Law #1: An object at rest tends to stay at rest, while an object in motion tends to stay in motion in the same direction at the same speed, unless a force acts on the object. This is also known as the “law of inertia.”
What??? When you think about that for a moment, it seems to make no sense. Most moving objects in our lives do not move in a straight line, and they do not continue moving at the same speed forever. I love to golf, and I can count the number of times my putt stayed straight and traveled forever at the same speed using the fingers of my third arm. Before Newton, everyone agreed that things naturally tend toward rest, which dominated scientific thinking for thousands of years before Newton.
Let’s think of “inertia” in a different way. If you’ve gone ice skating before and build up speed, you might have reached that moment of panic when the wall of the rink is getting closer and turning your skates to avoid slamming into the wall is hard. That’s because an object in motion(you) tends to stay in motion in the same direction(slamming into the wall). The same thing happens when you are out skiing. It’s hard to change direction quickly to avoid a tree or another skier. The reason is you notice this “inertia” so much in these cases is that there is so little friction acting to slow you down.
Law #2: Newton’s second law produced arguably the most important equation in all of physics.
F = ma. To put it into simple terms, the net force (F) is the mass(m) of an object multiplied by the acceleration(a) of the object. The equation can be re-arranged to solve for the mass(m) or the acceleration(a).
Law #3: For every action there is an equal and opposite reaction. This law is perhaps the strangest and most difficult to understand. Some examples are logical, like a cannon being fired in one direction, while the canon moves backwards. Now imagine being served a delicious piece of chocolate birthday cake on a small plate. The cake is pushing down on the plate, and believe it or not, the plate is pushing back up on the cake. Imagine at this same birthday party you are filling balloons, but you let go before you tie off the end. The balloon will fly around the room. Why? Well the balloon is pushing the air out, and the air coming out pushes back on the balloon. The same thing is happening when a space shuttle is launched.
N ZY XV.UTS W 105 RQ.PON
A = A hockey puck is struck and slides in the same direction across a pond until it is out of sight.
B = Imagine jumping off of the back of a row boat. The boat will move in the opposite direction as the jump.
C = If you have 10 people move a car that is broken down, and then the same 10 people move a truck, the acceleration of the car will be higher.
D = When you dive off a diving board you push down on the springboard
E = If you were to kick a soccer ball in space, it would continue on forever, or until it changes by the force of another object.
F = On your drive to Mack, your car’s wheels are spinning. As they spin they grip the road and push it backwards as the car moves forward.
G = Imagine riding your bike, while using your phone to geocache (I do this). You aren’t paying attention and slam directly into a wall. Your bike stops immediately, but you fly forward into the wall.
H = When a car is traveling at high speeds (50+ mph) and the driver turns quickly, the car will sometimes fish-tail (drift) in the same direction the car was originally moving, before eventually moving in the new direction.
J = It is easier to push an empty grocery cart than a full one.
K = When you spinning a merry-go-round with your friends on it, it is harder to start spinning it quickly when there are more people on it.
L = Imagine you are driving on the highway when suddenly, the car in front of you slams on their brakes. You slam on yours as well and your full cup of coffee spills all over the front of your console.
M = A sharks swimming through the ocean uses its back fins to push water backwards while the shark moves forward.
To solve this puzzle, you simple have to decide what LAW (1 through 3) the statements above most accurately represent.
Z = M
Y = J + F + D + A
X = B + C
V = F + D + B
U = K
T = 4 x (H + L)
S = E + G
R = A
Q = B - F
P = F + K
O = L
N = C + K + J
You can check your answers for this puzzle on GeoChecker.com.