Newton's Laws of Motion

Inertia

ItwasGalileowhointroducedtheideathatany"materialbody"(a body withmass),whetherornotit

moves,tendstoresistachangeinitsmotion.Thisresistancetochangeinmotionisreferredtoas
inertia.Throughaseriesofcarefullythoughtoutexperiments,Galileocametotheconclusionsthata
bodyatresttendstoremainatrest,andthatonceabodyismoving,nothingatallisrequiredtokeepit
moving.

Galileo'sideaofinertiawasaclearphilosophicalbreakfromtheearlierAristoteliantradition,which
decreedthatsomeconstantlyappliedforcewouldbeneededtokeepanearthlybodymoving.Onthe
contrary,Galileosawforcessuchasfrictionandgravityasopposingthetendencyofamovingbodyto
persistinagivenstateofmotion.

Onlyundersomewhatcontrivedcircumstancesdoweseeanyeverydayexamplesofunrestrainedinertia
inmovingbodies.Abowlingballrollingdownaflat,hardsurfaceandahockeypuckslidingonanicerink
approximateGalileo'svisionofwhattheworldwouldbelikewithoutfrictionandgravity.Gravityis
certainlypresentintheseinstances;however,itcannotacttochangethemotionofabodythatremains
onaflatsurface.

Measurementsandcommonexperiencealikeshowthatthemoremassabodyhas,themoreinertia(or
resistancetochangeofmotion)ithas.Ifyoukickasoccerballandthenabowlingball,itisobvious
whichofthetwohasmoreresistancetochangeofmotion.Wedonotknowwhyinertiaexists.
However,wedoknowthatabody'sinertiaisproportionaltothequantityofmattercontainedinit.

In1642,thesameyearthatGalileodied,IsaacNewtonwasborn.Newton,whodevotedmuchofhislife
tocreativementalpursuits,paidcloseattentiontotheworkofhispredecessors,includingGalileo.
NewtoncarriedonwhereGalileohadleftoff,conceivinghisthreelawsofmotionandthelawof
gravitationwhileinhisearlytwenties.Together,thesefourlawsconstituteaunifiedtheoretical
frameworkdescribingmotionandgravitythroughouttheuniverse.

Newton'sFirstLaw

Newton'sfirstlawofmotion,whichisalsocalledthelawofinertia,isarephrasingofGalileo'sconcept
ofinertia.Usingtheterminologyintroducedearlier,weshallstateNewton'sfirstlawasfollows:Abody
remainsatrestorcontinuesinuniformmotionexceptwhencompelledtochangeitsmotionbyforces
actinguponit.

Inthefirstlaw,Newtondoesnotdescribewhattheseforcesareorhowtheyact;however,wealready
knowthattheyincludeagentssuchasfrictionandgravity.Thefirstlawalsocontainsanimportant
hiddenassumption.Itappliesonlytoaframeofreferencethatiseitheratrestormovingwithconstant
velocitynotaccelerating.Thus,thefirstlawdoesnotapplytohowabodymightmoveinsideatrain,
withrespecttothetrain,wheneverthetrainisincreasingordecreasingitsspeed,changingitsdirection
ofmotion,orboth.

Whataretheconsequencesofinertiaaccordingtothefirstlaw?Whenacarhitsabrickwall,anyfront
seatpassengernotwearingaseatbeltsimplycontinuesinuniformmotiontowardthedashboardand

frontwindow.(Hopefully,aninflatedairbagintercedesatthatpointtoslowthepassenger'smotion
gradually.)Similarly,whenacarwithbaldtiresroundingacurvehitsoilsoaked,oricecoated,flat
pavement,frictionbetweenthetiresandroadnearlydisappearsandthecarmovesuniformlynot
necessarilyinthedirectionthedriverwishes.

Moreabstractly,letusimaginethatinthemomentafterahomerunishit,allforcesonthemoving
baseballgravity,airresistance,andothersweretosuddenlydisappear:Thebaseballsailsoutofthe
ballparkinastraightlineandmaintainsaconstantspeedforever.(Tobetruthful,theideaofanything
sailingthroughouterspaceinperfectlyuniformmotionisunrealistic.BeyondEarthliethemoon,the
sun,otherplanets,andeverythingelseintheuniverse.Eachofthesebodiestugsonthebaseballwith
someverytinybutnonzeroforce.)

