Chapter 5 Applying Newton's Laws Flashcards

Vocabulary flashcards related to Chapter 5, Applying Newton's Laws.

Rolling Friction

The force that opposes motion when an object rolls over a surface.

Terminal Speed

The steady, unchanging speed at which drag exactly counterbalances an applied force.

Normal Force

The force exerted on an object by a surface, always directed perpendicular to the surface of contact.

Weight

The gravitational force exerted on an object by a planet.

Mass

A quantity that describes an object’s inertia, its tendency to resist being accelerated.

Static Friction

The force that a surface exerts on an object to keep it from slipping across the surface.

Kinetic Friction

The force that opposes motion between two surfaces in contact, with a nearly constant magnitude.

Static Equilibrium

An object at rest.

Dynamic Equilibrium

An object moving in a straight line at a constant speed.

Apparent Weight

The weight you feel due to contact forces supporting you.

Reynolds Number

A dimensionless number that is the ratio of inertial forces to viscous forces in a fluid.

Drag Force

Force exerted by a fluid that opposes the motion of an object through the fluid.

Weightlessness

The condition where a person in free fall has zero apparent weight.

Viscosity

Describes the internal friction within a fluid.

Tension

The force exerted by a rope or string on an object to which it is attached.

Newton's Third Law

Newton's law that states: Every force occurs as one member of an action/reaction pair of forces. The two members of the pair always act on different objects. The two members of an action/reaction pair point in opposite directions and are equal in magnitude.

Equilibrium

When the net force acting on an object is zero (static) or when the object is moving at a constant velocity (dynamic).

Maximum Static Friction

The maximum force of static friction that must be overcome before an object begins to move, proportional to the normal force and the static friction coefficient.

Inertia

The property of an object to resist changes in its state of motion, directly proportional to the object's mass.

Coefficient of Kinetic Friction

The constant of proportionality relating the kinetic friction force to the normal force; it's a dimensionless quantity indicative of the roughness of the surfaces in contact.

Coefficient of Static Friction

The constant of proportionality relating the maximum static friction force to the normal force; it's a dimensionless quantity indicative of the roughness of the surfaces in contact.

Drag Coefficient

A constant value that relates the drag force to the fluid density, object velocity, and cross-sectional area; it depends on the shape of the object.

Massless String Approximation

The approximation that the mass of a string or rope is negligible compared to the other masses in the system, simplifying force analysis.

Terminal Speed

The speed at which the drag force on an object falling through a fluid equals the gravitational force, resulting in zero net force and constant velocity.

Stokes' Law

The force that is exerted by a fluid on objects moving through it, in the case where the object is small and has low Reynolds' number.