MUNTINLUPA NATIONAL HIGH SCHOOL - MAIN (SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL - STEM)
GEN. PHYSICS-1 WEEK 6
FORCES, NEWTON’S 2nd & 3rd LAWS of MOTION, DOT or
SCALAR PRODUCT, WORK(Intro.)
LEARNING OUTCOMES
After completing this self-learning module, you (learner) are expected to...
❏ Apply Newton’s 2nd law and kinematics to obtain quantitative and qualitative
conclusions about the velocity and acceleration of one or more bodies, and the
contact and noncontact forces acting on one or more bodies; [STEM_GP12N-1e-36]
❏ Solve problems using Newton’s Laws of motion in contexts, such as, but not limited
to, ropes and pulleys, the design of mobile sculptures, transport of loads on conveyor
belts, force needed to move stalled vehicles, determination of safe driving speeds
on banked curved roads; [STEM_GP12N-1e-38]
❏ Calculate the dot or scalar product of vectors; [STEM_GP12WE-1f-40]
❏ Determine the work done by a force acting on a system. [STEM_GP12WE-1f-41]
PRE-TEST (For items #1 through #10, choose the correct letter of your answer.)1
1) Two forces act on a hockey puck. For which orientation of the forces will the puck acquire an
acceleration with the largest magnitude?
(a) (b) (c) (d)
2) A 15-N net force is applied for 6.0 s to a 12-kg box initially at rest. What is the speed of the box at
the end of the 6.0-s interval?
a) 1.8 m/s (b) 15 m/s (c) 3.0 m/s (d) 7.5 m/s
3) An object moves in the eastward direction at constant speed. A net force directed northward
acts on the object for 5.0 s. At the end of the 5.0-second period, the net force drops to zero
newtons. Which one of the following statements is necessarily true?
a) The object will be moving eastward when the force drops to zero newtons.
b) The final velocity of the object will be directed north of east.
c) The change in the velocity of the object will be directed north of west.
d) The direction of the object's acceleration depends on how fast the object was initially moving.
Questions 4 and 5 pertain to the situation described below:
A horse pulls a cart along a flat road. Consider the following four forces that arise in this situation.
(1) the force of the horse pulling on the cart (3) the force of the horse pushing on the road
(2) the force of the cart pulling on the horse (4) the force of the road pushing on the horse
4) Which two forces form an "action–reaction" pair that obeys Newton's third law??
a) 1 and 4 (b) 1 and 3 (c) 2 and 4 (d) 3 and 4
5) Suppose that the horse and cart have started from rest; and as time goes on, their speed
increases in the same direction. Which one of the following conclusions is correct concerning the
magnitudes of the forces mentioned above?
a) Force 1 exceeds force 2. (c) Force 2 exceeds force 4.
b) Force 2 is less than force 3. (d) Force 3 exceeds force 4.
1
“Physics, 6th Ed., Cutnell & Johnson”
Page 1 of 10 Gen. Physics – 1 WEEK #6 SCHOOL YEAR 2020 - 2021
MUNTINLUPA NATIONAL HIGH SCHOOL - MAIN (SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL - STEM)
6) A rock is suspended from a string and moves downward at constant speed. Which statement is
true concerning the tension in the string if air resistance is ignored?
a) The tension is zero newtons. (c) The tension is equal to the weight of the rock.
b) The tension points downward. (d) The tension is greater to the weight of the rock.
7) In a tug-of-war, each man on a 5-man team pulls with an average force of 500 N. What is the
tension in the center of the rope?
a) zero newtons (b) 500 N (c) 2500 N (d) 5000 N
8) In which of the following situations is zero net work done?
a) A box is pulled across a rough floor at constant velocity.
b) A projectile falls toward the surface of Earth.
c) A physics student stretches a spring.
d) A ball rolls down an inclined plane.
