SECTION  3 SECTION 3

 Plan and Prepare

Objectives
Relate the motion of a freely
falling body to motion with
Falling Objects
Preview Vocabulary constant acceleration.

Calculate displacement,
Key Term
free fall
Visual Vocabulary  Have students think velocity, and time at various
about a pen and a piece of paper falling points in the motion of a freely
Free Fall
to the ground. Ask the students: Which falling object.
On August 2, 1971, a demonstration was conducted on the moon by
will hit the ground first? What if the astronaut David Scott. He simultaneously released a hammer and a
piece of paper is crumpled? The pen will feather from the same height above the moon’s surface. The hammer and
FIGURE 3.1 the feather both fell straight down and landed on the lunar surface at
hit the ground before the flat paper, but
exactly the same moment. Although the hammer is more massive than
the pen and crumpled paper should hit Free Fall in a Vacuum When
there is no air resistance, all objects the feather, both objects fell at the same rate. That is, they traveled the
at about the same time. Point out that fall with the same acceleration same displacement in the same amount of time.
air pushes up on things, slowing down regardless of their masses.
the rate at which they fall. Explain that if Freely falling bodies undergo constant acceleration.
the objects were “free to fall,” then they In Figure 3.1, a feather and an apple are released from rest in a vacuum
would fall at the same rate. Connect this chamber. The two objects fell at exactly the same rate, as indicated by the
horizontal alignment of the multiple images.
demonstration with the vocabulary term
The amount of time that passed between the first and second images
free fall. is equal to the amount of time that passed between the fifth and sixth
images. The picture, however, shows that the displacement in each
time interval did not remain constant. Therefore, the velocity was not

 Teach constant. The apple and the feather were accelerating.

Compare the displacement between the first and second images to
the displacement between the second and third images. As you can see,
within each time interval the displacement of the feather increased by the
TEACH FROM VISUALS same amount as the displacement of the apple. Because the time intervals
are the same, we know that the velocity of each object is increasing by the
FIGURE 3.1  Point out that the feather same amount in each time interval. In other words, the apple and the
feather are falling with the same constant acceleration.
and apple will fall at the same rate
If air resistance is disregarded, all objects dropped near the surface
regardless of the value of ag.
of a planet fall with the same constant acceleration. This acceleration
Ask  If the feather-and-apple is due to gravitational force, and the motion is referred to as free fall. The
acceleration due to gravity is denoted with the symbols ag (generally) or
experiment were performed on
g (on Earth’s surface). The magnitude of g is about 9.81 m/s2, or 32 ft/s2.
the moon, where free-fall acceleration Unless stated otherwise, this book will use the value 9.81 m/s2 for
is approximately one-sixth the value calculations. This acceleration is directed downward, toward the center
of free-fall acceleration on Earth, of Earth. In our usual choice of coordinates, the downward direction is
negative. Thus, the acceleration of objects in free fall near the surface of
how would the picture compare free fall the motion of a body when

©James A. Sugar/Black Star

only the force due to gravity is acting Earth is ag = −g = −9.81 m/s2. Because an object in free fall is acted on
with Figure 3.1? on the body only by gravity, ag is also known as free-fall acceleration.

Answer: The feather and apple would

still fall with equal accelerations (1/6 g);
because the acceleration is less, the
displacement in each time interval Differentiated
56 Chapter 2
Instruction
would be less.
Below Level
Students may get confused by the multiple
Untitled-190 56 5/11/2011 6:51:15 AM

ways that acceleration due to gravity is

represented. They can remember that the
symbol g means gravity at Earth’s surface by
remembering that ground and gravity both
start with the letter g.

