3.1 VECTOR AND SCALAR QUANTITIES
- Test your knowledge of vectors and scalars using this self-check quiz provided by The Physics Classroom.
- The Plane and the Wind This GIF animation from the Multimedia Physics Studios shows the resultant velocities of a plane flying into a headwind, a tailwind, and a crosswind. Also check out The River Boat for an animation showing the resultant velocities of a river boat.
3.2 VELOCITY VECTORS
Vectors: A Beginning Definition
- What are vectors and how do you use them? Find out in this interactive tutorial from the Zona Land physics and math education site.
- Vector Direction Practice Page Practice using scaled vector diagrams to represent the magnitude and direction of a vector by taking this self-check quiz from The Physics Classroom.
- Vectors: Fundamentals and Operations This chapter from The Physics Classroom provides a comprehensive introduction to the concept of vectors. Be sure to check out the following topics:
- Vectors and Direction
- Vector Addition
- Resultants
- Vector Resolution
3.3 COMPONENTS OF VECTORS
3.4 PROJECTILE MOTION
The Physics of Projectile Motion A soccer ball kicked into the air, a fork falling off a table, a spacecraft circling Earth--all these are examples of projectile motion. Explore this online tutorial to find out more about projectile motion. After you're done, test your knowledge by playing the game Water Balloons.
Projectile and Periodic Motion Analyze the projectile motion of a ball in flight in this lesson from the Learn Physics Today online tutorial.
The Monkey and Zookeeper You are the zookeeper at the Glenview Zoo. Use your knowledge of projectile motion to fire bananas to a monkey in a tree. These GIF animations are from the Multimedia Physics Studio.
4.1 ARISTOTLE ON MOTION
Physics Curious
about Aristotle's ideas of motion? Why not read the original work? Check out the
entire text of Aristotle's Physics from MIT's
Classics Archive. It was
written circa 350 B.C. and translated by R. P. Hardie and R. K. Gaye.
Researching Physicists and the History of Physics with the Internet Use this interactive list of Internet research techniques to find information about current and past physicists and the history of physics. This document must be viewed with Adobe® AcrobatTM Reader. Open the document, and click on the Bookmarks on the left to locate the six topics.
Introduction to Searching the Web
General Guidelines for Searches
4.2 COPERNICUS AND THE MOVING EARTH
Copernican Revolution Timeline This is a hyperlinked timeline of the
important events of the Copernican Revolution provided by the Astronomy
Department of Sonoma State University.
4.3 GALILEO ON MOTION
Galileo and Inertia Galileo asked why things move, not how they moved. This
led him to the concept of inertia. Learn more about inertia and Galileo's other
discoveries in this lesson from
Zona Land.
Galileo on Motion Set your time machine for the year 1600 and travel in back in time to converse with Galileo Galilei. For conversations with other famous physicists from the past, visit The Wizard's Lab.
Galileo's Biography Find a brief overview of Galileo's life and achievements at the Biographies site.
4.4 NEWTON'S LAW OF INERTIA
Newton's First Law of Motion According to Newton's first law, all objects
"keep on doing what they're doing." What does this statement mean? Find out by
reading this chapter from
The
Physics Classroom.
Newton's First Law in VRML This introduction to Newton's first law includes an interactive 3-D (VRML 2.0) demonstration and comes from the Zona Land physics and math education site.
Football Movie Use the law of inertia to describe what is happening in this football game. Watch this Quicktime movie (3363 k) from the Physics of Sports site at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
The Car and The Wall What happens to the unseatbelted driver of a sports car when the car crashes into a brick wall? Find out by viewing this GIF animation from the Multimedia Physics Studios. Also check out The Truck and The Ladder and The Motorcyclist for other animations illustrating Newton's law of inertia.
4.5 MASS--A MEASURE OF INERTIA
Inertia and Mass Mass is not volume. Mass is not weight. What is mass? This
lesson from
The
Physics Classroom will explain.
Inertia Read this article from Microsoft's Encarta Encylcopedia for a quick introduction to the concept of inertia.
4.6 NET FORCE
Net Force Problems The combination of all forces acting on an object is
called the net force. Check your understanding of the concept of net force in
this interactive lesson from
The
Physics Classroom.
4.7 EQUILIBRIUM--WHEN NET FORCE EQUALS ZERO
Balanced and Unbalanced Forces Check your understanding of balanced and
unbalanced forces in this interactive tutorial from
The
Physics Classroom.
