Units 3-4 Flashcards
True or False: Everything on earth is being influenced by the earth’s gravitational pull.
True
What is the symbol ‘g’ used for?
Represents the RATE of acceleration CAUSED BY GRAVITY
True or False: The standard ‘g’ is equal to something specific
TRUE
What does g equal?
22 m/h
32 ft/sec
9.8 m/sec
Why does g equal 9.8 m/sec?
It is based on the mass of the earth and the distance to earth’s center. Since most things on earth are so small compared to earth and almost equally far away (given that everything is happening on the surface of the earth) 9.8 m/sec is generally a measurement that meets most standards.
It’s mostly a standardized estimation so that you don’t have to do the math for every single object (they would all be roughly the same anyway due to the mass and distance I’ve already outlind).
How are speed and acceleration influenced if an object is falling with no friction?
Speed increases.
Acceleration is constant
True or False: Because of Newton’s 2nd law, for objects accelerating under just the influence of gravity, the acceleration, a is the gravitational acceleration, g.
TRUE
True or False: When an object falls, because the acceleration remains constant, the force the object is experiencing also remains constant.
True
F = ma
a = g
True or False: The acceleration and force of gravity are constant for any given object as it falls
True
WHY is the acceleration and force of gravity constant for any object as it falls?
Because of Newton’s 2nd law of motion.
F = ma
Gravity’s rate of accelerating an object will always (basically) be 9.8 m/sec, which is the acceleration in the equation above.
So no matter what is falling, the ‘a’ will be set to 9.8 m/sec. Given that acceleration and force are always proportional, that means that F will also be constant.
True or False: When a ball is thrown up in the air and slows down to reach the top, the rate of acceleration remains the same the whole way.
True
WHY does the rate of acceleration remain the same when a ball is thrown up in the air?
Because when you are measuring the rate of acceleration caused by the force of gravity, you will always* use 9.8 m/sec. So even though the ball is slowing DOWN, the acceleration is the same.
The pull of gravity does not depend on whether the ball is going up or down. It will always be the same.
True or False: The acceleration caused by gravity is constant, regardless of the direction of motion.
TRUE
True or False: The rate a ball slows down while traveling upward is the same rate it speeds up when coming down.
TRUE
If one ball is dropped from the same height at the same instant that another ball is thrown horizontally, which will hit the ground first?
BOTH WILL HIT AT THE SAME TIME!
Because regardless of the horizontal motion (speed of the ball), the downward acceleration is THE SAME. Gravity pulls vertically on both balls equally.
What does acceleration measure?
The way velocity CHANGES.
Why does gravity negate changes in acceleration and therefore changes in velocity?
Because the rate is ALWAYS the same (negligible differences on the surface of earth for most objects).
What is weight?
A measure of the FORCE of gravity pulling on an object.
Does weight affect how an object accelerates due to gravity?
Nope
What is the equation of weight?
Weight = mass x gravity
True or False: All objects fall at the same rate of acceleration regardless of weight (if air resistance is ignored).
True
What does air friction do to lighter objects?
It causes them to fall to earth more slowly.
True or False: Any two objects, lead weights or popcorn, when dropped in a vacuum simultaneously from the same height, will hit the ground at the same time, traveling at the same speed.
True
What type of force is holding the moon in a constant revolution at a constant speed?
Centripetal force as a result of gravity
True or False: The force of gravity diminishes with distance
True
Why does the moon stay in orbit around the earth?
Because the pull of gravity on the moon is essentially perpendicular to the moon’s velocity (ball on a string)
Why is the moon always “falling”?
Because its speed keeps it the same distance away from earth at all times. It stays in orbit, because earth’s gravity is consistently pulling perpendicularly to its velocity. Without gravity it would fly away like a ball on a string after being released.
What is the rate that gravity diminishes with distance?
1 / d^2
D is the distance between the two centers of the objects being compared.
Why does the earth “wobble” out of its rotation and revolution so much?
Because of Newton’s 3rd law. The earth’s gravity is pulling on the moon, but the moon is also pulling on the earth. Things on earth’s surface are so small that the result of gravitational pulling by earthly objects is negligible. But the MOON is large enough to exert a real change of acceleration on the earth. So it wobbles as it pulls / leans toward the moon in its rotation, whichever side the moon is on.
What did Newton learn about the relationship between mass and gravitational pulls?
The gravity between two objects depends on the mass of BOTH objects, not just one or the other
What is the equation to the law of gravity?