MomentumandForce

Greaterinertia(resistancetochangeinmotion)isassociatedwithbodiesofgreatermass.Similarly,itis
everyone'scommonexperiencethatgreaterweightisassociatedwithgreatermass.Fromall
experimentalevidencegatheredsofar,itappearsthatthesetwopropertiesofmassinertiaandweight
areexactlyproportionaltoeachotherwhenmeasuredinthesamegravitationalenvironment.

Whetherwethinkofabody'smassintermsofitsweightorintermsofitsinertia,massalone
insufficientlydescribesthepropertiesofabodyinmotion.Similarly,velocityalonedoesnotembodyall
thepropertiesamovingbodyhasatsomeinstant,eventhoughitdescribesperfectlywellwhereand
howthatbodyismovingthroughspace.Newtonmadeuseofbothconcepts,massandvelocity,inhis
explanationsofhowabodyrespondsinitsmotionwhenactedonbyaforce(anagentcapableof
changingabodysmotion).

Momentum

Whenwetakeintoaccountbothabody'smassanditsmotionatsomeinstant,wearereferringtowhat
iscalledmomentum,or"quantityofmotion."Abody'slinearmomentum(p),ormomentuminthe
directionitismoving,isdefinedasitsmassmultipliedbyitsvelocity: p=mv Equation1

Notethatpisavector;ithasbothamagnitudeandadirectionassociatedwithit.Thepandvvectors
foragivenbodyinmotionpointinthesamedirection.TheS1unitsforthemagnitudeofmomentum
arekg*m/s.

Forexample,aIkgmassmovingat1m/sspeedhasamomentumof1kg*m/s.A5kgmassmovingat
7m/shasamomentumof35kgm/s.

Sincevelocityisrelativeitcanbemeasuredwithrespecttoanyreferenceframesotoo,ismomentum
relative.Thepencilrestinginyourhandhaszeromomentumrelativetoyou,butithasarather
significant100kgm/sorsoofmomentumrelativetothesun(asaconsequenceofEarth'smotion
aroundthesun).

Theutilityoflinearmomentumbecomesapparentwhenyouconsiderhowitfeelstobebeanedonthe
headwithafastmovingPingPongballandasimilarlyfastmovinggolfball.Bothobjectsrebound
(changetheirvelocity)inaboutthesamemanner,whichmakesitclearthatvelocityalonedoesnotsay
muchabouteitherobject'squantityofmotion.Obviously,thegolfball'sgreatermass(andtherefore

greatermomentum)impartsafargreaterwallop.ThemomentaofvariousbodieslistedinTable5.2will
giveyousomeideaofthequantityofmotioncarriedbyvariousearthlyandcelestialbodies.

TypicalMassesandMomenta
Body
Mass(kg)
BodyinMotion
Momentum
(kg*m/s)
30
Sun
2x10
Sunaroundthegalaxy
5x1035
Earth
6x1024
Eartharoundthesun
2x1029
22
Moon
7x10
Moonaroundtheearth
7x1025
SpaceShuttle
3x104
Shuttleinlowspeedearthorbit
2x108
Car
1000
Caratlegalspeedlimit
3x104
Humanbeing
60
Humanatrecordsprint
600
Tennisball
.06
Tennisballafterhardserve
2
Spitball
.001
Spitballflungat5m/s
.005

Force

AccordingtoNewton'sfirstlaw,abodywillnotchangeitsmotionunlesscompelledtobyaforceor
forcesactinguponit.Butwhatisforce?Forceisthepushorthepullyoucanexertwithyourmuscles.
Forcesareresponsibleforholdingtogetherthetinyparticlesofasolid.Aforcecalledfrictionretards
objectsthataresliding,spinning,rolling,orinsomeotherwaymovingagainstorthroughsomething.
ForceisthedownwardpullofgravityandalsothegravitationalattractionbetweenEarthandother
celestialbodies.Generallyspeaking,forcesareagentsofchange.Allforces,andallchanges,are
traceabletothefourfundamentalforcesofnature:thestrong,weak,electromagnetic,andgravitational
forces.

