s8pe-10302-ca 12/8/05 6:06 PM Page 79
KEY CONCEPT
Elastic forces resist
stretching and pressing.
CALIFORNIA
Content Standard
8.2.d Students know how
to identify separately the
two or more forces that
are acting on a single
static object, including
gravity, elastic forces due
to tension or compression
in matter, and friction.
VOCABULARY
elastic force p. 79
tension p. 80
compression p. 81
Objects resist changing shape.
VOCABULARY
Create a four square
diagram for elastic force
in your notebook.
MAZER PDF
BEFORE, you learned NOW, you will learn
• Forces act in pairs • About forces that stretch or
• Gravity is the attractive force press objects
masses exert on each other • How objects transfer a force
• Gravity is the force that keeps • How forces affect strings and
objects in orbit springs
EXPLORE Elastic Forces (8.2.d)
How does a force affect shape?
PROCEDURE MATERIALS
• sponge
1 Try to change the shape of the sponge by
• clay
applying different forces to it. For example,
try stretching, squeezing, or gently twisting
the sponge. For each force, describe the force
and record your observations about the shape
of the sponge.
2 Repeat step 1 using a lump of clay. Try to use the
same forces as you used on the sponge. Write down
your observations about the shape of the clay.
WHAT DO YOU THINK?
Compare your observations about the sponge
and the clay. Which observations were similar?
Which were different?
You have read how forces can affect an object’s motion. Forces can also
affect an object’s shape. For example, if you pull on a rubber band, the
rubber band stretches and becomes longer. You can change the shape
of a lump of clay by pulling it or by squeezing it.
When you apply a force to an object by pressing or stretching it, the
object resists changing shape. You know from Newton’s third law that as
you pull on a rubber band, the rubber band pulls back on you. Where
does the force from the rubber band come from? As you try to stretch
the particles in the rubber band apart, the forces between the particles
try to pull the rubber band back to its original position. The force in an
object that resists stretching or pressing is called the elastic force.
Chapter 3: Gravity, Elastic Forces, and Friction 79