4.8 VECTOR ADDITION OF FORCES
Motion in Two
Dimesions The study of motion in two dimensions is all about reducing a
two-dimensional force into one. This lesson from the
Learn Physics
Today online tutorial offers an excellent introduction to the vector
addition of forces.
4.9 THE MOVING EARTH AGAIN
The Copernican Revolution Copernicus' heliocentric model started a revolution in science. Learn more about the Copernican Revolution in this article from the Relativity and Cosmology website at the University of California, Irvine.
5.2 MASS RESISTS ACCELERATION
- Finding Acceleration If you know the mass of an object and the forces acting on it, then you can determine its acceleration. This lesson from The Physics Classroom provides practice in finding an object's acceleration.
5.3 NEWTON'S SECOND LAW
- Newton's Second Law F = ma. OK, so what? Deepen your understanding of Newton's law of inertia using this interactive tutorial from The Physics Classroom.
- Forces and Newton's Laws This is a good introduction to Newton's laws from Learn Physics Today.
- Football and Newton's Laws How is Newton's second law illustrated in this Quicktime movie (2561 k) of a football training session? This movie is part of the Physics of Sports site at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
5.4 FRICTION
- The Physics of Racing This site, produced by physicist and auto racing enthusiast Brian Beckman, offers a thorough introduction to the physics of auto racing. Learn about the large role drag and friction play in this sport. Part 6: Speed and Horsepower answers some fundamental physics questions like "How much horsepower does it take to get to 200 mph?"
5.5 APPLYING FORCE--PRESSURE
Under Pressure How do scientists and engineers create pressures equal to those at the earth's interior? This Scientific American article takes a look at the history and present state of high-pressure physics technology.
5.6 FREE FALL EXPLAINED
The Elephant and The Feather Which falls faster in air, an elephant or a
feather? Don't think too hard! Check out this GIF animation from the
Multimedia Physics Studios.
Free Fall and Air Resistance When there is air resistance, more massive
objects fall faster than less massive objects. This interactive tutorial from
the The
Physics Classroom will explain why.
5.7 FALLING AND AIR RESISTANCE
Flying Squirrels Some squirrels are able to "fly" through the air by spreading themselves out to increase air resistance. Find out more about these amazing animals by reading this species profile.
Sky Diving The air resistance acting ona sky diver is affected by speed and cross-sectional area. Watch how these variables affect the sky diver in this GIF animation from the Multimedia Physics Studios.
6.1 FORCES AND INTERACTIONS
Skaters Away What happens if you and a friend put on rollerskates and push off against each other? How about if just one of you pushes? This classroom activity comes from the UC Davis Aeronautics Internet Textbook.
6.2 NEWTON'S THIRD LAW
Newton's Third Law Newton's third law states: "For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction." What exactly does this mean? Find out in this interactive tutorial from The Physics Classroom.
Rockets and Newton's Laws How do rockets work? Learn about the physics of rocket flight in this lesson.
6.3 IDENTIFYING ACTION AND REACTION
Baseball and Newton's Laws Analyze the action and reaction forces of a baseball swing in this Quicktime movie (3363 k) from the Science of Sports site at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
Identifying Action and Reaction Force Pairs Forces always come in pairs known as "action-reaction force pairs." Read this lesson from The Physics Classroom and try your luck at identifying action-reaction pairs.
6.4 ACTION AND REACTION ON DIFFERENT MASSES
How Do Rockets Work? Find the answer to this question and many others in Louis A. Bloomfield's online book How Things Work: The Physics of Everyday Life.
Gun Recoil Did you know that the recoil of a gun is an example of Newton's third law? Find out more in this lesson from The Physics of Everyday Stuff by Sam Hokin.
6.5 DO ACTION AND REACTION FORCES CANCEL?
Collisions Find out how Newton's third law of motion is applied to collisions between two objects in this interactive tutorial from The Physics Classroom.
6.6 THE HORSE-CART PROBLEM
Keeping Your Tires Stuck to the Ground Newton's third law explains how cars move--the tires push the road, and the road pushes the tires. What causes the tires to stick to the road? That's the subject of this article from the Physics of Racing Web site.
6.7 ACTION EQUALS REACTION
Balloon Jet Lab Create your own balloon jet and use it to demonstrate Newton's third law of motion. This is one of many classroom activities available from the Aeronautics Internet Textbook at the University of California, Davis.