Force(F)isavector,whichisintuitivelyobviousifyouconsiderhowyouareabletoexertpushesorpulls
invariousdirectionswithyourmuscles.Likeallvectors,forcesaddinawaythattakestheirdirection
intoaccount.Insomeinstances,twoormoreforcesactinguponabodymayproducenoapparent
changeonthebody.Ifyoutrytosqueezetogetherthecoversofthisbookwithyourhandsorkneesby
applyingequalforcesinoppositedirections,thenetforce(vectorsumoftheforces)onthebookiszero
andthebookgoesnowhere.Wesaythatthebookisinequilibrium,whichmeansthatitsmotion
remainsunchanged.Ifbothhandspushinthesamedirectiononthebook,thebookacceleratesandis
notinequilibrium.Anentirebranchofmechanicalengineeringcalledstaticsdealswithforcesin
equilibrium.Aforceorforcesactingonabodymightnotresultinanyobservablechange,butchangeis
alwaysthere.Ifyouleanagainstabrickwall,thewallflexesimperceptiblyandthemoleculesinsidethe
bricksundergoveryslightshiftsinposition.Thechangeisreversibleinthisinstance,becausethewall
willreturntoitsearlierstatewhenyoustopleaningonit.

Whendealingwithbodiescapableofsomechangeinmotion,weareconcernedwithforcescapableof
changingmotion.Theseforcesarecalledexternalforces,becausetheyactonabodyfromtheoutside.
Externalforcesareexemplifiedbypushingorpullingonacarfromtheoutsidetochangethecars
motion.Wewillnotbeconcernedherewiththeinternalforcesthatactfromwithinabody,suchasthe
electromagneticforcesthatbindtheatomsofasolidbody.Theseforcesdonotchangethemotionof
thebodyasawhole.Internalforcesareexemplifiedbypushingorpullingonthefrontseatofacarwhile

sittinginthebackseatinordertospeedituporslowitdown.Sucheffortsareasfruitlessastryingto
raiseyourselfbypullingupwardonyourclothing.

Newton'sSecondLawofMotion

Therateofchangeofabody'smomentumisequaltothenetexternalforceimpresseduponthebody;
thechangeofmomentumismadeinthesamedirectionastheappliedforce.

ForceandMomentum

Newton'ssecondlawofmotion,initsoriginalform,relatesforceandmomentum.Itdescribeshowan
externalforce,actingonanunrestrainedbody,changesthatbody'smomentum:Therateofchangeofa
body'smomentumisequaltothenetexternalforceimpresseduponthebody;thechangeof
momentumismadeinthesamedirectionastheappliednetforce.Inthelanguageofmathematics,

F=p/t
Equation2

TheexpressionF=p/tmeansthetimerateofchangeofmomentum.ThenetforcevectorFandthe
changeofmomentumvectorppointinthesamedirection.Thelargerthenetforceappliedtoabody,
thefasterthemomentumchanges.Conversely,thesmallertheforceapplied,themoreslowlythe
momentumchanges.Forintervalsoftimetthatarenotinfinitesimallysmall,Fisinterpretedtobethe
averagenetforceoverthetimeinterval.

Noticethatthesecondlawdoesnotsaythatforceisrelatedtoanyparticularvalueofmomentumbut
thatitcausesachangeofmomentum.Momentumitself(andvelocity,too)isrelative.Momentum(a
vector)mayincreaseordecreaseinmagnitudeasaresultofanappliedforce.Oritmayremainthe
sameinmagnitudeyetchangeindirection.Forexample,acar'smomentumincreaseswhenthecaris
acceleratingforwardanddecreaseswhenthecarisbraking.Whenthecarmakesaturnatconstant
speed(andconstantmomentummagnitude),thecar'smomentumchangesindirectiononly.

UsingEquation2,wecanworkouttheunitsforforce(intheSI).WedividetheSIunitsformomentum
(kgm/s)bytheSIunitfortime(s);theresultiskg*m/s2.Forsimplicity,thisungainlycollectionofmass,
length,andtimeunitsisgivenaname:newton(abbreviatedN),namedinhonorofIsaacNewton.One
newtonisnotmuchforce;itisroughlyequivalenttotheforce(weight)exertedbyasmallappleresting
inthepalmofyourhand.