9) Work may be expressed using all of the following units except:
a) 𝑁 ∙ 𝑚 (b) joule (c) erg (d) watt
10) A concrete block is pulled 7.0 m across a frictionless surface by means
of a rope. The tension in the rope is 40 N; and the net work done on the
block is 247 J. What angle does the rope make with the horizontal?
a) 28° (b) 41° (c) 47° (d) 62°
KEY WORDS
action – reaction net force dot or scalar product joule
tension mass work equilibrium
Newton’s first law indicates that if no net force acts on an object, then the velocity of
the object remains unchanged. The second law deals with what happens when a net force
does act. Consider a hockey puck. When a player strikes a stationary puck, he causes the
velocity of the puck to change. In other words, he makes the puck accelerate. The cause of
the acceleration is the force that the hockey stick applies. As long as this force acts, the
velocity increases, and the puck accelerates. Now, suppose another strikes the puck and
applies twice as much force as the first player does. The greater force produces a greater
acceleration. In fact, if the friction between the puck and the ice is negligible, and if there is
no wind resistance, the acceleration of the puck is directly proportional to the force. Twice
the force produces twice the acceleration. Moreover, the acceleration is a vector quantity,
just as the force is, and points in the same direction as the force.
Often, several factors act on an object simultaneously. Friction and wind resistance,
for instance, do have some effect on a hockey puck. In such cases, it is the net force, or the
vector sum of all the forces acting, that is important. Mathematically, the net force is written
as Σ 𝐹⃗ , where the Greek capital letter Σ (sigma) denotes the vector sum. Newton’s second
law states that the acceleration is proportional to the net force acting on the object.
In Newton’s second law, the net force is only one of two factors that determine the
acceleration. The other is the inertia or mass of the object. After all, the same net force that
imparts an appreciable acceleration to a hockey puck (small mass) will impart very little
acceleration to a semitrailer truck (large mass). Newton’s second law states that for a given
net force, the magnitude of the acceleration is inversely proportional to the mass. Twice the
mass means one–half the acceleration, if the same net force acts on both objects. Thus, the
second law shows how the acceleration depends on both the net force and the mass, as
given in Equation 4.1.
2
“Physics, 9th Ed., Cutnell & Johnson”
Page 2 of 10 Gen. Physics – 1 WEEK #6 SCHOOL YEAR 2020 - 2021
MUNTINLUPA NATIONAL HIGH SCHOOL - MAIN (SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL - STEM)
Note that the net force in Equation 4.1 includes only the forces that the environment
exerts on the object or interest. Such forces are called external forces. In contrast, internal
forces are forces are forces that one part of an object exerts on another part of the object
and are not included in Equation 4.1.
According to Equation 4.1, the S.I. unit for force is the unit for mass (kg) times the unit
for acceleration (m/s2), or
The combination of 𝑘𝑔 ∙ 𝑚⁄𝑠 is called a newton (N) and is a derived SI unit, not a base unit;
1 𝑛𝑒𝑤𝑡𝑜𝑛 = 1 𝑁 = 1 𝑘𝑔 ∙ 𝑚⁄𝑠 .
In the CGS system, the procedure for establishing the unit of force is the same as with
SI units, except that mass is expressed in grams (g) and acceleration in cm/s2. The resulting
unit for force is the dyne; 1 𝑑𝑦𝑛𝑒 = 1 𝑔 ∙ 𝑐𝑚⁄𝑠
In the BE system, the unit of force is defined to be the pound (lb), * and the unit for
acceleration is ft/s2. With this procedure, Newton’s second law can then be used to obtain
the BE unit for mass:
𝑓𝑡
𝐵𝐸 𝑢𝑛𝑖𝑡 𝑓𝑜𝑟 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒 = 𝑙𝑏 = (𝑢𝑛𝑖𝑡 𝑓𝑜𝑟 𝑚𝑎𝑠𝑠)
𝑠
𝑙𝑏 ∙ 𝑠
𝑈𝑛𝑖𝑡 𝑓𝑜𝑟 𝑚𝑎𝑠𝑠 =
𝑓𝑡
The combination of 𝑙𝑏 ∙ 𝑠 ⁄𝑓𝑡 is the unit for mass in the BE system and is called the slug (sl);
1 𝑠𝑙𝑢𝑔 = 1 𝑠𝑙 = 1 𝑙𝑏 ∙ 𝑠 ⁄𝑓𝑡.
Table 4.1 summarizes the various units for mass, acceleration,
and force. Conversion factors between force units from different
systems are shown at the right for your perusal.
