The masses of four objects are given in the table below.
Object Mass (kg)
1 50 kg
2 100 kg
3 75 kg
4 20 kg
If all the objects have the same acceleration, which object will require the greatest force to move?
Newton's Second Law says that states that a force exerted on an object is equal to the mass of the object times its' acceleration. This law has a formula associated with it. See the formula in the magic triangle below.
The formula to calculate acceleration is the most often used. If you cover up the A in the magic triangle, you get A=F/M.
You can be asked to calculate force, and that formula is F=MXA.
Newton's 2nd Law is really easy to understand when you think about pushing something. Let's say you are pushing a shopping cart like the one on the left. As you load the cart, it gets harder to push because the mass has increased, like the one on the right. If you try to push your loaded cart through the grocery store at the same rate of acceleration, you will have to use more force to do it. Using the equation to calculate force, F=MXA, as the mass increases, you are multiplying your same rate of acceleration by a bigger mass. That means the force is increasing as the mass increases to accelerate the cart at the same rate.
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The masses of four objects are given in the table below.
Object Mass (kg)
1 50 kg
2 100 kg
3 75 kg
4 20 kg
If all the objects have the same acceleration, which object will require the greatest force to move?
1
2
4
3