GOOD DAY,

S3 PUPILS!
IGCSE CO-ORDINATED SCIENCES
(PHYSICS)
 TODAY’S AGENDA:

01 Introduction:
All About Balance 02 Practical Activity 2.1:
Balancing Act

03 Sharing + Intro to
Lesson
01
INTRODUCTION:
ALL ABOUT BALANCE
General concept of balance
Think About This:

Everyone in the class must

have experience playing on a
seesaw.

Question:

Is it possible for two people to

balance on a seesaw? If yes,
how?
Think About This:

Answer: Yes!

And this is NOT just a mere

concept of balance. There’s an
underlying principle behind it.
Before discussion
this new topic,
let’s perform this
simple practical
activity first.
02
PRACTICAL
ACTIVITY 2.1:
BALANCING ACT
Instructions:
1. Go to your respective groups (groupings will be
shown on the next slide).
2. Each must have the following materials: metre
rule, 1-peso and 5-peso coins, marker and the
activity sheet.
3. Read and follow the instructions carefully.
4. You are given 15 minutes to do the activity proper.
5 minutes of sharing will follow afterwards.
Groupings:
Group S3A S3B

1 Kath,Riku, Amira,Jon,
Christian,Mikko Sophia,Ivana
2 Tavishi,Nam, Chris,Mika,
Danessa,Christabelle Jaden,Mikayla
3 Shawn,Maya, Leona,Seth,
Paavni,Jingyan Wak,PB
4 Henny,Daniel, Izzy,Elise,
Brent,Audrey Zoey, Paolo
 Let’s Share our
Observations:
Which of the following tasks showed balanced coins on
top of the metre rule?

For task C, what steps did you do to ensure that the coins
will balance each other?

What do you think are the conditions to satisfy so that

these coins stay balanced on top of the metre rule?
 The concept behind this
practical activity is the concept
of FORCES AND TURNING
EFFECTS.
● FORCES AND MOTION
○ Speed, velocity and acceleration
○ Speed-time and Distance-time Graphs
○ Newton’s Laws of Motion
○ Friction
○ Force, weight and gravity

● FORCES AND PRESSURE

○ Forces and turning effects
 1. Moment of
a
FORCES AND Force
PRESSURE:
2. The Princi
ple
Forces and
Turning Effects
of Moments

3. Centre of m
ass
03
DISCUSSION
OF CONCEPT
 So, what is the
moment of a force?
Moment of a Force

Let’s look at the spanner.

If you want to tighten a nut, it is

difficult to use just your fingers.

However, you can use a

spanner to effectively “turn” or
tighten the nut.

Why is that so?

Moment of a Force

Using a spanner produces a

larger TURNING EFFECT.

The turning effect is even

greater if you increase the
FORCE or use a LONGER
SPANNER.
Moment of a Force

As well as causing objects to

speed up, slow down, change
direction and deform, forces
can also cause objects to
ROTATE or TURN.

The turning effect of a force

about a pivot or point is a
MOMENT.
 Moment of a Force
Moment of a force is calculated using the simple equation below:

M=F×d
Where:
M = moment in newton metres (Nm)
F = force in newtons (N)
d = perpendicular distance of the force to the pivot in metres (m)
Moment of a Force
Below are some examples of forces and their moments.
Moments are described as clockwise or anticlockwise,
depending on their direction. (Moment of a force is also
called a torque)
How do we describe a
moment of a force?
The Principle of
Moments
The diagram shows a system of plank and loads.
How will you describe the system?
 The system is in EQUILIBRIUM.
What do you think is the reason why system is
balanced?
Objects in EQUILIBRIUM
To recall:

The term equilibrium means that an object keeps doing what it’s
doing, without any change

Therefore:

● If the object is moving it will continue to move (in a straight line).

● If it is stationary it will remain stationary.
● The object will also not start or stop turning.
The Principle of Moments states that:

A more simple restatement:

If an object is balanced, the total clockwise

moment about a pivot equals the total
anticlockwise moment about that pivot.
 What are the
conditions for an
object to be at an
equilibrium?
Two Conditions for Equilibrium

1. The forces on the object

must be balanced.

