Newton's second law of motion states that the acceleration of an object depends on the mass of the object and the amount of force applied (commonly stated as \( F = ma \), where \( F \) is the force, \( m \) is the mass, and \( a \) is the acceleration). Here are two everyday examples:
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Shopping Cart: When you push a shopping cart, the harder you push (greater force), the faster it accelerates. If the cart is empty (less mass), it accelerates more quickly than if it’s full of groceries (more mass) with the same amount of force applied. Thus, you can see how the mass and force are related to the acceleration of the cart.
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Car Acceleration: When you press on the gas pedal of a car, the engine exerts a force that accelerates the car. If the car is carrying a heavy load (greater mass), it will accelerate more slowly compared to if it were empty, assuming the same amount of force is applied by the engine. This illustrates how the acceleration of the car is dependent on both the force produced by the engine and the mass of the car.
These examples demonstrate how Newton's second law operates in familiar situations.