance

The opposing force on an object moving through the air.

Mass

The amount of matter in an object, which is a measure of its inertia.

Equilibrium Rule

The vector sum of forces acting on a nonaccelerating object equals zero.

Two-dimensional vector diagram

A graphical representation of vector quantities on a coordinate plane.

Newton’s Second Law

Describes the relationship between force, mass, and acceleration.

Newton's Third Law

For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction.

Acceleration due to gravity

The acceleration experienced by an object when falling freely towards the Earth.

Law of inertia

An object at rest will remain at rest unless acted on by an external force.

Direction of larger force

Determines the direction of net force when two forces are acting in opposite directions.

Example of static equilibrium

A book resting on a table.

Example of dynamic equilibrium

A hockey puck sliding on slippery ice at a constant speed.

Newton's First Law in everyday life

Demonstrated when a passenger in a vehicle lurches forward during a sudden stop.

Galileo's contribution to physics

Established the concept that objects of varying weights fall at the same rate in a vacuum.

Inertia and mass relationship

Inertia increases with an increase in mass.

Push down on a spring

The spring exerts an equal and opposite force pushing back up.

Vector sum

The resulting magnitude and direction when two or more vectors are combined.

Motion of a tossed coin

It behaves according to inertia and will land into your hand if tossed straight up from a moving vehicle.

Zero net force

Occurs when all forces acting on an object cancel each other out.

Force vector arrows

Visual tools to represent magnitude and direction of forces.

Component of a vector

A projection of a vector along an axis.

Example of violent motion

A ship being pushed by the wind.

Frictional force

The force that works against the motion of objects.

Earth's motion through space

Refuted by earlier thinkers, but supported by inertia and the concept of relative motion.

Equilibrium test

Determines if an object is undergoing a change in motion.

Bird swooping for a worm

Illustrates inertia as the bird continues to move along with the Earth's motion.