DEFINITION OF FORCE
• Forces: a push or pull that is exerted on an
object which may change the shape,
direction or speed of the object.
• Force is measured in Newton and
abbreviated N
• 1 Newton is the force needed to accelerate
1kg of mass at 1m/s2
(named after sir Isaac Newton) F = ma
EFFECTS OF FORCES
• A force can cause an object
• to start moving
• A moving object to speed up/slow
down
• Change the direction of a moving
object
• Cause an object to change its shape
• Cause an object to rotate
• Or have no visible effect on an object
EFFECTS OF FORCES - EXAMPLES
• Kicking a ball – pushing force – direction and speed of the ball changes
• Moulding clay – pushing force – clay changes shape
• Playing with a toy wagon – pulling force – changes motion of the wagon
• Rocket blasting off into space – pushing force – changes motion of the rocket
• Doing pull-ups – pulling force – changes motion of the body
FORCES ACT IN PAIRS
Forces that two objects exert on each other always act in pairs.
We call these action-reaction pairs.
Action-reaction pairs are always equal in size (magnitude) but
opposite in direction
REPRESENTING FORCES
25 N
• When we want to draw a diagram to
show what forces are acting, we use
arrows to represent the forces. We
always show forces acting from the 15 N
centre of the object on which it acts. 12 N
- 25 N
NET FORCE
• Effects of forces are seen when forces
combine to create a net force
• Balanced forces: The same force
someone use to push against a wall is
exerted back on that person when no
effect is seen net force is 0 N
• Unbalanced/resultant forces: the force
to one direction is larger than the force
to the other direction.
NET FORCE
• More than one force can act on an
object at the same time
• When more than one force acts on an
object we add the forces to get the net
force.
• Choose one direction as positive, then
the other direction is negative. 10 N + (-6 N) = 4 N
• If the forces act in opposite directions
the net force will be smaller. The net/resultant force is
4 N to the left.
NET FORCE
• If the forces act in the same
directions then the net force
will be bigger.
• Net forces are important 10 N + 7 N = 17 N
because they determine the
acceleration of an object. The net/resultant force is
17 N to the right.
TYPES OF FORCES
FORCES
NON-
CONTACT
CONTACT
Gravitational Magnetic Electrostatic
Friction Applied force
force force force
CONTACT AND NON-CONTACT FORCES
• There are two types of forces:
• Contact forces: A contact force
(including friction, tension,
compression) results when two bodies
are in contact (touch) with each other.
• Non-contact (field) forces:
• Field forces result from action-at-a-
distance between two bodies.
• Common examples of field forces
include gravitational, magnetic, and
electrostatic forces.
CONTACT FORCES
• Friction is the force that opposes
(works against) the motion of an
object.
• Tension is a pulling force, normally in
a string, rope or chain holding 2
objects together.
• Compression is pushing force and
often changes the shape of an object.
NON-CONTACT FORCES
Gravitational force:
• Gravity is the force of attraction (pull) that
objects/bodies have on one another due to their
masses, for e.g., the attraction of the Sun and
planets, Earth and Moon, Earth, and objects on
the surface (people and other things).
• Objects with greater mass have more gravitational
pull on each other.
• Force decreases as distance between the objects
increases.
• Force of gravity is measured in newtons (N).
NON-CONTACT FORCES
Gravitational force:
• The weight of an object is the gravitational force
exerted on it by the Earth (or the moon, or another
planet). It is also measured in newtons (N).
• The MASS of the object stays the same no matter
where it is determined.
• However, the WEIGHT of an object will change
when weighed in different places with different
gravitational force such as on Earth compared to
the Moon.
NON-CONTACT FORCES
Magnetic force:
• Magnets attract magnetic substances
including steel, iron, cobalt, nickel.
• All magnets have two ends/poles (north &
south).
• Opposite poles attract and like poles repel
each other (magnetism is a push / pull
force).
• Just like a bar magnet, the Earth has a
magnetic field (north and south poles).
NON-CONTACT FORCES
Friction and static electricity
• Friction (rubbing) between certain materials
(such as plastic, perspex, glass, nylon, wool,
silk) transfers electrons between the atoms of
the two materials being rubbed together.
• The electrons move from one material
causing a positive charge on its surface and
causing a negative charge on the surface of
the other material.
• It is only the electrons that are transferred;
protons and neutrons do not move.