Equation2tellsusthatastrongaverageforceappliedoverashorttimeintervalcanaccomplishthe
samechangeofmomentumasaweakaverageforceappliedoveralongertime.Forexample,consider
theforcerequiredtostopacarmovingattypicalhighwayspeeds.Withnormalbraking,ittakesabout
10stobringthecartoahalt.Ifthecarcrashesintoabrickwall,thesamethingisaccomplishedinabout
0.1s.Letusfindouthowmuchaverageforcemustbeappliedineachcaseifthecarhas(fromTable
5.2)aninitialmomentumof30,000kg*m/sandafinalmomentumofzero.Weareassumingnochange
ofdirection,soweareconcernedonlywiththescalarformofEquation5.5.Forthebrakingcar,

F=p/t
=(30,000kgm/s)/lOs=3000kg*m/s2
=3000N

Newton'sSecondLawofMotion

Therateofchangeofabody'smomentumisequaltothenetexternalforceimpresseduponthebody;
thechangeofmomentumismadeinthesamedirectionastheappliedforce.

Forthecrashingcar,
F=p/.t
=(30,000kgm/s)/O.ls=300,000kgm/s2
=300,000N

Themomentumchange(p)forthecaristhesame,buttheaverageforcesandthetimesaredifferent.
Thecrashingcarexperiencesaverylargeaverageforceappliedoverashorttime.Asistypicalin
collisions,themagnitudeofthatforcequicklyincreasestoamaximumandquicklydecreasesthereafter.
Thebrakingcarexperiencesanaverageforce100timessmaller,whichisappliedoveratimeinterval
100timeslonger.Thedriverofthebrakingcarcanchoosetoapplysteadybrakingforceortopumpthe
brakes,therebyapplyingintermittentbrakingforces.Eitherway,theaverageforceisthesameaslong
asthecarslowstoastopin10s.

ForceandAcceleration

Newton'ssecondlawasexpressedinEquation2isvalidoveranextremelybroadrangeof
circumstances.Wewillnowintroduceanalternative(butlimited)formofthelawthatismore
commonlyappliedtoeverydayphenomenainvolvingforceandmotion.
RecallfromEquation1thatp=mv.Withthisequationinmind,Equation2canbewrittenas

F=p/t=(mv)/t

If,moreover,wearedealingwithabodyofunchangingmassm,thenmomentumcanchangeonlyby
virtueofachangeofvelocityv.Withthatassumption,wecanthereforerewritetheaboveequationas
F=m(.v)/t

Since,fromtheformulaforacceleration,weknowthata=v/t,wecansubstituteaforv/t,and
rewritetheequationas

F=ma
Equation3

Equation3isNewton'ssecondlawofmotionasstatedintermsofthefamiliarconceptsofforce,mass,
andacceleration.BothFandaarevectors,andtheypointinthesamedirectionwhichmeanssimply
thatabodywillaccelerateinthedirectionofthenetforcethatactsuponit.Thesecondlawsaysthat
forabodyofconstantmass,thelargerthenetexternalforce,thelargertheacceleration

Whenanetforceisappliedtoabody,thebodyacceleratesinthesamedirectionasthatnetforce.
Noticewedidnotsaythatabody'svelocitymustbeparalleltotheforceapplied.Velocityandforce
vectorsareparallelonlyifthebodyisstationarytobeginwithoriftheforceisappliedinthesame
directionasthebody'svelocityvector.

TheequalsigninF=maisvalidifweuseconsistentunits,suchasthoseoftheSI:Nforforce,kgfor
mass,andm/s2foracceleration.Onenewtonofforcecanbethoughtofastheforcerequiredtogivea
1kgmassanaccelerationof1m/S2.Onenewtonofforceisequivalentto0.225poundofforce,or
roughly1/4pound,whichistheweightofasmallapple.

Newton'ssecondlawmeetswithdifficultywhenthespeedofthebody(relativetosomereference
frame)beingacceleratedisextremelyhigh.Asthebodyapproachesthespeedoflight,themassofthe
bodychangessignificantly,inaccordancewithEinstein'sspecialtheoryofrelativity.Changesof
momentum,however,remainproportionaltowhateverforceisappliednomatterwhatreferenceframe
ischosenformeasuringspeed.