56  Chapter 2
 Acceleration is constant during upward and FIGURE 3.2
downward motion.
Figure 3.2 is a strobe photograph of a ball thrown up into the air
Motion of a Tossed Ball At the very top
of its path, the ball’s velocity is zero, but the ball’s
Misconception Alert!
with an initial upward velocity of +10.5 m/s. The photo on the
acceleration is –9.81 m/s2 at every point—both when Be sure to emphasize that g is an
left shows the ball moving up from its release toward the top of it is moving up (a) and when it is moving down (b).
its path, and the photo on the right shows the ball falling back acceleration, specifically the acceleration
down. Everyday experience shows that when we throw an object (a) (b)
due to gravity near the surface of Earth.
up in the air, it will continue to move upward for some time, stop
momentarily at the peak, and then change direction and begin Also, make sure students realize that the
to fall. Because the object changes direction, it may seem that acceleration is the same regardless of the
the velocity and acceleration are both changing. Actually, height from which an object falls. Some
objects thrown into the air have a downward acceleration as
soon as they are released.
students do not realize that two objects
In the photograph on the left, the upward displacement of
dropped from different heights will
the ball between each successive image is smaller and smaller experience the same acceleration.
until the ball stops and finally begins to move with an increasing
downward velocity, as shown on the right. As soon as the ball is
released with an initial upward velocity of +10.5 m/s, it has an
acceleration of −9.81 m/s2. After 1.0 s (∆t = 1.0 s), the ball’s TEACH FROM VISUALS
velocity will change by −9.81 m/s to 0.69 m/s upward. After 2.0 s
(∆t = 2.0 s), the ball’s velocity will again change by −9.81 m/s, FIGURE 3.2 Because the ball’s accelera-
to −9.12 m/s. tion is constant, the ball’s speed is the
The graph in Figure 3.3 shows the velocity of the ball same going up as it is going down at any
plotted against time. As you can see, there is an instant when
the velocity of the ball is equal to 0 m/s. This happens at the
point in the ball’s path.
instant when the ball reaches the peak of its upward motion Ask If the initial velocity of the ball is
and is about to begin moving downward. Although the velocity
10.5 m/s when it is thrown from a height
(tc) ©Richard Megna/Fundamental Photographs, New York; (tr) ©Richard Megna/Fundamental Photographs, New York

is zero at the instant the ball reaches the peak, the acceleration is
equal to −9.81 m/s2 at every instant regardless of the magnitude of 1.5 m, what is the velocity of the ball
or direction of the velocity. It is important to note that the when it passes this point on the way
acceleration is −9.81 m/s2 even at the peak where the velocity
down?
is zero. The straight-line slope of the graph indicates that the
acceleration is constant at every moment. Answer: -10.5 m/s
Velocity versus Time of a Tossed Ball

12
10
8
FIGURE 3.3 6
4
Slope of a Velocity-Time Graph 2
0
Velocity (m/s)

On this velocity-time graph, the slope of the -2 0.50 1.00 1.50 2.00 2.50 3.00
line, which is equal to the ball’s acceleration, is -4
constant from the moment the ball is released -6
(t = 0.00 s) and throughout its motion. -8
-10
-12
-14
-16
-18
-20
Time (s)

Motion in One Dimension 57

Problem Solving TSI Graphics
HRW • Holt Physics
PH99PE-C02-003-006-A
ALTERNATIVE APPROACHES The second way to solve this problem is
PH_CNLESE586694_C02S3.indd 57
Explain to students that there are two ways conceptual. This approach requires no math.9/12/14 11:52 AM

to solve the Teach from Visuals problem. The path of the ball on the way down mirrors
The first way requires a two-part calculation. its path on the way up, so the speed of the
First students calculate the distance the ball ball is the same at every point in its upward
goes up, using the initial velocity (10.5 m/s) and and downward paths. Students should learn to
the final velocity (0 m/s at the top of the ball’s look for symmetries in a problem that might
path). Then students can calculate the distance simplify finding the solution.
and the velocity at the top of the path (0 m/s)
to find the final velocity (-10.5 m/s).

