Pseudo forces on a person in a park-swing

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around the concept of pseudo forces in the context of a girl on a swing, specifically addressing the role of inertial forces and their implications in an accelerating frame of reference. Participants explore the dynamics involved when neglecting inertial forces and the resulting effects on tension in the swing's chain.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory
  • Technical explanation
  • Debate/contested

Main Points Raised

  • One participant questions how to include inertial forces in the analysis of the swing's motion and whether these forces are truly 'pseudo' in nature.
  • Another participant suggests that ignoring inertial forces simplifies the problem to only considering the weight of the girl at the lowest point of the swing.
  • A different viewpoint emphasizes that the only inertial force present is the reaction to the centripetal acceleration acting on the girl, which is perceived as centrifugal force in the swing's frame of reference.
  • Some participants clarify that inertial forces should not be considered as reaction forces in the context of Newton's third law, as they do not form action-reaction pairs.
  • One participant expresses confusion over the terminology used regarding inertial forces and their relationship to reaction forces from an inertial frame of reference.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants express differing views on the nature of inertial forces and their role in the analysis. There is no consensus on whether inertial forces should be classified as reaction forces, and the discussion remains unresolved regarding the implications of these forces in the context of the swing.

Contextual Notes

Participants note limitations in their analysis, such as the assumption of neglecting the mass of the swing and chain, and the implications of considering the swing at rest versus in motion.

marellasunny
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This is a very basic question,I also attempt to learn more from it.Some additional info would also be of great help.
A girl whose mass is 40kg is using a swing set.The diameter of the wire used for constructing the links of the chain is 5mm.Determine the average normal stress in the links at the bottom of the swing,assuming that the INERTIAL FORCES CAN BE NEGLECTED.

Q.The question is regarding the INERTIAL FORCES.I have drawn the resolution of forces diagram(attached and I am not sure it's correct).Here,where does one include the inertial/pseudo forces in this accelerating frame of reference?

Q.Is this inertial force- 'pseudo' in the sense that the sagging of the swing appears from a imaginative force taking the swing as the reference frame?

Hope the questions are clear.Please view the attachment diagram.
 

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Ignoring inertial forces in this problem means that tension is due to supported weight only. You basically solve this problem for swing at lowest point and v=0.
 
Ignoring the mass of the chain and the swing, the only inertial force would be equal to the reaction force of the girl's 40kg body to centripetal acceleration, which is exerted onto the swing. From the swings rotating frame of reference the inertial force is the apparent centrifugal force exerted on the girls body. The swing exerts a real and non-inertial force onto the girl to oppose both the inertial force (swing frame of reference, or reaction force if using an inertial frame of reference) and weight.

As K^2 mentioned, it appears that you're supposed to assume that the girl and the swing are at rest, and not moving, but that isn't a very interesting problem, since the only force opposed by the chain is due to the girl's weight.
 
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rcgldr said:
Ignoring the mass of the chain and the swing, the only inertial force would the reaction force
I find it very misleading to talk about inertial forces as reaction forces. Inertial forces are never part of a Newtons 3rd action-reaction pair.
rcgldr said:
of the girl's 40kg body to centripetal acceleration, which is exerted onto the swing.
There is no centripetal acceleration in the rest frame of the swing, where inertial forces appear. The swing and body are static here.
rcgldr said:
The swing exerts a real and non-inertial force onto the girl to oppose both the inertial force and weight.
This is correct. The real centripetal froce on the body by the swing is opposing the inertial centrifugal force on the body. But they are not an action-reaction pair. They both act on the same object (the body), unlike action-reaction force pairs which act on a different object each. The reaction force to the real centripetal force on the body by the swing is the real reactive centrifugal force on the swing by the body.
 
A.T. said:
I find it very misleading to talk about inertial forces as reaction forces.
My last edit to my post didn't take (the forum froze on me and I forgot to check my post later). I re-editted my previous post back to what I intended to post before, with some clarification. I only meant to state that the inertial force from the swing's frame of reference was equal to the reaction force from an inertial frame of reference.
 
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