Chapter 8 Momentum Flashcards

Vocabulary practice flashcards created from the Chapter 8 Momentum lecture notes.

Momentum

A measure of how hard it is to stop a moving object, calculated as mass multiplied by velocity ($\text{Momentum} = \text{Mass} \times \text{Velocity}$).

Impulse

A push or pull applied over time that causes a change in momentum, defined as force multiplied by time ($\text{Impulse} = \text{Force} \times \text{Time}$).

Elastic Collision

A collision in which objects bounce off each other without permanent deformation or heat generation, conserving total momentum and kinetic energy.

Inelastic Collision

A collision where objects stick together, deform, produce heat, or make noise, resulting in kinetic energy not being conserved.

Law of Conservation of Momentum

A fundamental physics law stating that in the absence of an external force, the total momentum of a system remains unchanged.

Impulse-Momentum Relationship

The physics principle establishing that the impulse applied to an object is equal to its resulting change in momentum ($\text{Impulse} = \Delta\text{Momentum}$).

Momentum Vector

A vector quantity containing both magnitude and direction, requiring directional rules (vector math) when adding multiple momentums.

Internal Force

A force exerted between objects within a defined system, such as the contact force between two colliding billiard balls inside a two-ball system.

External Force

A force originating outside a system that is necessary to alter the system's total net momentum.

Bouncing Impulse

The requirement of a larger impulse when an object bounces, because force is required to both bring the object to a stop and accelerate it in the opposite direction.

Impact Time and Force Relationship

The inverse relationship ($\text{Force} = \frac{\text{Impulse}}{\text{Time}}$) where extending impact time reduces the stopping force experienced during a collision.

Equal Reaction Impulses

The principle based on Newton's Third Law showing that two interacting objects (such as a launcher and projectile) exert equal and opposite impulses on each other.

Inelastic Combined Final Velocity Formula

The mathematical formula $v_f = \frac{m_1 \cdot v_1 + m_2 \cdot v_2}{m_1 + m_2}$ used to calculate the shared final velocity when two masses stick together after colliding.

Zero Momentum Condition

The state of any stationary object at rest ($v = 0\,\text{m/s}$), yielding a total momentum equal to zero ($\text{Momentum} = m \times 0 = 0$).

Big Fish Eats Little Fish Problem

A collision scenario where a $6\,\text{kg}$ fish at $2\,\text{m/s}$ eats a resting $2\,\text{kg}$ fish, moving together at $1.5\,\text{m/s}$ as a combined $8\,\text{kg}$ mass.