Motion in One Dimension 57

 Freely falling objects always have the same downward acceleration.
It may seem a little confusing to think of something that is moving
 Teach continued upward, like the ball in the example, as having a downward acceleration.
Thinking of this motion as motion with a positive velocity and a negative
acceleration may help. The downward acceleration is the same when an
Misconception Alert! object is moving up, when it is at rest at the top of its path, and when it is
moving down. The only things changing are the position and the
Many students find it very difficult to magnitude and direction of the velocity.
grasp the idea that an object can have a When an object is thrown up in the air, it has a positive velocity and
nonzero acceleration at the top of its a negative acceleration. From Figure 2.3, we see that this means the object
is slowing down as it rises in the air. From the example of the ball and
flight when the velocity in the y
from everyday experience, we know that this makes sense. The object
direction is zero. Point out that there is a continues to move upward but with a smaller and smaller speed. In the
change in the direction of the velocity photograph of the ball, this decrease in speed is shown by the smaller
and smaller displacements as the ball moves up to the top of its path.
at the instant the velocity is zero.
At the top of its path, the object’s velocity has decreased until it is
zero. Although it is impossible to see this because it happens so quickly,
the object is actually at rest at the instant it reaches its peak position.
QuickLab Even though the velocity is zero at this instant, the acceleration is
still –9.81 m/s2.
When the object begins moving down, it has a negative velocity and
Teacher’s Notes its acceleration is still negative. From Figure 2.3, we see that a negative
In order to reduce error caused by acceleration and a negative velocity indicate an object that is speeding
anticipating the drop, have students up. In fact, this is what happens when objects undergo free-fall accelera-
tion. Objects that are falling toward Earth move faster and faster as they
look at the end of the meterstick fall. In the photograph of the ball in Figure 3.2 (on the previous page), this
between their fingers. If time allows, increase in speed is shown by the greater and greater displacements
have each student test several times and between the images as the ball falls.

use the mean distance in the calculation Knowing the free-fall acceleration makes it easy to calculate the
velocity, time, and displacement of many different motions using the
of reaction time. equations for constantly accelerated motion. Because the acceleration is
Homework Options  The QuickLab on the same throughout the entire motion, you can analyze the motion of a
freely falling object during any time interval.
this page can easily be performed
outside of the physics lab room.
TIME INTERVAL OF FREE FALL

Your reaction time affects your so that the zero mark is between from the free-fall acceleration and
performance in all kinds of your fingers with the 1 cm mark the distance the meterstick has
activities—from sports to driving above it. fallen through your grasp.
to catching something that you You should not be touching the
drop. Your reaction time is the meterstick, and your catching
time interval between an event hand must be resting on a table. MATERIALS
and your response to it. Without warning you, your friend • meterstick or ruler
Determine your reaction time by should release the meterstick so SAFETY
having a friend hold a meterstick that it falls between your thumb Avoid eye injury; do not
vertically between the thumb and and your finger. Catch the meter- swing metersticks.
index finger of your open hand. stick as quickly as you can. You
The meterstick should be held can calculate your reaction time

Differentiated
58 Chapter 2
Instruction
Below Level can share their units and discuss when it might
Acceleration is the rate of change of another
Untitled-190 58 make more sense to use one measurement 5/11/2011 6:51:17 AM

measurement that is itself a rate of change. instead of another.

In order for students to better understand this
concept, have them come up with alternative
non-standard units for each of the major
quantities studied in this section. There are
many possible examples, such as miles for
position, inches per year for velocity, and miles
per hour per second for acceleration. Students

58  Chapter 2
 PREMIUM CONTENT

Falling Object Interactive Demo

Classroom Practice
HMDScience.com
Sample Problem F Jason hits a volleyball so that it moves
with an initial velocity of 6.0 m/s straight upward. If the volleyball
starts from 2.0 m above the floor, how long will it be in the air
Falling Object
before it strikes the floor? A ball is thrown straight up into the air
at an initial velocity of 25.0 m/s. Create a
ANALYZE Given: vi = + 6.0 m/s
table showing the ball’s position,
a = −g = −9.81 m/s2 velocity, and acceleration each second
∆y = −2.0 m for the first 5.00 s of its motion.
Unknown: ∆t = ? Answer:
Diagram: Place the origin at the starting point
of the ball (yi = 0 at ti = 0). t y v a
+ (s) (m) (m/s) (m/s2)
y
6.0 m/s
1.00 20.1 +15.2 -9.81
x 2.00 30.4 +5.4 -9.81
2.0 m
-
3.00 30.9 -4.4 -9.81
4.00 21.6 -14.2 -9.81
PLAN Choose an equation or situation:
Both ∆t and vf are unknown. Therefore, first solve for vf using the 5.00 2.50 -24.0 -9.81
equation that does not require time. Then the equation for vf that does
involve time can be used to solve for ∆t.