Interaction

Inmanyelegant:way,thenaturalworldisfullofsymmetry.Visualsymmetry(thegeometricalsymmetry
thatwecanseewithoureyes)existsintheinternaldesignandoftenintheexternalshapeofcrystals.
Abstractsymmetry,suchasthewaythatpositiveandnegativeelectricalchargescanelectricallybalance
eachother,pervadestheworldsofthesmallandthelarge.

Newton'sThirdLawActionandReaction

Newton'sthirdlawisasimplestatementofsymmetry,whichisoftenparaphrasedas"foreveryaction,
thereisareaction."Explicitly,Newton'sthirdlawofmotionsays:Wheneveronebodyexertsaforceon
asecondbody,thesecondbodyexertsaforceofequalmagnitudeandoppositedirectiononthefirst
body.Thislawmeansthatforcesarereallyinteractions.Noforcethatisexertedonabodycanexistby
itself.Anyoneforcemustbeaccompaniedbyatwinforceexertedintheoppositedirection.

Youcannotexertaforceonsomethingwithoutthatsomethingexertinganoppositelydirectedforceon
you.Ifyoukickabrickwall,yourfootwillhurt.Theforceyouexertonthewallresultsinanequaland
oppositeforceexertedbythewallonyourfoot.Whenyoudriveanailwithahammer,theactionofthe
hammeronthenailismirroredbytheactionofthenailonthehammerinbringingthehammertorest.

Whenabatstrikesaball,theballmomentarilyacceleratesinonedirection,whilethebatmomentarily
acceleratesintheoppositedirection.Theaccelerationofthebatisfeltasrecoilduringthebriefmoment
ofcontact.Itisclearthatthetwoobjects,batandball,donothaveequalaccelerations.Why?Because
theirmassesareunequal.ByNewton'ssecondlaw,thesameforceexertedonbatandballshouldresult
inagreateraccelerationfortheball,becauseitsmassisless.Themovingbataccelerates(inthiscaseit
slowsdownwhileincontactwiththeball),butnotbyasmuch.

NotethateachapplicationofNewton'sthirdlawappliestoforcesthatactontwodifferentinteracting
bodies.Aswesawearlier,itispossiblefortwoormoreforcestoactonasinglebody.Twoequalbut
oppositeforcesactingonthesamebodyarenotanactionreactionpair.

Toclarifythisnotion,imagineabooklyingonatable.Therearetwoforcesactingonthisbook:the
downwardforceofgravityandtheupwardforcethetableexertsonthebookthatkeepsthebookfrom
falling.Becausethesetwoforcesareequalandopposite,thenetforceonthebookiszeroandthebook
doesnotaccelerate.Newton'sthirdlawdoesnotapplytotheseforces,becauseweareconsidering

forcesexertedononebodythebookalone.Thethirdlawappliestoequalandoppositeforcesontwo
bodiesthatareinteractingwitheachother.Herearetwoexamplesofactionreactionpairsforabook
restingonatable:(l)Thebookpressesdownonthetableandthetablepushesuponthebook.(2)
Earth'sentiremassattractsthebookwithadownwardforceofacertainmagnitude(whichiswhythe
bookwouldfallifthetablewerenotthere)and,inturn,thebookattractsEarthwithaforceofthesame
magnitude.

Whathappenswhenabookisreleasedfromanelevatedpositionandallowedtofall?Accordingto
Newton'sthirdlaw,therearetwoconsequences:ThebookacceleratesdownwardtowardEarthand,at
thesametime,Earthacceleratesupwardtomeetthebook.Thisreallydoeshappen!However,Earth's
accelerationisfartoosmalltobenoticedormeasuredbecauseEarth'smass(andthereforeitsinertia)is
solarge.

Thethirdlaw'ssignificanceisoftenoverlookedincommonexperience,thoughitseffectscanbenoticed.
Whenacannonisfiredandthecannonballacceleratesthroughthebarrel,thecannonreceivesanequal
andoppositepush,whichiswhyitjumpsback.Anymechanismthatthrowsaprojectileagunfiringa
bullet,atautbowreleasinganarrowexperiencessimilarrecoil.Whenyouwalk,yourfeetpushagainst
thegroundandthegroundinturnpushesagainstyourfeet.Theground'sreactionforceonyourfeet
propelsyouforward.

