Balanced and Unbalanced Forces

Newton's first law of motion Any object or person will stay on constant velocity as long as there are no unbalanced forces acting on it. But what exactly is meant by the phrase unbalanced force? Start by thinking abut a physics book at rest on a table top. There are two forces acting upon the book. One force - the Earth's gravitational pull - exerts a downward force. The other force - the push of the table on the book (sometimes referred to as a reaction force) - pushes upward on the book. Since these two forces are of equal magnitude and in opposite directions, they balance each other. The book is said to be at equilibrium. There is no unbalanced force acting upon the book and the book stays at rest. When al all the forces acting upon an object balance each other, the object will be at equilibrium; it will not be accelerated. Consider another example involving balanced forces - a person standing upon the ground. There are two forces acting upon the person. The force of gravity exerts a downward force. The floor of the floor exerts an upward force. Since these two forces are of equal magnitude and in opposite directions, they balance each other. The person is at equilibrium. There is no unbalanced force acting upon the person and the person remains stationary. This is a free-body diagram. Is the book sliding across the bench an example of forces in equilibrium? Why not?.

Free-body diagrams show the relative size and direction of all forces acting upon an object in a given situation. A free-body diagram is a special example of the vector diagrams. The size of the arrow in a free-body diagram shows the size of the force. The direction of the arrow shows the direction which the force is acting. Each force arrow in the diagram is labeled to indicate the exact type of force. Most often, a free-body diagram is drawn in a box. The force arrow is drawn from the center of the box outward in the direction which the force is acting. Examples are:

G.Foster EGGS

1. A book is at rest on a table top. A free-body diagram for this situation looks like this:

5. A rightward force is applied to a book in order to move it across a desk at constant velocity. Consider frictional forces. Neglect air resistance. A free-body diagram for this situation looks like this:

2. A girl is suspended motionless from the ceiling by two ropes. A free-body diagram for this situation looks like this:

6. A skydiver is descending with a constant velocity. Consider air resistance. A free-body diagram for this situation looks like this:

3. An egg is free-falling from a nest in a tree. Neglect air resistance. A free-body diagram for this situation looks like this:

7. A force is applied to the right to drag a sled across loosely-packed snow with a rightward acceleration. A free-body diagram for this situation looks like this: 4. A rightward force is applied to a book in order to move it across a desk with a rightward acceleration. Consider frictional forces. Neglect air resistance. A free-body diagram for this situation looks like this:

8. A football is moving upwards towards its peak after having been booted by the punter. A free-body diagram for this situation looks like this:

G.Foster EGGS