vf2 = vi2 + 2a∆y vf = vi + a∆t PROBLEM guide F

Rearrange the equations to isolate the unknown: Use this guide to assign problems.
Take the square root of the first equation to isolate vf . The second
equation must be rearranged to solve for ∆t. SE = Student Edition Textbook
vf - v i
vf = ± √�����
vi2 + 2a∆y ∆t = _ PW = Sample Problem Set I (online)
a
PB = Sample Problem Set II (online)
SOLVE Substitute the values into the equations and solve:
First find the velocity of the ball at the moment that it hits the floor.
Solving for:
vf = ± √�����
vi2 + 2a∆y = ± √��������������
(6.0 m/s)2 + 2(−9.81 m/s2)(−2.0 m) ∆t SE Sample, 1a, 2b, 3b;
Tips and Tricks
When you take the square
Ch. Rvw. 31, 32, 36a*,
root to find vf , select the vf = ± √��������
36 m2/s2 = 39 m2/s2 = ± √75
����
m2/s2 = -8.7 m/s 46a, 48b, 48c
negative answer because
the ball will be moving Next, use this value of vf in the second equation to solve for ∆t. PW 6, 8–9
toward the floor in the vf - vi -8.7 m/s - 6.0 m/s -14.7 m/s PB 8
negative direction.
∆t = _ a =
__ = __
-9.81 m/s2 -9.81 m/s2
∆v SE 1b, 2a, 3a; Ch. Rvw.
∆t = 1.50 s 36b*, 39, 40a, 46b,
47b*, 47c*
CHECK YOUR The solution, 1.50 s, is a reasonable amount of time for the ball to be in PW 1–5
WORK the air.
PB 7, 9–10
∆y SE 4; Ch. Rvw. 36c*, 37*,
40b, 48a
Continued
Problem Solving Motion in One Dimension 59 PW 7
PB Sample, 1–6
Deconstructing Problems coordinate system and all the relevant vectors
*Challenging Problem
ntitled-190 59
Remind students that they need to pick helps students to keep their positive and
5/11/2011 6:51:18 AM

the origin and coordinate axes for a problem. negative directions consistent.
In situations where an object is in free fall, it
is customary to pick up as the positive direction.
This means that upward motion has
a positive velocity and a positive displacement,
while downward motion has a negative velocity
and a negative displacement. Gravitational
acceleration points toward the ground, so it also
is negative. Drawing a diagram that includes the

Motion in One Dimension  59

 Falling Object (continued)

 Teach continued 1. A robot probe drops a camera off the rim of a 239 m high cliff on Mars, where the
free-fall acceleration is −3.7 m/s2.
Answers a. Find the velocity with which the camera hits the ground.
b. Find the time required for it to hit the ground.
Practice F
2. A flowerpot falls from a windowsill 25.0 m above the sidewalk.
1. a. -42 m/s
a. How fast is the flowerpot moving when it strikes the ground?
b. 11 s b. How much time does a passerby on the sidewalk below have to move out of the
2. a. 22.1 m/s way before the flowerpot hits the ground?
b. 2.25 s 3. A tennis ball is thrown vertically upward with an initial velocity of +8.0 m/s.

3. a. 8.0 m/s a. What will the ball’s speed be when it returns to its starting point?
b. How long will the ball take to reach its starting point?
b. 1.63 s
4. Calculate the displacement of the volleyball in Sample Problem F when the
4. 1.8 m volleyball’s final velocity is 1.1 m/s upward.

Why It Matters
Sky Diving
You may use this introduction to air
resistance and terminal velocity to
explain to students that objects in the
real world do not always follow idealized
Sky Diving
physical principles, such as the principle

W
hen these sky divers jump from an airplane,
that free-fall acceleration is the same for
they plummet toward the ground. If Earth
all objects near Earth’s surface. A feather had no atmosphere, the sky divers would
and a cannonball dropped from the accelerate with the free-fall acceleration, g, equal to
same height will not hit the ground at 9.81 m/s2. They would not slow down even after opening
their parachutes.
the same time because the feather
Fortunately, Earth does have an atmosphere, and

