Newton's first law
Objects resist change
Newton's first law states that an object at rest stays at rest, and an object in motion continues moving at constant velocity, unless acted upon by an external force.
Also called the law of inertia, it establishes that objects resist changes to their state of motion: Newton's first law explains why passengers lurch forward when a car brakes suddenly.
- thought experimentHypothetical scenario for reasoning
- inertiaResistance to altered motion
- constant velocityUnchanging speed and direction
- forceStrength or compulsion
- classical mechanicsLaws governing macroscopic motion
Galileo Galilei · spinning tops · motion · mass · equilibrium · momentum · laws of motion · velocity · gravitational theory · scientific revolution · friction · air resistance · empirical observation · seat belts · tendency · rolling ball · hockey puck · rest
Newton's first lawNewton's second law
Force-motion mathematical principle
F=ma · acceleration · Newton's third law · impulse · law of universal gravitation
Newton's first lawgeneral relativity
Gravity as curved spacetime
special relativity · quantum mechanics · Heisenberg uncertainty principle · Aristotelian physics
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