Some Newton's Law Questions: Understanding External Forces and Reactions

In summary, the conversation consisted of discussing external forces acting on a ball being held in a person's hand, as well as the forces acting on a dropped ball. The conclusion was that the action is the gravitational force, and the reaction is the force exerted on the ball by the person's hand. For the second question about a car traveling at a constant speed, the resultant force is zero, ignoring air resistance and friction. The conversation also included a question about what forces cause a rubber ball to bounce, and the answer was the downward gravitational force and the reaction force from the ground.
  • #1
AznBoi
471
0
I am having trouble with some of these questions:

1. A ball is held in a person's hand. a) Identify all the external forces acting on the ball and the reaction to each. b)If the ball is dropped, what force is exerted on it while it is failling? Identify the reaction force in this case. (Neglect air resistance)

My Work:
a) actions:
downward gravity force exerted onto the ball
upward normal force exterted by the hand on the ball

reactions:
upward gravity force exerted by the ball??
I think this is because the ball is on the hand while the gravitational force is acting upon it thereforce have an opposite upward gravitational force to make the net force zero?
downward force exerted by the ball onto the hand

b) If the ball is dropped, the only force exerted on it while falling would be the downward gravitational force. The reaction would be the upward gravitational force exerted by the ball on Earth. Why is this? If the force acting upon the ball while failling is the gravitational force, and there is no air friction, why would there be an upward gravitational force? Wouldn't the reaction be the acceleration of gravity(-9.8m/s^2)??
 
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  • #2
Also this one:

2. If a car is traveling westward with a constant speed of 20m/s, what is the resultant force acting on it??

Would the resultant forces be air resistance and road friction??
 
  • #3
AznBoi said:
I am having trouble with some of these questions:

1. A ball is held in a person's hand. a) Identify all the external forces acting on the ball and the reaction to each. b)If the ball is dropped, what force is exerted on it while it is failling? Identify the reaction force in this case. (Neglect air resistance)

My Work:
a) actions:
downward gravity force exerted onto the ball
upward normal force exterted by the hand on the ball

reactions:
upward gravity force exerted by the ball??
I think this is because the ball is on the hand while the gravitational force is acting upon it thereforce have an opposite upward gravitational force to make the net force zero?
downward force exerted by the ball onto the hand

b) If the ball is dropped, the only force exerted on it while falling would be the downward gravitational force. The reaction would be the upward gravitational force exerted by the ball on Earth. Why is this? If the force acting upon the ball while failling is the gravitational force, and there is no air friction, why would there be an upward gravitational force? Wouldn't the reaction be the acceleration of gravity(-9.8m/s^2)??

There is no such thing as an 'upward gravitational force'. The ball is falling, the gravitational force acting on the ball is constant, and it causes constant gravitational acceleration. It's as simple as that.

Regarding the first case, the action is the gravitational force, and the reaction is the force exerted on the ball by the person's hand.
 
  • #4
AznBoi said:
Also this one:

2. If a car is traveling westward with a constant speed of 20m/s, what is the resultant force acting on it??

Would the resultant forces be air resistance and road friction??

Read Newton's second law more carefully. Constant velocity implies that the resultant force equals zero, if you ignore air resistance, friction, etc.
 
  • #5
AznBoi said:
Also this one:

2. If a car is traveling westward with a constant speed of 20m/s, what is the resultant force acting on it??

Would the resultant forces be air resistance and road friction??
Friction between road and tires allows the propulsion system (motor, transmission, wheels/tires) to propel the car viz a viz traction.

Air resistance is a factor, by virtue of the car velocity. A mass traveling through a fluid, either gas or liquid, will loose momentum via collisions with the fluid molecules.

Gravity always pulls/acts downward, and friction opposes motion.

See -

http://hyperphysics.phy-astr.gsu.edu/hbase/newt.html#ntcon

http://hyperphysics.phy-astr.gsu.edu/hbase/N2st.html

http://hyperphysics.phy-astr.gsu.edu/hbase/traj.html
 
  • #6
for problem number 1, the reactions answers are:

a) an upward gravitational force exerted by the ball on Earth.

b) The reactions is an upward gravitatinal force exerted by the ball on Earth.


The upward gravitational force for a) is because the hand is supporting the downward gravitational force(or weight) of the ball right??

What about the reactions for b)?? How does it have an upward gravitational force? I don't get it.
 
  • #7
So for the resultant force acting on the car traveling at a constant speed would be air resistance and the ground friction?
 
  • #8
Another Problem that I'm not sure of:

A rubber call is dropped onto the floor. What forces causes the ball to bounce?

Are the forces that cause it to bounce the downward gravitational pull and the reaction of the drop which is when the ground hits the ball??
What is the correct way to say "the force that the ground exerts on the ball, or when the ground "hits" the ball, causing it to bounce??"
 
  • #9
AznBoi said:
Another Problem that I'm not sure of:

A rubber call is dropped onto the floor. What forces causes the ball to bounce?

You may want to look at: http://howthingswork.virginia.edu/bouncing_balls.html" .
 
Last edited by a moderator:
  • #10
thanks for the link, it really helped! :smile:
 

1. What are the three laws of motion proposed by Newton?

The three laws of motion proposed by Sir Isaac Newton are:
1. The Law of Inertia: An object at rest will remain at rest and an object in motion will continue in motion with a constant velocity unless acted upon by an external force.
2. The Law of Acceleration: The acceleration of an object is directly proportional to the net force acting on it and inversely proportional to its mass.
3. The Law of Action and Reaction: For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction.

2. What is the difference between mass and weight according to Newton's laws?

Mass is the amount of matter contained in an object and it remains constant regardless of the location, while weight is the measure of the gravitational force acting on an object and it varies with the location.

3. How are Newton's laws applied in everyday life?

Newton's laws are applied in everyday life in various ways, such as:
1. The law of inertia explains why objects tend to stay in motion unless a force acts on them, which is why we need seatbelts in cars to prevent us from flying out when the car suddenly stops.
2. The law of acceleration is used in sports, for example, when a sprinter starts running, they push against the ground with a force that propels them forward.
3. The law of action and reaction is applied in activities like swimming and flying, where a force is exerted in one direction to create a reaction in the opposite direction.

4. Can Newton's laws be applied at the atomic and subatomic level?

Yes, Newton's laws can be applied at the atomic and subatomic level, but they are not as accurate as they are at the macroscopic level. At the atomic and subatomic level, the laws of quantum mechanics and relativity are more applicable.

5. How did Newton's laws impact the field of physics?

Newton's laws revolutionized the field of physics and laid the foundation for classical mechanics. They provided a unified explanation for motion and forces and helped scientists understand the laws that govern the physical world. Newton's laws also led to the development of calculus, which is an essential tool in many areas of science and engineering.

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