©Zefa Visual Media - Germany/Index Stock Imagery, Inc./Photolibrary

quickly reaches a terminal velocity, but
the acceleration of the sky divers does not remain
the cannonball does not. constant. Instead, because of air resistance, the
You may wish to return to this acceleration decreases as they fall. After a few
terminal velocity is typically about 55 m/s (123 mi/h).
seconds, the acceleration drops to zero and the speed
feature after students have studied air If the sky diver curls into a ball, the terminal velocity may
becomes constant. The constant speed an object
resistance as a force. Terminal velocity is reaches when falling through a resisting medium is
increase to close to 90 m/s (200 mi/h). When the sky
reached when the force of air resistance diver opens the parachute, air resistance increases, and
called terminal velocity.
the sky diver decelerates to a new, slower terminal
equals the force due to gravity (but acts The terminal velocity of an object depends on the velocity. For a sky diver with an open parachute, the
in the opposite direction). The balanced object’s mass, shape, and size. When a sky diver is terminal velocity is typically about 5 m/s (11 mi/h).
forces result in a constant velocity, in spread out horizontally to the ground, the sky diver’s

accordance with Newton’s first law of

motion.
Problem
60
Solving
Chapter 2

Take It Further
Ask students to solve one of the practice
Untitled-190 60 5/11/2011 6:51:20 AM

problems again, but this time by using a frame

of reference where down is the positive
direction. Have students compare their
answers with the standard reference frame
solution. As a class, discuss which frame of
reference was easier to use and why.

60  Chapter 2
 SECTION 3 FORMATIVE ASSESSMENT
Reviewing Main Ideas
1. A coin is tossed vertically upward. Assess and Reteach 
a. What happens to its velocity while it is in the air?
b. Does its acceleration increase, decrease, or remain constant while it is Assess Use the Formative Assessment
in the air?
on this page to evaluate student
2. A pebble is dropped down a well and hits the water 1.5 s later. Using the
equations for motion with constant acceleration, determine the distance mastery of the section.
from the edge of the well to the water’s surface.
Reteach For students who need
3. A ball is thrown vertically upward. What are its velocity and acceleration additional instruction, download the
when it reaches its maximum altitude? What is its acceleration just before
it hits the ground? Section Study Guide.
4. Two children are bouncing small rubber balls. One child simply drops a Response to Intervention To reassess
ball. At the same time, the second child throws a ball downward so that it students’ mastery, use the Section Quiz,
has an initial speed of 10 m/s. What is the acceleration of each ball while
in motion? available to print or to take directly
online at HMDScience.com.
Critical Thinking
5. A gymnast practices two dismounts from the high bar on the uneven
parallel bars. During one dismount, she swings up off the bar with an
initial upward velocity of +4.0 m/s. In the second, she releases from the
same height but with an initial downward velocity of −3.0 m/s. What
is her acceleration in each case? How does the first final velocity as the
gymnast reaches the ground differ from the second final velocity?

Interpreting Graphics
6. Figure 3.4 is a position-time graph of the motion of a basketball thrown
straight up. Use the graph to sketch the path of the basketball and to
sketch a velocity-time graph of the basketball’s motion.

FIGURE 3.4
Position-Time Graph of a Basketball

0.5
0.0 Time (s)
–0.5 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0 1.2 1.4
–1.0
–1.5
Position (m)

–2.0
–2.5
–3.0
–3.5
–4.0
–4.5
–5.0
–5.5

a. Is the velocityTSI
of Graphics
the basketball constant?
HRW • Holtof
b. Is the acceleration Physics
the basketball constant?
PH99PE-C02-003-015-A
c. What is the initial velocity of the basketball?

Motion in One Dimension 61

Answers to Section Assessment
1. a. The coin’s velocity decreases, becomes 5. The gymnast’s acceleration (-9.81 m/s2) velocity coordinates should roughly
y
zero at its maximum height, and then will be the same in each case. Her final correspond to __x in Figure 3.4 at each
increases in the negative direction until velocities will be determined by the point.
the coin hits the ground. equation vf2 = vi2 + 2a∆y. Because the a. no
b. The coin’s acceleration remains acceleration and displacement are the b. yes
constant. same, the final velocity is greater for the
c. about 3 m/s
2. 11 m larger initial velocity, +4.0 m/s.
3. At maximum altitude, v = 0 and 6. The ball goes up 0.5 m, returns to its
a = -9.81 m/s2; Just before the ball original position, and then falls another
hits the ground, a = -9.81 m/s2. 5.5 m. The time axis of students’ graphs
should follow that in Figure 3.4, and the
4. -9.81 m/s2 for each ball

Motion in One Dimension 61