Ajetairplaneoperatesbyforcingairandexhaustgasesthroughitsengines,fronttoback.Asthe
exhaustispushedtowardtherearoftheplane,theplaneispushedforwardbytheexhaust.Spacefaring
rocketscarrypropellantsthatneednoinfluxofair(oroxygen)fromtheoutside,sothey,unlikejet
planes,canoperateperfectlywellabovetheatmosphere.Theexhaustgasesresultingfromthe
combustionofthepropellantsareacceleratedtoveryhighspeedsandexpelledfromrearnozzles.The
acceleratedgases,inturn,pushbackandacceleratetherocketanditspayload.Inordertoreceivea
forwardthrust,arocketneednotpushagainstanythingexceptwhatitexpels.

ConservationofMomentum

ConservationofLinearMomentum

Alltheexperimentsthathavebeenperformedonmovingbodies(onboththemicroscopicand
macroscopicscale)haveledphysiciststoconcludethatintheabsenceofanetexternalforce,thelinear
momentumofabody,orofasystemofbodies,isalwaysconserved.Thisstatementisknownas
conservationoflinearmomentum.Someexamplesofthislawfollow.

Whenbilliardballsrollshortdistancesoverasmooth,flatsurface,thereisverylittlefrictionandgravity
doesnotacttochangemotion.Ifwecouldeliminateallfriction,aballofgivenmasswouldmaintainthe
samelinearmomentum,p=mv,inaccordancewithboththelawofinertiaandthelawofconservation
ofmomentum.Letusassumetheseconditionsareinplace.Whathappenswhenonemovingbilliardball
AcollidesheadonwithastationaryballBofequalmass?ExperimentsshowthatballAsuddenlystops
oncontactandballBstartsmovingatthespeedballAhadjustbeforethecollision.Beforethecollision,
allthemomentuminthesystemofballAandballBresidedinthemotionofballA.Afterthecollision,
allthemomentumresidesinthemotionofballB.Whatremainsthesameinthissystembefore,during,
andafterthecollisionisthetotalmomentum;linearmomentumisconserved.

Ifamovinghockeypuckwithaverystickyrimcollideswithanidenticalbutstationaryhockeypuckona
flat,icysurface.Measurementsshowthatthetwopucks,whichsticktogetheraftercolliding,moveat
halfthespeedofthepuckthatwasmovingbeforethecollisiontookplace.Anaccountingofthetotal
momentum(mv)ofthetwopucksafterthecollisionshowsthatitequalsthemomentumcarriedbythe
onemovingpuckbeforethecollision.
Ifcollisionstakeplaceheadon,thereisnochangeofdirectionassociatedwiththemomentumvector.
Obliquecollisionswouldcertainlyintroducesomecomplications,butmeasurementswouldstillshow
thatthevectorsumofthemomentumbeforeandafterthecollisionisthesame.

ConservationofAngularMomentum

Thesimpleexamplesofstraightline(linear)motionwehaveintroducedthusfararerelativelyeasyto
analyze,buttheyarenotnecessarilytypicalofmuchofthemotiontakingplacearoundusandatevery
scale.Moleculesundergobothtranslational(pointtopoint)androtational(spin)motionastheymove
aboutchaoticallywithinabody.Evensubatomicparticlesofvanishinglysmallsizeareknowntobehave
asiftheyspin.Inthemacroscopicworld,movingfluidsfeaturevortices,rangingfromtheminiature
whirlpoolssetupinastirredcupofcoffeetothepowerfulcurrentsofmoistairwhirlingaboutina
tornado.Inthelargeruniverse,virtuallyallbodiesfrommoonsandplanetstogalaxiesrotateand
revolve.Thus,angularmotion,ormotionaroundapointoranaxis,isimportanttoconsiderifweareto
understandagreatmanyaspectsofouruniverse.