F = G(mM / d^2)
The strength of the force of gravity between two objects of mass M and m separated between their centers by the distance d.
True or False: The force of gravity is PROPORTIONAL to the masses of both of the objects on which it acts.
True
True or False: The force of gravity weakens as the square of the distance between the centers of two masses.
True
What is Newton’s law of gravity?
Every object in the universe attracts every other object by a long range gravitational interaction that obeys Newton’s third law. The strength of the attractive force F varies with the masses M and m, of the two objects, and the distance d between their centers.
What is the G that appears in the equation of the law of gravity?
Gravitational constant
Gravitational constant
A number relating the strength of the force to the masses being attracted and their distance apart.
It basically equals 6.67 x 10^-11
It’s so small that it only becomes valuable when the objects are planet sized or larger.
How did Newton know that every object had a gravitational force?
He didn’t. It was an untestable hypothesis at the time.
Why do we use the standard 9.8 m/sec to represent g when we know that gravity changes depending on distance?
Because the difference isn’t significant enough to measure.
When would we apply the 1 / d^2 decrease in the gravitational formula?
When we are comparing objects at distances from Earth’s surface far greater than we would encounter in normal life, such as rocket ships, satellites, and the moon (or beyond).
Are G and g the same thing?
NO
Is G truly constant?
Probably. As far as we can tell
What is the difference between G and g?
g is the acceleration of gravity, the RATE of acceleration caused by gravity
G is the measure of the FORCE of attraction.
What is the General Theory of Relativity?
Einstein’s description of gravity. This theory explains the relationship between the geometry of space and the flow of time in our universe.
Was Einstein trying to solve gravity’s question of how a law of gravity could exist in a universe that was empty?
Nope. Happy accident after he already applied it to other things.
What is the basic premise of the theory of relativity?
Large objects with gravitational pulls (like the earth) alter the space-time around them, curving it like a bowl (the universe is a geometric space). Thus, objects going near earth “fall” into orbit by falling into this “bowl” effect that planets and large objects create in the space-time around them.
Because the moon is going so fast, it stays in this circular orbit around the earth forever.
Why is it impossible for anything to escape a black hole?
Because the mass density is so great, they curve the space-time around them too steeply for anything to get out that comes near. And the area is presumably massive.
Why do heavier objects accelerate at the same time as lighter objects?
Because even though the gravity is pulling on the heavier mass more, heavier mass is harder to accelerate. They cancel out.
True or False: Everything falls the same even though gravity doesn’t pull on everything the same.
True
What is the general theory of relativity?
The theory that explains the geometry of space (3D nature) and the flow of time in the universe.
Explains that mass can WARP the geometry of space.
What is a vacuum?
Dyson (jk)
A situation where no air friction is present. There are no contact forces due to air.
What is the F in Newton’s gravitational equation?
Force of gravity
What is the d in Newton’s gravitational equation?
The separation between the two objects
True or False: When one of the objects being measured is planet size, the gravitational force on the OTHER object due to the planet is called WEIGHT.
True
True or False: The gravitational force between two people or between two objects that are smaller than planets is called weight.
False
True or False: Even though the distance between the surface of the moon and the core of the moon is LESS THAN the distance between the surface of the earth and the core of the earth, the gravitational force on objects on the moon is still less than earth’s.
True.
Basically saying that even though you are closer to the moon’s core, and therefore being pulled upon more, you still WEIGH less on the moon because the MASS of the moon is smaller.
True or False: In a vacuum, all objects accelerate the same amount, regardless of their mass.
True
True or False: Air friction is a real thing.
True
Also called air contact or air contact force
True or False: Acceleration caused by gravity DOES NOT DEPEND on the mass of the object
TRUE
Drill this into your head.
How can you prove mathematically that the mass doesn’t affect the acceleration of an object falling from gravity?
Newton’s 2nd law and his gravitational law.
F = ma
F = G(mM/d^2)
OR
ma = G(mM/d^2)
OR
a = G(M/d^2)
Which says that the acceleration of an object depends on the gravitational constant, the mass of the earth, and the distance of the object to the center of the earth (all of which are essentially null and void in the average calculation, the differences are negligible).
True or False: Einstein’s theory of relativity is mostly true but doesn’t account for everything we’ve seen in the universe.
FALSE
To date, it has not made a wrong prediction. It’s out best guess but there will still be more discoveries in the future.