| Step | Derivation/Formula | Reasoning |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | \[F_{\text{truck} \to \text{mosq}} = -F_{\text{mosq} \to \text{truck}}\] | Newton’s Third Law states the forces two bodies exert on each other are equal in magnitude and opposite in direction. |
| 2 | \[|F_{\text{truck} \to \text{mosq}}| = |F_{\text{mosq} \to \text{truck}}|\] | Taking magnitudes shows the forces are \(\text{equal}\). |
| 3 | \[a_{\text{mosq}} = \frac{|F_{\text{mosq} \to \text{truck}}|}{m_{\text{mosq}}}, \quad a_{\text{truck}} = \frac{|F_{\text{truck} \to \text{mosq}}|}{m_{\text{truck}}}\] | Using \(F = ma\) for each object relates the common force to each acceleration. |
| 4 | \[a_{\text{mosq}} > a_{\text{truck}}\] | Because \(m_{\text{mosq}} \ll m_{\text{truck}}\), the mosquito’s acceleration is much \(\text{greater}\). |
| 5 | \[\boxed{\text{Force: equal}\;\;\;\text{Acceleration: mosquito greater}}\] | This combination corresponds to option (E). |
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Only \( 1 \) non-zero force acts on an object. Can the object have \( 0 \) acceleration? Can it have \( 0 \) velocity? Explain.

A traffic light hangs from a pole as shown in the diagram. The uniform aluminum pole AB is of length \( 7.20 \) \( \text{m} \) and has a mass of \( 12.0 \) \( \text{kg} \). The mass of the traffic light is \( 21.5 \) \( \text{kg} \). The point C is located \( 3.80 \) \( \text{m} \) vertically above the pivot A. A massless horizontal cable CD is attached at C and connects to the pole at point D, where the pole makes an angle of \( 37^{\circ} \) with the cable.
A small sphere hangs from a string attached to the ceiling of a uniformly accelerating train car. It is observed that the string makes an angle of \(37^\circ\) with respect to the vertical. The magnitude of the acceleration \(a\) of the train car is most nearly:
From the top of a \( 74.0 \) \( \text{m} \) high building, a \( 1.00 \) \( \text{kg} \) ball is dropped in the presence of air resistance. The ball reaches the ground with a speed of \( 31.0 \) \( \text{m/s} \), indicating that drag was significant. How much energy was lost in the form of air resistance/drag during the fall?

Two wires support an unknown mass as shown in the diagram. The tension in the left wire is measured to be \( 17.5 \) \( \text{N} \) and the tension in the right wire is \( 30.3 \) \( \text{N} \). The left wire makes an angle of \( 30^{\circ} \) with the horizontal, and the right wire makes an angle of \( 60^{\circ} \) with the horizontal. What is the mass of the object?
Determine the force needed to push a \( 150 \) \( \text{kg} \) body up a smooth \( 30^\circ \) incline with an acceleration of \( 6 \) \( \text{m/s}^2 \).
An object of unknown mass is acted upon by multiple forces:
The coefficients of friction are \(\mu_s = 0.6\) and \(\mu_k = 0.2\). Starting from rest, the object travels \(10 \, \text{m}\) in \(4.5 \, \text{s}\). What is the mass of the unknown object?
The magnitude of the gravitational field on the surface of a new planet is \(20 \, \text{N/kg}\). The planet’s mass is half the mass of Earth. The radius of Earth is \(6400 \, \text{km}\). What is the radius of the new planet?
An object weighs \( 300 \, \text{N} \) on Earth and \( 50 \, \text{N} \) on the Moon. Does the object have less inertia on the Moon?
A student is watching their hockey puck slide up and down an incline. They give the puck a quick push along a frictionless table, and it slides up a \( 30^\circ \) rough incline (\( \mu_k = 0.4 \)) of distance \( d \), with an initial speed of \( 5 \) \( \text{m/s} \), and then it slides back down.