Experimentsshowthatsomeagentisneededtocauseabodytospinfasterortocauseabodytoslow
itsspin.Thisagent,whichisaforceappliedinsomemannersidewaystothebody'saxisofrotation,is
calledatorque.Whenyougraspasteeringwheelandapplyforcestoturnthewheel,youareapplying
torquestotheshaftthatrunsdownthesteeringcolumn.Torquecanbelooselythoughtofastheresult
ofaforcethattendstoproducerotation.
Ineverydaylife,spinningtoytopsandfreelyspinningbicyclewheelsexperiencefrictionaltorquesthat
slowtheirrateofspin.However,intheabsenceofanetexternaltorque,theangularmomentumofa
body,orofasystemofbodies,isalwaysconserved.Thetruthofthisstatement,whichisknownas
conservationofangularmomentum,hasbeendemonstratedinawidevarietyofexperiments.Since
angularmomentumisavector,itsdirectionaswellasitsmagnitudeisconserved.

Aspinningbicyclewheelwouldturnforever,therebymaintainingitsangularmomentum,ifitshubhad
frictionlessbearingsandifitwerespinninginavacuumwithnoairresistance.Earth,too,hasbeen
spinningonitsaxisforbillionsofyearsbyvirtueofitstendencytomaintainitsangularmomentum.
However,ithasalwaysbeensubjecttoweaktorquescausedbyitsgravitationalinteractionswiththe
sunandthemoon.Foroverfourbillionyears,thesetorqueshaveactedasabraketoslowourplanet's
rotationratefromaboutonceevery10htoonceevery24h.

Becausethedirectionassociatedwithabody'sangularmomentumtendstostayfixed,itisdifficultto
reorienttheaxisofaspinningbody,suchastheaxleofaspinningbicyclewheelorthespinningdisk
insideagyroscope.Atoytop'sangularmomentumkeepsitspinningandcontributestoitsstability;but
onceitsangularmomentumisdecreasedbyfriction,gravitypullsitover.

Gravitation

Newton'slawsofmotiondescribehowthingsmove(ordon'tmove,ascasemaybe)inresponseto
appliedforcesoralackofthem.Theydonot,however,addressthefundamentalnatureofanyforcein
particular.Wenowknowthatallforcesoperatinginthephysicalworldarederivedfromjustfour
fundamentalforcesorinteractions.Inthe16thand17thcenturies,onlyoneofthesefourgravitycould
bedescribedwithanydegreeofconfidence.Newtonshowedthatthesamegravitythateveryonewas
familiarwithonEarthextendsbeyondEarth.Whiledoingso,hededucedthemathematicalformulathat
quantitativelydescribeshowgravityworksnotjustforsomeparticularenvironment(suchasatEarth's
surface),butforallcircumstancesanywhereintheuniverse.Consequently,hisformulaissometimes
calledthelawofuniversalgravitation.

HowGravityAffectsMotion

Newtonbelieved,asGalileodidbeforehim,thatwhenairresistanceiseliminated(oratleastgreatly
minimized),allbodiesfallingtowardEarth'ssurfacehavethesameconstantacceleration.Accordingto
legend,Galileodramaticallydemonstratedthisinfrontofnumerouswitnesseswhenhedroppedvarious
denseobjectsofdifferentweightsfromthetopoftheLeaningToweratPisainItalyandshowedthat
theirtimesoffallwerevirtuallyidentical.Obviously,Galileowascleverenoughnottodropafeather
duringthesamedemonstration.Heknewthattheeffectofairresistanceonafeatherwouldnearly
overwhelmanytendencyofthefeathertofall.

Whenwerepeatthiskindofexperimenttoday,wefindthatoverrelativelysmalldistancesof,say,50m
orless,variousdensebodieshitthegroundatessentiallythesametime.Alowdensityobjectsuchasa
PingPongballorafeathertakeslongertofallinair,becauseairresistance(thefrictionalforceoftheair
movingupwardrelativetotheobject)increasesquicklyinintensityuntilitisequaltotheobject'sweight
(thedownwardgravitationalforceonit).Whenthetwoforces,airresistanceandweight,becomeequal
inmagnitude,thefallingobjectacceleratesnofurther.Wethensayithasreacheditsterminalspeed

Thereisnoairresistancewhenbodiesfallinavacuum(aspacewithnothinginit).Undervacuum
conditions,experimentsshowthatallfreefallingmassesaccelerateatexactlythesamerate.Thisrate,
whichiscalledtheaccelerationofgravityatEarth'ssurface(g),isapproximately9.8m/s2downward.
Forseveralreasons,gvariesslightlyatdifferentplacesonEarth'ssurface.Forsimplicity,weshall
assumefromnowonthatthemagnitudeoftheaccelerationofgravity(g)is10m/S2.Thisroundedoff
valuemakescalculationseasier,thoughwedosacrificealittleaccuracy.Rememberthatforthe
followingdiscussionweareassuminganegligibleairresistance.