When using the second law to calculate the acceleration, it is necessary to determine
the net force that cats on the object. In his determination a free–body diagram helps
enormously. A free–body diagram is a diagram that represents the object and the forces
that acts on it. Only the forces that act on the object appear in a free–body diagram. Forces
that the object exerts on its environment are not included. Example 1 illustrates the use of a
free–body diagram.
Page 3 of 10 Gen. Physics – 1 WEEK #6 SCHOOL YEAR 2020 - 2021
MUNTINLUPA NATIONAL HIGH SCHOOL - MAIN (SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL - STEM)
When a football player throws a pass, the direction of the force he applies to the ball
is important. Both the force and the resulting acceleration of the ball are vector quantities,
as are all forces and accelerations. The directions of these vectors can be taken into
account in two dimensions by using x and y components. The net force Σ 𝐹⃗ in Newton’s
second law has components Σ𝐹 and Σ𝐹 , while the acceleration 𝑎⃗ has components 𝑎 and
𝑎 . Consequently, Newton’s second law, as expressed in Equation 4.1, can be written in an
equivalent form as two equations, one for the x components and one for the y components:
The components in Equation 4.2a and 4.2b are scalar components and will be either positive
or negative numbers, depending on whether they point along the positive or negative x or
y axis. The remainder of this section deals with examples that show how these equations are
used.
Page 4 of 10 Gen. Physics – 1 WEEK #6 SCHOOL YEAR 2020 - 2021
MUNTINLUPA NATIONAL HIGH SCHOOL - MAIN (SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL - STEM)
Imagine you are in a football game. You line up facing your opponent, the ball is
snapped, and the two of you crash together. No doubt, you feel a force. But think about …
Page 5 of 10 Gen. Physics – 1 WEEK #6 SCHOOL YEAR 2020 - 2021
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…your opponent. He too feels something, for a while he is applying a force to you, you are
applying a force to him. In other words, there isn’t just one force on the line of scrimmage;
there is a pair of forces. Newton was the first to realize that all forces occur in pairs and there
is no such thing as an isolated force, existing all by itself. His third law of motion deals with this
fundamental characteristic of forces.
The third law is often called the “action–reaction” law, because it is sometimes quoted as
follows: “For every action (force) there is an equal, but opposite, reaction.”
Newton’s three laws of motion make it clear that forces play a central role in
determining the motion of an object. In the next four sections some common forces will be
discussed: the gravitational force, the normal force, frictional forces (discussed, see Week#5
Module), and the tension force. In later chapters, we will encounter still others, such as
electric and magnetic forces. It is important to realize that Newton’s second law is always
valid, regardless of which of these forces may act on an object. One does not have a
different law for every type of common force. Thus, we need only to determine what forces
are acting on an object, add them together to form the net force, and then use Newton’s
second law to determine the object’s acceleration.
In nature, there are two general types of forces, fundamental and nonfundamental.
Fundamental forces are the ones that are truly unique, in the sense that all other forces can
be explained in terms of them. Only three fundamental forces have been discovered:
1. Gravitational force
2. Strong nuclear force
3. Electroweak force
Except for the gravitational force, all of the forces discussed in this chapter are
nonfundamental, because they are related to the electromagnetic force. They arise from
the interactions between the electrically charged particles that comprise atoms and
molecules. Our understanding of which forces are fundamental, however, is continually
evolving. Today, efforts continue that have the goal of further reducing the number of
fundamental forces.
Forces are often applied by means of cables or ropes that are used to pull an object.
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For instance, Figure 4.25a shows a force 𝑻⃗ being applied to
the right end of a rope attached to a box. Each particle in
the rope in turn applies a force to its neighbor. As a result,
the force is applied to the box, as part b of the drawing
shows.
In situations such as that in Figure 4.25, we say that the
force 𝑻⃗ is applied to the box because of the tension in the
rope, meaning that the tension and the force applied to the
box have the same magnitude. However, the word
“tension” is commonly used to mean the tendency of the
rope to be pulled apart. To see the relationship between
these two uses of the word “tension,” consider the left end
of the rope, which applies the force 𝑻⃗ to the box. In
accordance with Newton’s third law, the box applies a
reaction force to the rope. The reaction force has the
same magnitude as 𝑻⃗ but is oppositely directed. In other
words, a force − 𝑻⃗ acts on the left end of the rope. Thus, forces of equal magnitude act on
opposite ends of the rope, as in Figure 4.25c, and tend to pull apart.
