If you’re here, it’s either because you have been following the series, you need help on homework, or you just like science. Either way, today it’s time to introduce Newton’s Laws.
There are 3, but let’s take it one at a time. Sound good? Great!
Newton’s 1st Law, sometimes called the Law of Inertia, goes like this:
I mean, props to Newton I guess, but let’s be real…I think everyone kind of knows that, right?
Things don’t move unless something makes them move. I guess though that maybe it’s less common sense that everything will keep on going unless something actively stops it. Think about it.
If I throw a ball, it’ll eventually stop and hit the ground, but that’s because gravity, a force, is working against the motion of the ball.
The 1st Law is sometimes called the Law of Inertia.
Inertia is a property of matter! Basically, it’s the resistance to a change in position.
Stopping, slowing, whatever it might be. The more mass something has, the more force it’s going to take to move it. More force means there is more resistance. More resistance means more inertia!
The main piece to think about is this idea of balanced and unbalanced forces.
When all forces are balanced, it means that the net forces acting on an object equal zero.
When the net forces equal zero, we say the object is in equilibrium.
And that will be our topic for next time!
