General Physics I

Ch. 5: Applying Newton's Laws

Ahmed Yousef

Email: yousef@jbnu.ac.kr
Using Newton’s First Law:
Particles in Equilibrium

Newton's First Law of Motion: A body acted on by no net force has a constant
velocity (which may be zero) and zero acceleration.

෍ 𝐹Ԧ = 0, ෍ 𝐹𝑥 = 0, ෍ 𝐹𝑦 = 0

We learned that a body is in equilibrium when it is at rest or moving with constant

velocity in an inertial frame of reference.

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 Example:-
A gymnast with mass mG = 50.0 kg suspends herself from
the lower end of a hanging rope of negligible mass. The
upper end of the rope is attached to the gymnasium ceiling.

(a) What is the gymnast’s weight?

(b) What force (magnitude and direction) does the rope

exert on her?

(c) What is the tension at the top of the rope?

(d) Find the tension at each end of the rope if the weight
of the rope is 120 N.

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 Example:-
In the figure, a car engine with weight w hangs from a
chain that is linked at ring O to two other chains, one
fastened to the ceiling and the other to the wall.

Find expressions for the tension in each of the three

chains in terms of w.

The weights of the ring and chains are negligible

compared with the weight of the engine.

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 Example:-
A car of weight w rests on a slanted ramp
attached to a trailer. Only a cable running from
the trailer to the car prevents the car from rolling
off the ramp. (The car’s brakes are off and its
transmission is in neutral.)

Find the tension in the cable and the force that

the ramp exerts on the car’s tires.

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 Example:-
Your firm needs to haul granite blocks up a 15° slope out of a
quarry and lower dirt into the quarry to fill the holes. You
design a system in which a granite block on a cart with steel
wheels (weight w1, including both block and cart) is pulled
uphill on steel rails by a dirt-filled bucket (weight w2, including
both dirt and bucket) that descends vertically into the quarry.

How must the weights w1 and w2 be related for the system to

move with constant speed?

Ignore friction in the pulley and wheels, and ignore the weight
of the cable.

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Using Newton’s Second Law:
Dynamics of Particles
Newton’s second law of motion:

If a net external force acts on a body, the body accelerates. The direction of acceleration is the same as the direction
of the net force. The mass of the body times the acceleration vector of the body equals the net force vector.

෍ 𝐹Ԧ = 𝑚𝑎,
Ԧ ෍ 𝐹𝑥 = 𝑚𝑎𝑥 , ෍ 𝐹𝑦 = 𝑚𝑎𝑦

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 Example:-
An iceboat is at rest on a frictionless horizontal surface. Due to
the blowing wind, 4.0 s after the iceboat is released, it is
moving to the right at 6.0 m/s (about 22 km/h, or 13 mi/h).

What constant horizontal force FW does the wind exert on the

iceboat? The combined mass of the iceboat and rider is 200 kg.

Suppose a constant horizontal friction force with magnitude

100 N opposes the motion of the iceboat. In this case, what
constant force FW must the wind exert on the iceboat to cause
the same constant x-acceleration ax = 1.5 m/s2?
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 Example:-
An elevator and its load have a combined mass of 800 kg. The
elevator is initially moving downward at 10.0 m/s; it slows to a
stop with constant acceleration at a distance of 25.0 m. What
is the tension T in the supporting cable while the elevator is
being brought to rest?

A 50.0-kg woman stands on a bathroom scale while riding in

the elevator. What is the reading on the scale?

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Example:-
A toboggan loaded with students (total weight w) slides down a snow-covered hill that slopes at a
constant angle α. The toboggan is well-waxed, so there is virtually no friction. What is its
acceleration?

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 Example:-
You push a 1.00-kg food tray through the cafeteria
line with a constant 9.0-N force. The tray pushes a
0.50-kg milk carton. The tray and carton slide on a
horizontal surface so greasy that friction can be
ignored.

Find the acceleration of the tray and carton and the

horizontal force that the tray exerts on the carton.

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 Example:-
The figure shows an air-track glider with mass m1 moving
on a level, frictionless air track in the physics lab. The glider
is connected to a lab weight with mass m2 by a light,
flexible, non-stretching string that passes over a stationary,
frictionless pulley.

Find the acceleration of each body and the tension in the

string.

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