Newton's Basketball
By: Taylor Troup & Zach Horton
Sir Isaac Newton
Sir Isaac Newton PRS was an English physicist and mathematician who is widely recognised as one of the most influential scientists of all time and a key figure in the scientific revolution. He developed the theories ofgravitation in 1666, when he was only 23 years old. Some twenty years later, in 1686, he presented his three laws of motion in the "Principia Mathematica Philosophiae Naturalis."
Newton's 1st Law
Newton's first law states that every object will remain at rest or in uniform motion in a straight line unless compelled to change its state by the action of an external force. This is normally taken as the definition of inertia.
Newton's 2nd Law
The second law explains how the velocity of an object changes when it is subjected to an external force. The law defines a force to be equal to change in momentum (mass times velocity) per change in time.
Newton's 3rd Law
The third law states that for every action (force) in nature there is an equal and opposite reaction. In other words, if object A exerts a force on object B, then object B also exerts an equal force on object A.
Basketball Explanation 1
According to the first law, the basketball is always moving in one direction, unless acted on by another force. Essentially, this tells us that the ball is only being controlled by its environment: the players, the floor, the backboard.
Basketball Explanation 2
The second law, in combination with the fact that the basketball is one constant mass and weight tells us that the more force applied to the ball, the faster the ball will accelerate, or travel. Stronger players can therefore throw the ball faster.
Basketball Explanation 3
In basketball, we see Newton's third law at work whenever a player shoots or passes the ball. The basketball has mass, which means that the player must use the appropriate amount of force when shooting or passing.