CAPF AC Motion & Laws

Motion is the change in position of an object with time. Laws of motion explain why objects start moving, stop moving, or change their speed and direction

Newton's First Law (Law of Inertia): An object at rest stays at rest, and an object in motion stays in motion at constant velocity, unless acted upon by an external force

Force equals mass times acceleration. F = ma Newton's Third Law: For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction.

Remember u, v, a, t, s. Any three given, find remaining two using equations. 2. For free fall problems: Always use g = 10 m/s² for quick calculations instead of 9.8 m/s² 3

Walking, swimming, rocket propulsion - all follow third law WORKED EXAMPLE 1: A train accelerates from rest at 2 m/s² for 10 seconds. Find the distance covered

u = 0 m/s (starts from rest), a = 2 m/s², t = 10 s Required: s =

Using s = ut + (1/2)at² s = (0)(10) + (1/2)(2)(10)² s = 0 + (1)(100) s = 100 meters WORKED EXAMPLE 2: A 5 kg box is pushed with 20 N force. Calculate acceleration

m = 5 kg, F = 20 N Required: a =

Using F = ma 20 = 5 × a a = 20/5 = 4 m/s² COMMON MISTAKE: The #1 trap students fall into is confusing mass and weight. Mass is measured in kg and remains constant everywhere. Weight is force (mg) measured in Newtons and changes with gravity. Always check if the question asks for mass or weight.

Many students write kg when answer should be in Newtons or vice versa. Another frequent error is mixing up action-reaction pairs. The forces act on DIFFERENT objects, not the same object. When you push a wall, you feel the wall pushing back on you - these are action-reaction forces. For numerical problems, always write given data first, identify what to find, then choose the correct equation. This systematic approach prevents formula confusion and silly mistakes.