In previous discussion, we have used the concept of a “massless” rope (𝑚 = 0 𝑘𝑔
without saying so. In reality, a massless rope does not exist, but it is useful as an idealization
when applying Newton’s second law. According to the second
law, a net force is required to accelerate an object that has
mass. In contrast, no net force is needed to accelerate a massless
rope, since Σ 𝑭⃗ = 𝑚𝑎⃗ and 𝑚 = 0 𝑘𝑔. Thus, when a force 𝑻⃗ is
applied to one end of a massless rope, none of the force is
needed to accelerate the rope. As a result, the force 𝑻⃗ is also
applied undiminished to the object attached at the other end,
as we assumed in Figure 4.25. * If the rope had mass, however,
some of the force 𝑻⃗ would have to be used to accelerate the
rope. The force applied to the box would then be less than 𝑻⃗,
and the tension would be different at different locations along
the rope. In this text we will assume that the rope connecting one
object to another is massless, unless stated otherwise.
The ability of a massless rope to transmit tension
undiminished from one end to the other is not affected
when the rope passes around objects such as the pulley
in Figure 4.26 (provided the pulley itself is massless and
frictionless).
In this context, the word “equilibrium” refers to a balanced state of mind, one that is
not changing wildly. In physics, the word “equilibrium” also refers to a lack of change, but in
the sense that the velocity of an object isn’t changing. If its velocity doesn’t change, an
object is not accelerating. Our definition of equilibrium, then, is as follows:
Since the acceleration is zero for an object in equilibrium, all of the acceleration
components are also zero. In two dimensions, this means that 𝑎 = 0 𝑚⁄𝑠 and 𝑎 = 0 𝑚⁄𝑠 .
Page 7 of 10 Gen. Physics – 1 WEEK #6 SCHOOL YEAR 2020 - 2021
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Substituting these values into the second law (Σ𝐹 = 𝑚𝑎 and Σ𝐹 = 𝑚𝑎 ) shows that the x
component and the y component of the net force must each be zero. In other words, the
forces acting on an object in equilibrium must balance. Thus, in two dimensions, the
equilibrium condition is expressed by two equations:
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Work is a familiar concept. For example, it takes work to push a stalled car. In fact,
more work is done when the pushing force is greater or when the displacement of the car is
greater. Force and displacement are, in fact, the two essential elements of work, as Figure
6.1 illustrates. The drawing shows a constant pushing force 𝑭⃗ that points in the same direction
as the resulting displacement 𝒔⃗. In such a case, the work W is defined as thew magnitude F
of the force times the magnitude s of the displacement: 𝑊 = 𝐹𝑠. The work done to push a
car is the same whether the car is moved north to south or east to west, provided that the
amount of force used and the distance moved are the same. Since work does not convey
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directional information, it is a scalar quantity. The equation
𝑊 = 𝐹𝑠 indicates that the unit
of work is the unit of force times
the unit of distance, or the
newton ∙ meter in SI units. One
newton ∙ meter is referred to as
a joule (J) (rhymes with “cool”),
in honor of James Joule (1818–
1889) and his research into the nature of work, energy, and heat. Table 6.1 summarizes the
units for work in several systems of measurement.
The definition of work as 𝑊 = 𝐹𝑠 does have one surprising feature: If the distance s is
zero, the work is zero, even if a force is applied. Pushing on an immovable object, such as a
brick wall, may tire your muscles, but there is no work done on the type we are discussing. In
physics, the idea of work is intimately tied up with the idea of motion. If the object does not
move, the force acting on the object does no work.
Often, the
force and
displacement do
not point in the
same direction.
