Inertia and Newton's Second Law

When you shake an object back and forth, you feel a “resistance” to the acceleration you are causing. We commonly refer to this as the “inertia” of the object. The Smart Cart, alone and then with extra masses on board, is pushed and pulled back and forth along a track. The Smart Cart’s force sensor measures the force on the cart, and its position sensor is used to find the resulting acceleration.

Analysis of a Force vs. Acceleration graph allows the student to quantify the concept of inertia.

Grade Level: College • High School

Subject: Physics

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	Inertia and Newton's Second Law	243.38 KB
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Featured Equipment

Universal 550 Physics Experiment Bundle

This system provides a complete set of labs for mechanics, heat, light, sound, and electromagnetism.

Smart Cart (Blue)

The Smart Cart is the ultimate tool for your physics lab with built-in sensors that measure force, position, velocity, three axes of acceleration, and three axes of rotational velocity. U.S. Patent No. 10,481,173

Smart Cart (Red)

The Smart Cart is the ultimate tool for your physics lab and includes built-in sensors for measuring force, position, velocity, three axes of acceleration, and three axes of rotational velocity. Patent No. 10481173

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Source Collection: Lab #14