Book about center of mass frame of reference and fictitious force

Join the discussion
Registration is free. Start your own thread to ask a follow-up.
2 replies · 2K views
songoku
Messages
2,521
Reaction score
395
Hello

I have learned about conservation of momentum, Newton's law (1st, 2nd, 3rd law + free body diagram), conservation of energy and finding center of mass of several 2 D and 3 D shapes (non - calculus method).

I watched youtube video about two objects connected by horizontal spring and in the content there is short content about position and acceleration of center of mass. I googled a bit and found out about center of mass frame of reference. Are there any physics book explain about center of mass frame of reference? I read through some websites but not finding complete explanation and how to apply the method to solve multiple type of questions.

And are there also any books about fictitious force? Never been taught about this, only read through websites but I still not understanding completely the significance of considering this force in free body diagram and applying to solve questions.

Thanks
 
Physics news on Phys.org
Hi,

Try to stay away from non-inertial frames of reference as much as posssible is my advice. That doesn't mean indefinitely, but if you can avoid it, do so.
Sometimes it is unavoidable (e.g. to understand coriolis forces at the surface of the rotating earth) and by the time they pop up you'd better be fluent in mechanics :smile:

In a free body diagram considering to work in the center-of mass frame is beneficial under circumstances, (e.g. no friction on a surface, free fall, and others). Often the center-of-mass frame can be considered inertial (namely when ?) and then there is no objection.

I don't know of any books that deal with such frames of reference as the main dish. Mostly it's brought in as a refinement, or under aforementioned circumstances. Which I think is better.

Nice one: which way does a helium balloon in a car move when the car makes a left turn ?
 
BvU said:
Hi,

Try to stay away from non-inertial frames of reference as much as posssible is my advice. That doesn't mean indefinitely, but if you can avoid it, do so.
Sometimes it is unavoidable (e.g. to understand coriolis forces at the surface of the rotating earth) and by the time they pop up you'd better be fluent in mechanics :smile:

In a free body diagram considering to work in the center-of mass frame is beneficial under circumstances, (e.g. no friction on a surface, free fall, and others). Often the center-of-mass frame can be considered inertial (namely when ?) and then there is no objection.

I don't know of any books that deal with such frames of reference as the main dish. Mostly it's brought in as a refinement, or under aforementioned circumstances. Which I think is better.

Nice one: which way does a helium balloon in a car move when the car makes a left turn ?
When a car makes a left turn, the air inside the car moves to the right. Helium is less dense than air so the balloon will move to right...Nah actually I do not know o:) I am just guessing. You asking this question probably means the answer will not be ordinary answer 😅