For instance,
Figure 6.2a shows a suitcase–on–wheels being pulled to the right by a force that is applied
along the handle. The force is directed at an angle Θ relative to the displacement. In such a
case, only the component of the force along the displacement is used in defining work. As
Figure 6.2b shows, this component is 𝐹 cos 𝜃, and it appears in the general definition below:
When the force
points in the same
direction as the
displacement,
then Θ = 0°, and
Equation 6.1
reduces to 𝑊 = 𝐹𝑠. Example 6.1 is used to calculate work.
Find the work done by a 45.0-N force in pulling the suitcase in Figure 6.2a at an angle 𝜃 =
50.0° for a distance 𝑠 = 75.0 𝑚.
Reasoning The pulling force causes the suitcase to move a distance of 75.0 m and does
work. However, the force makes an angle of 50.0° with the displacement, and we must take
this angle into account by using the definition of work given by Equation 6.1.
Solution The work done by the 45.0-N force is…
𝑊 = (𝐹 cos 𝜃)𝑠 = [(45.0 𝑁) cos 50.0°](75.0 𝑚) = 2170 𝐽
The answer is expressed in newton ∙ meters or in joules (J)
Page 9 of 10 Gen. Physics – 1 WEEK #6 SCHOOL YEAR 2020 - 2021
MUNTINLUPA NATIONAL HIGH SCHOOL - MAIN (SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL - STEM)
PRACTICE EXERCISES (Show your table of data, complete solution, & answer,
following the rules of significant digits, for each of the problems below.)
1. An airplane has a mass of 3.1 x 104 kg and takes off under the influence of a constant net
force of 3.7 x 104 N. What is the net force that acts on the plane’s 78–kg pilot?
2. A person in a kayak starts paddling, and it accelerates from 0 to 0.60 m/s in a distance of
0.41 m. If the combined mass of the person and the kayak is 73 kg, what is the magnitude
of the net force acting on the kayak? [Kayak is a canoe of a type used
originally by the Inuit, made of a light frame with a watertight covering having
a small opening in the top to sit in.]
3. Only two forces act on an object (mass = 3.00 kg), as in the drawing-->
Find the magnitude and direction (relative to the x axis) of the
acceleration of the object.
4. A billiard ball strikes and rebounds from the cushion of a pool table
perpendicularly. The mass of the ball is 0.38 kg. The ball approaches the cushion with a
velocity of +2.1 m/s and rebounds with a velocity of –2.0 m/s. The ball remains in contact
with the cushion for a time of 3.3 x 10–3 s. What is the average net force (magnitude and
direction) exerted on the ball by the cushion?
5. Two skaters, a man and a woman, are standing on ice. Neglect any friction between the
skate blades and the ice. The mass of the man is 82 kg, and the mass of the woman is 48
kg. The woman pushes on the man with a force of 45 N due east. Determine the
acceleration (magnitude and direction) of (a) the man and (b) the
woman.
6. The helicopter in the drawing is moving horizontally to the right at a
constant velocity 𝒗⃗. The weight of the helicopter is 𝑊 = 53 800 𝑁. The
lift force 𝑳⃗ generated by the rotating blade makes an angle of 21.0°
with respect to the vertical. (a) What is the magnitude of the lift force
𝑳⃗? (b) Determine the magnitude of the air resistance 𝑹⃗ that opposes
the motion.
7. The steel I–beam in the drawing has a weight of 8.00 kN and is being
lifted at a constant velocity. What is the tension in each cable
attached to its ends? (Hint: kN = kilo–newton)
8. A person with a black belt in karate has a mass of 0.70 kg. Starting from
rest, this fist attains a velocity of 8.0 m/s in 0.15 s. What is the magnitude
of the average net force applied to the fist to achieve this level of
performance?
9. During a tug–of–war, team A pulls on team B by applying a force of 1100 N to the rope
between them. The rope remains parallel to the ground. How much work does team A
do if they pull team B toward them a distance of 2.0 m?
10. A 75.0–kg man is riding an escalator in a shopping mall. The escalator moves the man at
a constant velocity from ground level to the floor above, a vertical height of 4.60 m. What
is the work done on the man by (a) the gravitational force and (b) the escalator?
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**End of Week #6 Module proceed to Week #7 Module**
**(Unless otherwise noted, all information herein this module is from Physics, 9th Ed., Cutnell & Johnson)
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