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| Kinematics | Forces |
|---|---|
| \(\Delta x = v_i t + \frac{1}{2} at^2\) | \(F = ma\) |
| \(v = v_i + at\) | \(F_g = \frac{G m_1 m_2}{r^2}\) |
| \(v^2 = v_i^2 + 2a \Delta x\) | \(f = \mu N\) |
| \(\Delta x = \frac{v_i + v}{2} t\) | \(F_s =-kx\) |
| \(v^2 = v_f^2 \,-\, 2a \Delta x\) |
| Circular Motion | Energy |
|---|---|
| \(F_c = \frac{mv^2}{r}\) | \(KE = \frac{1}{2} mv^2\) |
| \(a_c = \frac{v^2}{r}\) | \(PE = mgh\) |
| \(T = 2\pi \sqrt{\frac{r}{g}}\) | \(KE_i + PE_i = KE_f + PE_f\) |
| \(W = Fd \cos\theta\) |
| Momentum | Torque and Rotations |
|---|---|
| \(p = mv\) | \(\tau = r \cdot F \cdot \sin(\theta)\) |
| \(J = \Delta p\) | \(I = \sum mr^2\) |
| \(p_i = p_f\) | \(L = I \cdot \omega\) |
| Simple Harmonic Motion | Fluids |
|---|---|
| \(F = -kx\) | \(P = \frac{F}{A}\) |
| \(T = 2\pi \sqrt{\frac{l}{g}}\) | \(P_{\text{total}} = P_{\text{atm}} + \rho gh\) |
| \(T = 2\pi \sqrt{\frac{m}{k}}\) | \(Q = Av\) |
| \(x(t) = A \cos(\omega t + \phi)\) | \(F_b = \rho V g\) |
| \(a = -\omega^2 x\) | \(A_1v_1 = A_2v_2\) |
| Constant | Description |
|---|---|
| [katex]g[/katex] | Acceleration due to gravity, typically [katex]9.8 , \text{m/s}^2[/katex] on Earth’s surface |
| [katex]G[/katex] | Universal Gravitational Constant, [katex]6.674 \times 10^{-11} , \text{N} \cdot \text{m}^2/\text{kg}^2[/katex] |
| [katex]\mu_k[/katex] and [katex]\mu_s[/katex] | Coefficients of kinetic ([katex]\mu_k[/katex]) and static ([katex]\mu_s[/katex]) friction, dimensionless. Static friction ([katex]\mu_s[/katex]) is usually greater than kinetic friction ([katex]\mu_k[/katex]) as it resists the start of motion. |
| [katex]k[/katex] | Spring constant, in [katex]\text{N/m}[/katex] |
| [katex] M_E = 5.972 \times 10^{24} , \text{kg} [/katex] | Mass of the Earth |
| [katex] M_M = 7.348 \times 10^{22} , \text{kg} [/katex] | Mass of the Moon |
| [katex] M_M = 1.989 \times 10^{30} , \text{kg} [/katex] | Mass of the Sun |
| Variable | SI Unit |
|---|---|
| [katex]s[/katex] (Displacement) | [katex]\text{meters (m)}[/katex] |
| [katex]v[/katex] (Velocity) | [katex]\text{meters per second (m/s)}[/katex] |
| [katex]a[/katex] (Acceleration) | [katex]\text{meters per second squared (m/s}^2\text{)}[/katex] |
| [katex]t[/katex] (Time) | [katex]\text{seconds (s)}[/katex] |
| [katex]m[/katex] (Mass) | [katex]\text{kilograms (kg)}[/katex] |
| Variable | Derived SI Unit |
|---|---|
| [katex]F[/katex] (Force) | [katex]\text{newtons (N)}[/katex] |
| [katex]E[/katex], [katex]PE[/katex], [katex]KE[/katex] (Energy, Potential Energy, Kinetic Energy) | [katex]\text{joules (J)}[/katex] |
| [katex]P[/katex] (Power) | [katex]\text{watts (W)}[/katex] |
| [katex]p[/katex] (Momentum) | [katex]\text{kilogram meters per second (kgm/s)}[/katex] |
| [katex]\omega[/katex] (Angular Velocity) | [katex]\text{radians per second (rad/s)}[/katex] |
| [katex]\tau[/katex] (Torque) | [katex]\text{newton meters (Nm)}[/katex] |
| [katex]I[/katex] (Moment of Inertia) | [katex]\text{kilogram meter squared (kgm}^2\text{)}[/katex] |
| [katex]f[/katex] (Frequency) | [katex]\text{hertz (Hz)}[/katex] |
Metric Prefixes
Example of using unit analysis: Convert 5 kilometers to millimeters.
Start with the given measurement: [katex]\text{5 km}[/katex]
Use the conversion factors for kilometers to meters and meters to millimeters: [katex]\text{5 km} \times \frac{10^3 \, \text{m}}{1 \, \text{km}} \times \frac{10^3 \, \text{mm}}{1 \, \text{m}}[/katex]
Perform the multiplication: [katex]\text{5 km} \times \frac{10^3 \, \text{m}}{1 \, \text{km}} \times \frac{10^3 \, \text{mm}}{1 \, \text{m}} = 5 \times 10^3 \times 10^3 \, \text{mm}[/katex]
Simplify to get the final answer: [katex]\boxed{5 \times 10^6 \, \text{mm}}[/katex]
Prefix | Symbol | Power of Ten | Equivalent |
|---|---|---|---|
Pico- | p | [katex]10^{-12}[/katex] | 0.000000000001 |
Nano- | n | [katex]10^{-9}[/katex] | 0.000000001 |
Micro- | µ | [katex]10^{-6}[/katex] | 0.000001 |
Milli- | m | [katex]10^{-3}[/katex] | 0.001 |
Centi- | c | [katex]10^{-2}[/katex] | 0.01 |
Deci- | d | [katex]10^{-1}[/katex] | 0.1 |
(Base unit) | – | [katex]10^{0}[/katex] | 1 |
Deca- or Deka- | da | [katex]10^{1}[/katex] | 10 |
Hecto- | h | [katex]10^{2}[/katex] | 100 |
Kilo- | k | [katex]10^{3}[/katex] | 1,000 |
Mega- | M | [katex]10^{6}[/katex] | 1,000,000 |
Giga- | G | [katex]10^{9}[/katex] | 1,000,000,000 |
Tera- | T | [katex]10^{12}[/katex] | 1,000,000,000,000 |
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