WhatIsWeight?

Experimentsconfirmthatallbodies,regardlessofmassorweight,fallingsidebysideinavacuum
experiencethesameacceleration.Why?First,letusstateexplicitlywhatweightis:Theweightofabody
isthegravitationalforceexertedonit.

Sinceweightisaforce,itcanbecalculatedbymeansofNewton'ssecondlaw,F=ma.Whencalculating
theweightFgofagivenmassm,wesubstitutegfora,sincegistheaccelerationthatappliestomasses
thatareallowedtofallfreelynearEarth'ssurface.Themagnitudeoftheweight(Fg)isthen

Fg=mg
Equation4


Thedirectionoftheweightis,ofcourse,downward.Sinceweightisproportionaltomass,abodywith
(say)twicethemassofanotherhastwicetheweight.Italsohastwicetheinertia,orresistanceto
changeinmotion.Inotherwords,twiceasmuchgravitationalforceisavailabletoaccelerateanobject
thatistwiceashardtoacceleratebecauseofitsdoubledinertia.Theresultisthattheaccelerationisthe
same.Theinterplaybetweenthetwocharacteristicsofmassinertiaandweightexplainswhythe
variousobjectsGalileoreleasedfromthetopofthetowerarrivedonthegroundatthesametime.

Newton'sFormulationofGravity

ItissaidthatNewtonbeganthinkingintenselyaboutgravityafterwatchingaripeapplebreakfreefrom
abranchandacceleratetowardtheground.Newton'sthoughtswerecertainlynotrestrictedtothis
rathermundaneoccurrence.Galileohadalreadydemonstratedthatallmassivebodiesfallatthesame
constantaccelerationtowardEarth.Newton,however,envisionedthatthesame"gravity"thatattracts
anappletothegroundisresponsibleforkeepingthemooninitsorbitaroundEarthandforkeeping
Earthandtheotherplanetsintheirorbitsaroundthesun.
Puttingallthepiecestogether,Newtoncametothefollowingconclusion:Thereexistsanattractive
(gravitational)interactionbetweenanytwomaterialbodiesintheuniverse,andthemagnitudeofthe
forceoneachbodyisdirectlyproportionaltotheproductofthemassesofthebodiesandinversely
proportionaltothesquareofthedistancebetweentheircenters.

Today,Newton'slawofgravitationinsymbolicformlookslikethis:
Fg=Gm1m2/R2Equation5

Therearefourvariablesinthisequation:Fgistheattractiveforceofgravityoneachofthetwo
interactingbodies;mlandm2arethemassesofthesetwobodies;andRisthedistancebetweenthe
centersofthetwobodies.Thewordcenterasusedherereferstocenterofgravity,whichisthesameas
thegeometriccenterofasphericallysymmetricbodylikeaplanetorastar.ThesymbolG,calledthe
universalconstantofgravitation,isaconstantofproportionality.Itexpressestheinherentstrengthof
thegravitationalforce;thatis,ittellsushowstronggravitationalinteractionsareinageneralsense.In
SIunits,Ghastheexperimentallydeterminedvalue6.67X1011N*m2/kg2.Asfarasweknow,thevalue
oftheuniversalconstantGisthesameeverywhereandremainsconstantovertime.
Newton'slawofgravitationsaysthattheattractiveforceduetogravitybetweenanytwobodiesis
greaterwhenevereitherorbothofthemassesofthosebodiesisgreater,andwheneverthedistance
betweenthebodiesisless.Ofcourse,bodiesmayinteractbyforcesotherthangravity.Magnetscan
bothattractandrepeleachotherbyaforcethathasnothingtodowithgravity.
SinceRappearsinthedenominatoroftheexpressionontherightofEquation5,andbecauseRitselfis
squared,thegravitationalforcebetweenanytwobodiesdecreasesrapidlyasthedistancebetween
themincreases.