Year 10 Physics - Intro to Motion and Newton's Laws

This set of flashcards covers the vocabulary and core concepts of high school introductory physics, including types of motion, speed and velocity calculations, acceleration, Newton's three laws, and the properties of force and mass.

Motion

A change in the position of an object over time, occurring when something moves from one place to another during a period of time.

Uniform Motion

Motion characterized by a constant speed in one direction, such as a car traveling down a straight road at the same speed.

Non-uniform Motion

Motion that involves a change in the speed or direction of an object, such as a car on a winding road.

Force

A push or pull between objects that changes the motion (speed, direction, or shape) of an object.

Newtons (N)

The unit of measurement for force.

Contact Forces

Forces that occur through physical touch between objects, such as friction.

Non-contact Forces

Forces that can act upon an object without physical contact, such as gravity.

Distance

The total length of the path an object travels.

Speed

The distance an object travels divided by the time it takes to travel that distance ($S = \frac{D}{t}$).

Displacement

How far an object has travelled from its initial starting point, accounting for direction.

Velocity

The change in displacement over a certain period of time ($V = \frac{\text{displacement}}{\text{time}}$), requiring both speed and direction.

Instantaneous Speed

The speed of an object at any specific point in time, which can be calculated by the slope of a graph at a particular point.

Distance-time Graph slope

On a distance-time graph, the steeper the slope, the higher the speed; a flat line indicates the object is stationary.

Acceleration

A measure of how quickly an object’s speed changes over time ($a = \frac{\text{Change in speed}}{\text{Change in time}}$), measured in $m/s^2$.

Deceleration

Acceleration in the opposite direction of motion, which causes an object to slow down.

Inertia

The tendency of an object to stay at rest or in motion unless acted on by an unbalanced force; it is related to the mass of the object.

Newton’s First Law

An object stays at rest or at the same speed unless an unbalanced force acts on it.

Newton’s Second Law

The law stating that force equals mass times acceleration ($F = m \times a$).

Newton’s Third Law

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

Mass

A measure of the amount of matter in an object, usually measured in grams or kilograms.

Weight

The force acting on a body’s mass due to gravity ($W = m \times g$), measured in Newtons ($N$).

Acceleration due to gravity ($g$)

The constant acceleration experienced by objects near Earth, valued at approximately $9.8\,m/s^2$.

Net Force

The sum of all forces acting on an object; calculated by adding forces in the same direction and subtracting forces in opposite directions.

Vector

A quantity that has both magnitude (size) and direction, such as force, velocity, and acceleration.

Normal Force

The force of the ground pushing up in opposition to gravity.