Physics Concepts Related to Motion and Forces

Flashcards covering key physics concepts related to motion, forces, and laws that govern physical interactions.

Aristotle's Law of Inertia

A body not acted on by any force remains at absolute rest.

Galileo's Experiment

Demonstrated that objects of different mass fall at the same rate in a vacuum.

Force

A push or pull that has both strength and direction.

Inertia

The property of matter to resist changes in motion.

Newton's 1st Law of Motion

An object remains at rest or moves uniformly unless acted upon by a net external force.

Net Force

The vector sum of all forces acting on an object.

Equilibrium Rule

If all forces acting on an object balance, the net force is zero.

Support Force

The upward force exerted by a surface against the weight of an object resting on it.

Friction

A force that opposes the relative motion of two surfaces in contact.

Terminal Velocity

The constant speed that a freely falling object eventually reaches when the resistance of the medium prevents further acceleration.

Newton's 2nd Law of Motion

The acceleration of an object is directly proportional to the net force acting on it and inversely proportional to its mass.

Action-Reaction Pair

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

Vector Quantity

A quantity defined by both magnitude and direction.

Scalar Quantity

A quantity defined only by magnitude.

Weight

The gravitational force acting on an object, dependent on mass and acceleration due to gravity.

Air Resistance

The force that opposes the motion of an object through air.

Mass

The amount of matter in an object, which determines its inertia.

Acceleration due to Gravity

The acceleration of an object caused by the pull of the earth, approximately 9.8 m/s².

Friction Force Types

Static friction (when not sliding), sliding (kinetic) friction (when sliding).

Balanced Forces

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