Module 3—Effects of Force on Velocity
Lesson 1—Newton’s First and Second Laws of Motion
Get Focused
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Getting around can sometimes cause unwanted consequences. Transport Canada statistics from the year 2000 show that there were 158 499 car accidents across Canada leading to 2926 fatalities and 227 403 injuries. The injuries and fatalities that year likely impacted more than one-million people in a variety of ways. Chances are fairly good that you, too, will be or have already been impacted by a transportation-related accident. Naturally, this leads us to consider ways to improve transportation safety.
force: a push or a pull, the cause of any change in the motion of an object
unbalanced force: a net push or pull in one direction
How can new and innovative technologies be applied to vehicle and transportation infrastructure to reduce the frequency of accidents causing injury and death on Canada’s roadways? To answer this, you first need to understand the relationship between force and velocity. Sir Isaac Newton developed a number of laws of motion about these relationships. Newton’s first and second laws of motion, which relate to unbalanced forces and changes in velocity, will help you begin to answer questions about technology being used to reduce the severity of traffic accidents.
As you work through this lesson, keep the following questions in mind:
- How is the motion of an object affected by forces applied to it?
- How do unbalanced forces affect the motion of an object?
- How do Newton’s laws help explain why motion occurs?
Module 3: Lesson 1 Assignments
Your teacher-marked Module 3: Lesson 1 Assignment requires you to submit a response to the following:
- Lab—LAB 1, LAB 2, LAB 3, LAB 4, LAB 5, and LAB 6
- Try This—TR 3, TR 4, TR 5, and TR 6
The other questions in this lesson are not marked by the teacher; however, you should still answer these questions. The Self-Check and Try This questions are placed in this lesson to help you review important information and build key concepts that may be applied in future lessons.
After a discussion with your teacher, you must decide what to do with the questions that are not part of your assignment. For example, you may decide to submit to your teacher the responses to Try This questions that are not marked. You should record the answers to all the questions in this lesson and place those answers in your course folder.
Watch and Listen
Watch the video clip titled Newton’s Laws Part 2 that explains Newton’s first and second laws. Be patient while it downloads. You may be required to login with a username and a password. Contact your teacher for this information.