In this lecture we will look at some applications of Newton's second law, expressed in the different coordinate systems that were introduced in lectures D3-D5. Recall that Newton's second law F=ma, (1) is a vector equation which is valid for inertial observers. In general, we will be interested in determining the motion of a particle given
We have seen that the work done by a force F on a particle is given by dw =. dr. If the work done by F, when the particle moves from any position TI to any position T2, can be expressed as, W12=fdr=-(V(r2)-V(1)=V-v2, (1) then we say that the force is conservative. In the above expression, the scalar
Non-Inertial Reference Frame Gravitational attraction The Law of Universal Attraction was already introduced in lecture D1. The law postulates that the force of attraction between any two particles, of masses M and m, respectively, has a magnitude, F, given by F= (1) where r is the distance between the two particles, and G is the universal constant of gravitation. The value of G is empirically determined to be
