Introduction

Newton's second law says that the sum of all of the external forces on a system must be equal to the mass of the system times the acceleration of the center of mass of the system. Newton's second law is often used to identify unknown forces or connect net forces to acceleration. With the acceleration, kinematics can be used to understand motion. We will need a number of tools to use Newton’s second law such as Free body diagrams and Newton’s Third Law.

Newton's laws

 
 
Fundamental equilibrium example applying 2nd law: kitty picture
 
 
 
Notes and clicker questions
 

 
 

Key Terms

Text/Videos

Here is a concise explanation of Newton's Second Law.

OpenStax: This is a comprehensive introduction to Newton's second law that covers how to deal with Newton's second law and systems. This online textbook discusses Newton's second law with diagrams, worked problem examples, and interactive conceptual questions. All notation in this text is consistent with KC's.

Simulations

PHet: Force and Motion Basics

 

Another simple tool to look at forces and acceleration by PHet. This simulation uses FBD on the right, make sure you are familiar with that tool. It might be best to turn friction off initially.

 

Newton's Laws Of Motion (2) : Force, Mass And Acceleration

 

Additional Studying/Review