There must be no
resultant force.
Two Conditions for Equilibrium

2. The sum of clockwise

moments on the object
must equal the sum of
anticlockwise moments.
(PRINCIPLE OF MOMENTS)

There must be no
resultant moment or no
resultant turning effect.
Two Conditions for Equilibrium
When the forces and moments on an object are
balanced, the object will remain in equilibrium.

If the two mentioned conditions are met, then the object

will be in equilibrium.
Let’s work on some
calculations!
● Use the equation
● Describing the moment
of a force as clockwise
or anticlockwise
 Sample Problem #1

Jack and Jill played on the seesaw. Jack exerts 400

N of force on the plank and is positioned 1.5 m
about the pivot while Jill exerts 300 N and is
positioned 2 m about the pivot.

CALCULATE THE CLOCKWISE AND

ANTICLOCKWISE MOMENTS
 Sample Problem #1

Jack and Jill played on the seesaw. Jack exerts 400

N of force on the plank and is positioned 1.5 m
about the pivot while Jill exerts 300 N and is
positioned 2 m about the pivot.

CLOCKWISE MOMENT (Jill)

Formula:
moment of a force = force x perpendicular distance from the pivot
Given:
force = 300 N
distance = 2 m
Solution:
clockwise moment = 300 N x 2 m
= 600 Nm
Hence, Jill’s moment about the pivot is 600 Nm (clockwise)
 Sample Problem #1

Jack and Jill played on the seesaw. Jack exerts 400

N of force on the plank and is positioned 1.5 m
about the pivot while Jill exerts 300 N and is
positioned 2 m about the pivot.

ANTICLOCKWISE MOMENT (Jack)

Formula:
moment of a force = force x perpendicular distance from the pivot
Given:
force = 400 N
distance = 1.5 m
Solution:
anticlockwise moment = 400 N x 1.5 m
= 600 Nm
Hence, Jack’s moment about the pivot is 600 Nm (anticlockwise)
 Sample Problem #2

A parent and child are at opposite ends of a

playground see-saw. The parent weighs 690 N and
the child weighs 140 N. The adult sits 0.3 m from
the pivot.

Calculate the distance the child must sit from the

pivot for the see-saw to be balanced.
 Sample Problem #2

A parent and child are at opposite ends of a

playground see-saw. The parent weighs 690 N and
the child weighs 140 N. The adult sits 0.3 m from
the pivot.

To answer this problem, you have to remember the

conditions for equilibrium: no resultant force and no
resultant turning effect.
The principle of moments must be applied!

total clockwise moments = total anticlockwise

 Sample Problem #2

A parent and child are at opposite ends of a

playground see-saw. The parent weighs 690 N and
the child weighs 140 N. The adult sits 0.3 m from
the pivot.

Given:

Clockwise force (child), F(child) = 140 N

Anticlockwise force (adult), F(adult) = 690 N
Distance of adult from the pivot, d(adult) = 0.3 m
 Sample Problem #2

A parent and child are at opposite ends of a

playground see-saw. The parent weighs 690 N and
the child weighs 140 N. The adult sits 0.3 m from
the pivot.

1. Calculate the anticlockwise moment of the adult

about the pivot.

moment = 690 N x 0.3 m

= 207 Nm
 Sample Problem #2

A parent and child are at opposite ends of a

playground see-saw. The parent weighs 690 N and
the child weighs 140 N. The adult sits 0.3 m from
the pivot.

2. The anticlockwise moment is 207 Nm. Thus, the

clockwise moment must have the same
magnitude. We need to get the distance of the
child from the pivot, so:
distance = moment/force
= 207 Nm/140 N
= 1.48 m
 Sample Problem #2

A parent and child are at opposite ends of a

playground see-saw. The parent weighs 690 N and
the child weighs 140 N. The adult sits 0.3 m from
the pivot.

ANSWER: the distance of the child from the

pivot to balance the see-saw is 1.48 m.
Let’s Try This!
Let’s Try This:
Let’s Try This:

a. 16 Nm
b. 12 Nm
c. No, it will tip clockwise
 What are some
practical or daily
applications of
Moments?
Scissors
Can opener
Door
Steering wheel
Faucet
Bottle opener
Screw driver
Spanner