O-Level Physics – Force and
acceleration Notes
o Forces are linked to motion.
o The relationship between force and motion was
studied by Galileo Galilei and Isaac Newton.
o Isaac Newton summarized his findings in what are
now called Newtons’ Laws of motion.
o The laws establish the relationship between force and
motion.
o There are three laws of motion, namely:
i. Newtons first law of motion
ii. Newtons second law of motion
iii. Newtons third law of motion
Newtons first law of motion
o Objects rolling on the ground or floor tend to slow down
and eventually stop.
o Thus to keep it moving a force must be continually
applied.
o This led scientists initially to believe that a force was
necessary to keep a body moving.
o However, Galileo Galilei was the first to notice that when
the floor surface was polished more and more, less and
less force was needed to keep the object moving.
o It was then concluded that the objects slow down due to
a force now known as frictional force (or friction for
short).
o Frictional force acts between two objects that rub against
each other.
o Friction is greater if the surface is more rough.
o Friction always opposes the direction of travel of a body,
for instance, if a body is moving to the right then the
friction will be to the left and if the body is moving to the
left then friction will be to the right.
o More polished surfaces have lower friction and vice
versa.
o This led Galileo to postulate that if a surface was
polished to the point that frictional force was reduced to
zero, then no force would be necessary to keep it moving
at a constant speed.
o Isaac Newton later on reiterated this idea, summarizing
his findings in what is now called Newtons first law of
motion which states: A body will remain at rest or will
continue to move at constant speed in a straight line,
unless a resultant force acts on it.
o This is the reason why a child can slide over a longer
length on a polished floor than on one that is not
polished – there is little friction (resultant force) on a
polished surface so the child continues in a state of
constant speed in a straight line, albeit for a short while.
o There are no resistive forces in space, because space is
an empty void, therefore, when a ball is thrown for
instance, it continues moving at a constant speed in a
straight line indefinitely.
o Skiing on horizontal ground is a great example of a
situation in which Newtons fist law is at play.
o Skiers are able to travel long distance on snow because
the snow reduces friction and according to Newtons third
law they can then travel at constant speed in a straight
line.
Figure 1: Examples of Newtons first law of motion
Figure 2: Airboard reduces friction, and by Newtons first
law, allows user to travel at almost constant speed in a
straight line
Figure 3: Friction always opposes motion
o Since, by Newtons first law of motion, a body continues
in its state of rest or uniform motion unless acted on by a
resultant force, it means bodies have a natural tendency
to either remain at rest or in motion at constant speed in
a straight line.
o This tendency of a body to remain at rest or to continue
moving at constant speed in a straight line is called
inertia.
o For instance, passengers in a vehicle are thrown
forwards when it stops suddenly due to inertia.
o A car continues to move forward for a short while despite
the brakes being applied for some time, due to inertia of
the car.
o Inertia depends on mass.
o The greater the mass, the greater the inertia.
Experiment to demonstrate inertia
o The inertia of a body can be demonstrated by placing a
coin on a large rectangular wooden slab as shwon
below.
Figure 4: Experiment to demonstrating inertia
o If the card is flicked sharply the coin stays where it is
while the card flies off.
o The coin is more heavy (has a greater mass), so its
inertia is greater so it does not move when the card is
flicked.
Newtons second law of motion
o Newtons first law focuses on what happens to a body in
the absence of a resultant force, whereas, the second
law of motion focuses on what happens to a body in the
presence of a resultant force.
o It was noticed that when a resultant force is applied to a
body is increased its acceleration increases also.
o We say the acceleration is directly proportional to the
resultant force applied.
o This is summarized in Newtons second law of motion.
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o Since weight depends on g, and g varies from place to
place, so weight also varies from place to place.
o For instance, in space where g is zero, astronauts in
space have a weight of zero and so become weightless.
Figure 5: Differences between mass and weight
Mass Weight
Is constant Varies from place to place
Is not a force Is a force
Has no direction Directed downwards
Measured in kg Measured in N
Newtons third law of motion
o When a ball bounces against a wall it is pushed back in
the opposite direction.
o This implies that on impact with the wall, the wall exerts
a force on the ball pushing it back.
o Also the ball exerts a force on the wall when it strikes the
wall.
o The force of the ball on the wall, and the force of the wall
on the ball are equal but opposite.
o These forces are called action-reaction forces and they
always exist in pairs.
o Newtons third law summarizes the relationship between
these forces.
o Newtons third law states that: When one body exerts a
force on a another body, the other body will exert an
equal and opposite force on the first body.
o For instance, a boat moves backwards when you step
forwards. This is because the boat exerts a force on the
person pushing them forward, whereas, the person
exerts a force on the boat pushing it back.
o Books placed on a table exert a their weight on the table
and this is directed downwards.
o The table, in retun, exerts an equal and opposite force
on the books pushing them upwards.
o When a gun is fired, it exerts a force on the bullet
pushing it forward.
o The bullet exerts an equal on opposite force on the gun
pushing it backwards, an effect called ‘kick-back’ or
recoil.
o A swimmer pushes backwards in water or a surface
behind them and the water/surface exerts an equal and
opposite force that pushes them forward allowing them
to swim.
o A balloon pushing air out of it exerts a force on the air.
o The exiting air in return exerts an equal but opposite
force on the balloon pushing it forward.
o A rocket works in exactly the same way.
o In walking, the foot pushes backwards on the ground and
in return the ground exerts an equal but opposite force
on the foot pushing it forward, allowing the person to
walk forward.
