Trucking and Thinking

Name: ______Trucking and Thinking

Background: Have you ever been riding in a car and felt a force acting on you? Maybe you noticed this force when you came to a stop sign. If you’ve ever felt these forces, then you’ve experienced Newton’s first law of motion. The following activity involves Newton’s first law of motion and is designed to help you apply Newton’s First Law to your every day life.

Please state in your own words Newton’s first law of motion: ______

Directions: For the each scenario, refer to the diagram of the truck bed and do the following: a. Predict where the marble will roll to first. b. Explain your prediction in terms of Newton’s first law of motion. c. Test your prediction and explain your results.

Scenarios:

1. The truck starts forward quickly from a stopped position. a. b. c. 2. As the truck moves forward at a constant speed, the driver applies the brakes and turns right at the same time. a. b. c. 3. As the truck moves backwards at a constant rate, the driver applies the brakes and at the same time turns the steering wheel and moves the rear of the truck to the right. a. b. c. 4. The stopped truck is rammed from behind by another vehicle traveling at 50km/hr. a. b. c. 5. As the truck moves backwards at a constant rate of 15 km/hr, the vehicle accelerates while at the same time the driver turns the steering wheel and moves the back of the truck to the left.

a. b. c. 6. While the truck is stopped on an old bridge, the bridge suddenly collapses, and the truck falls straight down. a. b. c. 7. The truck is moving forward at a constant speed of 30km/hr and then accelerates while the driver turns left. a. b. c. 8. The stopped truck is rammed directly on its left side by another vehicle moving at a speed of 35 km/hr. a. b. c. 9. Another vehicle is pulling the truck with a chain. When the towing vehicle starts forward, the chain becomes tight and jerks the truck ahead. a. b. c. 10. Using the above situation, after the tow truck jerks the truck forward, the tow truck stops. a. b. c. 11. The stopped truck is rammed from the front by another vehicle. a. b. c.