LECTURE 9

NEWTON’S LAWS
4.5 Newton’s second law You should never slap anyone
4.6 Free-body diagrams because it hurts both of you.
4.7 Newton’s third law
Interacting objects
Reasoning with Newton’s third law
Runners and rockets
 Learning objectives
2

! Draw an accurate free-body diagram of an object.

! Connect between force and motion.

! Identify the direction of acceleration from the direction of net force, and
vice versa.
! Calculate one of the following given the other two: the acceleration of an
object or system, its mass and net force on it.
! Identify Newton’s 3rd law force pairs in a given situation.
 4.5 Newton’s second law
3

! Newton’s 2nd law states: the acceleration ! is directly proportional to

the net force "#$% and inversely proportional to the mass &.

*⃗+,-
(⃗ =
.

! This is a cause-and-effect equation. Non-zero net force causes

acceleration. Acceleration does not cause force.
 Quiz: 4.5-1
4

! The net force on a box is in the positive ! direction. Which of the

following statements best describe(s) the motion of the box? Choose
all that apply.
A. Its velocity must be in the +!-direction.
B. Its velocity can be perpendicular to the ! axis.
C. Its velocity can be in the −!-direction.
D. Its acceleration must be in the +!-direction.
E. Its acceleration can be perpendicular to the ! axis.
F. Its acceleration can be in the −!-direction.
 Quiz: 4.5-1 answer
5

A. Its velocity must be in the +"-direction.

B. Its velocity can be perpendicular to the " axis.
C. Its velocity can be in the −"-direction.
D. Its acceleration must be in the +"-direction.
E. Its acceleration can be perpendicular to the " axis.
F. Its acceleration can be in the −"-direction.
! The direction of net force is the same as the direction of acceleration:
%⃗&'( = *+⃗
! Newton’s 2nd law has nothing to do with the direction of velocity.
 4.6 Free-body diagrams
6

! A free-body diagram shows all the forces acting on an

object.
! Isolate the object or the system that you are interested in,
represent it by a dot, and draw all the force vectors exerted
on it.
! It is often useful to label forces to indicate the type of force,
the object on which the force is exerted, and the object
exerting the force. #&'
! ⃗ etc.
Types of force: tension (!), weight ("), normal (#), friction (%),
! Force labels: Typeby, on "('
 Quiz: 4.6-1
7

! Which of the free-body diagrams (without

labeling) represents the car going downhill
without acceleration?
 Quiz: 4.6-1 answer
8

! Which of the free-body diagrams (without labeling) represents the

car going downhill without acceleration?
! Since the acceleration is zero, the net force on the car is zero.
! The forces acting on the car are weight, normal force by the road
perpendicular to the road surface, and the friction force on the car
by the road parallel to the road surface.

'&#
%⃗&#

Steepest street in the world

!"#
C.
 Quiz: 4.6-2
9

! Which of the free-body diagrams (without labeling) represents a box, lifted

by a cable, moving upward and slowing?

A. B. C. D. E.
 Quiz: 4.6-2 answer
10

! Which of the free-body diagrams (without labeling) represents a box, lifted by a cable,
moving upward and slowing?
! The acceleration of the elevator is downward, so the net force is also downward.
! The tension in the cable must be smaller in magnitude than the magnitude of the weight.

!"#

$%#

A. B. C. D. E.
 4.7 Newton’s third law
11

! Newton’s third law states: in an interaction of A and B, If object A

exerts a force on object B, then object B exerts a force on object
A of equal magnitude and opposite in direction: "⃗#$ = −"⃗$#
! Forces always come in pairs; you cannot touch something without being
touched by it.
! This law is also called the law of action-reaction and often simplified
as to every action there is an equal and opposite reaction.”
! The forces of an action-reaction pair always act on different bodies;
thus they do not combine to give a net force and cannot cancel each
other.
 Quiz: 4.7-1
12

! Is the following statement true? The weight of a stationary horse on the

ground and the normal force exerted by the ground on the horse constitute
an interaction pair that are always equal and opposite according to
Newton's third law.
A. Yes
B. No
 Quiz: 4.7-1 answer
13

! No.
! The weight of the horse is a gravitational force on the horse by the earth due to the interaction
between the earth and the horse.
! The normal force in question is exerted by the ground on the horse due to the interaction
between the ground and the horse.
! The two forces in Newton’s 3rd law force pair must be of the same kind, because they are from
an interaction and between two objects: a force by 1 on 2 and a force by 2 on 1.
! Follow-up: What constitutes an interaction pair with the weight of the horse?
 Quiz: 4.7-1 answer
14

! No.
! The weight of the horse is a gravitational force on the horse by the earth due to the interaction
between the earth and the horse.
! The normal force in question is exerted by the ground on the horse due to the interaction
between the ground and the horse.
! The two forces in Newton’s 3rd law force pair must be of the same kind, because they are from
an interaction and between two objects: a force by 1 on 2 and a force by 2 on 1.
! Follow-up: What constitutes an interaction pair with the weight of the horse?
! The gravitational force by the horse on the earth
 Quiz: 4.7-2
15

! Suppose you somehow ended up on an icy lake with nothing but a

boot on. The surface of the ice is so slippery (frictionless) that you
cannot walk or crawl. You choose to throw the boot in order to get
yourself moving. What direction, with respect to the nearest shore,
should you throw your boot so that you will most quickly reach the
nearest shore?
A. Toward the shore
B. Away from the shore
C. Along the shore
 Quiz: 4.7-3
16

! Suppose you somehow ended up on an icy lake with nothing but a

boot on. The surface of the ice is so slippery (frictionless) that you
cannot walk or crawl. You choose to throw the boot in order to get
yourself moving. If you throw your boot with a constant force of
! = 420 N, what is the magnitude of the force in N that the boot
exerts on you?
 Quiz: 4.7-2 & 4.7-3 answers
17

! Away from the shore

! 420 N
! According to Newton’s 3rd law, if you exert a force on the boot away
from the shore, the boot exerts a force on you toward the shore with the
same magnitude. So, you will accelerate toward the shore.
! We can think of many examples where we push off the environment in
order to change our motion.
 Quiz: 4.7-3
18

! Suppose you somehow ended up on an icy lake with nothing but a

boot on. The surface of the ice is so slippery (frictionless) that you
cannot walk or crawl. You choose to throw the boot in order to get
yourself moving. If you throw your boot with a constant force of
420 N, and your mass is 55kg, what is the magnitude of your
acceleration in m/s2 towards the nearest shore while the boot is in
contact with your hand?
 Quiz: 4.7-3 answer
19

! Suppose you somehow ended up on an icy lake with nothing but a boot on.
The surface of the ice is so slippery (frictionless) that you cannot walk or
crawl. You choose to throw the boot in order to get yourself moving. If you
throw your boot with a constant force of 420 N, and your mass is 55kg,
what is the magnitude of your acceleration in m/s2 towards the nearest
shore while the boot is in contact with your hand?
$% '() *
! !" = = = 7.6 m⁄s (
& ++ ,-
! Since your hand is not in contact with the boot for very long time, your speed
after the throw is going to be pretty small.
 4.7 Runners and rockets / demos
20

! In order for you to walk, the static friction by the

floor on your has to point in the forward direction
to prevent your foot from slipping.
! The rocket pushes hot gases out the back, and this
results in a forward force (thrust) on the rocket.
! Demos: rockets