# 31+ Newton’s Second Law Of Motion Examples: Detailed Explanations

According to Newton’s second law of motion, the direction of the acceleration of the object is in the direction of the force applied.

Newton’s second law of motion says that the force applied to the object that set it in motion is equal to the product of the mass of the object and its acceleration. Let us discuss some of Newton’s second law of motion examples as listed here below:-

## Football Kicked

Upon kicking the football it will accelerate in the direction of the force applied.

The acceleration of the ball will be equal to the force exerted on every unit mass of the ball. Suppose if the ball of mass 285g accelerates at a rate of 4m/s then the force applied to the ball is equal to 1.14N.

## Pushing the Table

The table will be displaced from its position only if the sufficient force equivalent to the mass of a table is applied to the table. The displacement of the table will be in the direction of the applied force.

## Carrying Shopping Trolley

A shopping trolley has wheels underneath that make it comfortable to carry a heavy load in a trolley on a plane surface.

To push the trolley forward a force has to be applied in the forward direction, it is also called a push force which is a contact force. In the same way to pull the trolley backward, pull force has to be applied to the handle of a trolley.

## Carrom Striker

The carrom striker accelerates in the direction it is striking. To target, the carrom man, the angle at which the force has to be incident on the carrom man is analyzed and then hit accurately.

As the force is incident on the carrom man, it will move in the direction of the force applied to a distance based on the amount of force incident on it.

## Pushing a Car

Imagine that the car engine is not working and a man is pushing the car from the backside of the car. A force is applied to the car to move it in a forward direction. The acceleration of the car upon pushing the mass of the car is proportional to the force applied.

## Billiard Ball

Upon hitting the billiard ball with a stick, the ball accelerates forward in the direction of the force applied and the speed of the ball is proportional to the force exerted on the ball.

## Hitting the Marble

The force incident on another marble kept stable on the ground will displace from its position of rest and migrate in the direction of the applied force. At the same time, the kinetic energy of the marble will be transferred to that marble that was at rest and travel to a distance till its kinetic energy becomes zero.

## Bowling Ball

The bowling ball is accelerated and thrown in the direction of the standing bowling pins. The bowling ball moves in a rectilinear motion and imposes the force on the bowling pins to collapse them down.

The bowling ball moves in the direction of the force applied and its acceleration follows the second law of motion.

## Pulling a Trolley Suitcase

A force is applied to a suitcase to pull it forward. The amount of force required to pull the suitcase depends upon the weight of a trolley. The trolley will accelerate in the direction of the pulling force and in comparison to the force applied.

## Pulling Window Curtain

To pull the window curtain a very less force is required as the curtains are light in weight. The curtain will move in the direction of the applied force and the displacement of the hanging curtain is equal to the force applied.

## Passing the Ball

To pass the ball you are actually applying a force in the direction of the player standing in front of you.

The amount of force required to pass the ball to the player is decided by the distance of separation between the two players, and how far the ball has to be thrown.

## Hitting a Cricket Ball

A batman hit the incoming cricket ball in the direction where there are no players standing to restrain the ball from hitting a four or six.

The force is applied on a ball using a bat in a particular direction holding the correct posture of the bat that the ball should direct in the correct path.

While playing badminton a force is incident on the cork using a racket. A cork moves in the direction of the force applied and the acceleration of the cork is equivalent to the amount of force applied. It also depends upon the elasticity and the potential energy acquired by the cork during the throw.

## Skiing

Skiing is a sports activity performed in the snow same as skating. The direction of the skier is guided using two rods in his hands that allow him to change the path, accelerate or decelerate the motion.

This is done by applying a force on the ground. The direction of the force applied and its strength determines the acceleration of the skier.

## Bull Pulling a Cart

A bull is applying a pulling force on a cart using its muscular force to pull the cart. The amount of force required by the bull can be calculated by knowing the weight of the cart.

## Drawing Water from Well

To draw water from a well a vessel is dipped in the water tying it with a rope and it is then pulled upward by applying a muscular force. The amount of force applied to the vessel can be found by measuring the weight of a volume of water in the vessel and the rate of acceleration of the vessel.

## Lifting a Weight

Lifting the heavy objects also follows Newton’s second law of motion.

