Newton's Laws of Motion and Forces

These flashcards cover key concepts from Newton's laws of motion and types of forces.

Law of Inertia

An object at rest stays at rest, and an object in motion stays in motion at a constant speed and in a straight line, unless acted upon by an unbalanced force.

Law of Acceleration

The acceleration of an object depends on its mass and the amount of force applied; heavier objects require more force for the same acceleration.

Law of Action and Reaction

For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction, meaning forces come in pairs.

Contact Forces

Forces that require physical touch between objects.

Friction

A contact force that opposes motion between two surfaces.

Applied Force

A force exerted on an object by a person or another object.

Normal Force

The upward support force exerted by a surface against the weight of an object.

Non-Contact Forces

Forces that act over a distance without physical touch.

Gravity

A non-contact force that pulls objects toward the center of the Earth.

Momentum

The 'strength' of a moving object, calculated as mass multiplied by velocity.

Velocity

The speed of an object in a specific direction.

Acceleration

Any change in velocity, including speeding up, slowing down (deceleration), or changing direction.

Balanced Forces

Forces that are equal in size and opposite in direction, resulting in no change in motion.

Unbalanced Forces

Forces that are not equal, necessary to start, stop, or change the motion of an object.