Forces, Movement & Changing Shape Flashcards

Flashcards covering Forces, Motion, and Shape Changes based on IGCSE Physics Edexcel lecture notes.

Force

A push or pull that arises from the interaction between objects.

Gravitational Force (Weight)

The gravitational force of attraction between all objects with mass.

Reaction Force

The force exerted by a surface on an object resting on it, acting at right angles to the surface.

Frictional Forces

Forces that always oppose the motion of an object, causing it to slow down.

Drag Force

A type of frictional force that occurs when an object moves through a fluid (a gas or a liquid).

Air Resistance

A specific type of drag force that occurs when particles of air collide with an object moving through it and slows its motion.

Thrust

A force produced by an engine that speeds up the motion of an object.

Upthrust

An upward-acting push force exerted on an object fully or partially submerged in a fluid.

Electrostatic Force

The force between two objects with charge; like charges repel, and opposite charges attract.

Magnetic Force

The force between objects with magnetic poles; like poles repel, and opposite poles attract.

Tension

Occurs in an object (like a rope or spring) that is stretched when a pull force is exerted on each end.

Scalars

Quantities that have magnitude but not direction.

Vectors

Quantities that have both magnitude and direction.

Distance

A measure of how far an object has traveled, regardless of direction.

Displacement

A measure of how far it is between two points in space, including the direction.

Speed

A measure of the distance traveled by an object per unit time, regardless of the direction.

Velocity

A measure of the displacement of an object per unit time, including the direction.

Resultant Force

A single force that describes all of the forces operating on a body.

Balanced Forces

When multiple forces acting on a single object cancel each other out, resulting in a net force of zero.

Unbalanced Forces

When multiple forces acting on a single object do not cancel each other out, resulting in a resultant force.

Weight

The force experienced by an object with mass when placed in a gravitational field.

Stopping Distance

The total distance traveled during the time it takes to stop in an emergency.

Thinking Distance

The distance traveled in the time it takes the driver to react to an emergency and prepare to stop.

Braking Distance

The distance traveled under the braking force.

Terminal Velocity

The fastest speed that an object can reach when falling.

Hooke's Law

The extension of an elastic object is directly proportional to the force applied, up to the limit of proportionality.

Elastic Behaviour

The ability of a material to recover its original shape after the forces causing the deformation have been removed.

Deformation

A change in the original shape of an object.

Elastic Deformation

When an object returns to its original shape after the deforming forces are removed.

Inelastic Deformation

When an object does not return to its original shape after the deforming forces are removed.