A force has to be applied in the upward direction to lift the weight. The amount of force applied is equal to the mass of the object that is lifted and the acceleration of the object due to force.

## Shifting the Garden Vase

The garden vases are tightly filled with wet soil. The force required to lift the vase depends upon the weight of the vase. If the weight of a vase is less, then the acceleration while carrying the vase will be more because the force applied to shift the vase will be more in comparison.

## Water Flow

The speed of the flow of water is more if the slope of the crest is steeper and accordingly the force incident on the gravels and sediments in the water will be more and hence they are carried along with the flow of water.

## Slingshot

A slingshot is used to apply the force on the distant object, for example, to detach the mangoes from the tree. The force is applied in the direction of a target. The force is incident on the object which is held across the rubber band and accelerates in the direction of the force upon release from the slingshot.

## Skipping Stone in Water

While skipping a stone in pond water, the force is applied by the motion of a hand.

The direction of the motion of the stone is the same as the direction of the force applied. The acceleration of the stone is proportional to the force applied to the object.

## Sliding Window

To slide a window a push force is applied to the handle to open the window. The acceleration of the window depends upon the force applied to the handle.

## Lifting a Stack of Books

The force required to lift the stack of books depends upon the mass of the entire books in a stack. The force hence required will be greater. The force has to be applied in the upward direction to lift the books from the place.

## Dashing on a Boat

If a boat rider accidentally came and strikes another boat in front then the boat ahead will move forward in the direction of the force.

The force applied from the backside of the boat is in the forward direction and hence it will drift a boat in the forward direction.

## Fruit Fell from the Tree

The fruit detaches and falls towards the ground due to the gravitational attraction of the Earth. The gravitational force is always acting toward the ground and hence the direction of motion of the fruit after detaching from the node of the tree is accelerating downward.

## Rolling the Hula Hoop

If you keep a hoop on a plane surface and apply a force on it along with its side, it will accelerate in the direction of the force applied.

## Swing

To set a swing in the oscillatory motion one applies a force from behind the person sitting on a swing.

A swing moves in the direction of the force applied.

## Blowing Candle

To blow a candle you apply wind force over the fire to blow it off. The wind moves in the direction of the force applied. The acceleration of the molecules is restrained to a certain distance as they collide with the other surrounding molecules in the air.

## Boomerang

A boomerang returns back to the thrower because of its L shape structure. It will travel to a certain distance depending upon the force imposed on it while throwing in the air.

## Dart

It has one pointed end which gets poked inside a dark board and stays.

The depth at which the pin is poked in depends upon the force at which the dart is thrown. The direction of the acceleration of a dart is in the direction in which it is thrown.

## How much is the force required to move the box of load of 8kg if the acceleration of a man carrying a box is 0.4 m/s2?

Given: a=0.4 m/s2

m= 8kg

$F=ma$

$F=8\times 0.4=3.2N$

Hence the force exerted on a box by a man is 3.2 N.

## What is a net acceleration of an object having a mass of 30kg which is being pulled from one direction with a force of 15N and is being pulled from the opposite direction with a force of 30N?

Given: $F_1=15N$

$F_2=30N$

m= 30kg

Hence net force on the object is

$F=F_2-F_1= 30N-15N=15N$

The object will move in the direction of the force F2.

$ma=15N$

$a=\frac{15}{m}=\frac{15}{30}=0.5m/s^2$

The acceleration of an object is 0.5 m/s2.

## Why do moving objects come to rest after traveling a certain distance?

The object comes to its equilibrium state of rest after traveling a certain distance.

The acceleration of the object is inversely proportional to its mass. Moreover, the air drag and frictional force exerted on the surface of the body help it to come to a static position.

AKSHITA MAPARI

Hi, I’m Akshita Mapari. I have done M.Sc. in Physics. I have worked on projects like Numerical modeling of winds and waves during cyclone, Physics of toys and mechanized thrill machines in amusement park based on Classical Mechanics. I have pursued a course on Arduino and have accomplished some mini projects on Arduino UNO. I always like to explore new zones in the field of science. I personally believe that learning is more enthusiastic when learnt with creativity. Apart from this, I like to read, travel, strumming on guitar, identifying rocks and strata, photography and playing chess. Connect me on LinkedIn - linkedin.com/in/akshita-mapari-b38a68122