Middle School Physical Science : Describe balanced and unbalanced forces

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Example Questions

Example Question #1 : Describe Balanced And Unbalanced Forces

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Which of these two forces are balanced? 

Possible Answers:

up and left

up and down

down and right

left and right

Correct answer:

up and down

Explanation:

The answer is "up and down" because the forces in the upwards and downwards directions are equal and opposite.

Forces are acting on us and everything around us, at all times! Even when things are not moving, forces are still acting on them. These forces are said to be “balanced” meaning that they are equal and opposite, and have a net value of zero. When an object is in motion, it is being acted on by an “unbalanced” force. 

The force of gravity is what holds us down on Earth. The normal force pushes back up against objects in the opposite direction of gravity and keeps things from getting crushed. These are balanced forces.

 

Example Question #2 : Describe Balanced And Unbalanced Forces

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Which of these forces are unbalanced?

Possible Answers:

up and down

gravity and the normal force

left and right

none of these

Correct answer:

left and right

Explanation:

The answer is "left and right." These forces are not balanced because while they are going in opposite directions, they are not equal.

Forces are acting on us and everything around us, at all times! Even when things are not moving, forces are still acting on them. These forces are said to be “balanced” meaning that they are equal and opposite, and have a net value of zero. When an object is in motion, it is being acted on by an “unbalanced” force. 

The force of gravity is what holds us down on Earth. The normal force pushes back up against objects in the opposite direction of gravity and keeps things from getting crushed. These are balanced forces.

 

Example Question #3 : Describe Balanced And Unbalanced Forces

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What is the name of the force labeled #3 acting in the downward direction?

Possible Answers:

gravity

an applied force

the normal force

an unbalanced force

Correct answer:

gravity

Explanation:

The answer is "gravity."

Forces are acting on us and everything around us, at all times! Even when things are not moving, forces are still acting on them. These forces are said to be “balanced” meaning that they are equal and opposite, and have a net value of zero. When an object is in motion, it is being acted on by an “unbalanced” force. 

The force of gravity is what holds us down on Earth. It acts in the downward direction, or perpendicular to Earth's surface regardless of the placement of the object. The normal force is the force of surfaces that pushes back up against objects in the opposite direction of gravity. Gravity and the normal force are balanced forces if an object is on a surface and not moving in the up or down direction. Forces applied in other directions are usually referred to as "applied forces."

Example Question #4 : Describe Balanced And Unbalanced Forces

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What is the name of the force labeled #2, acting in the upwards direction?

Possible Answers:

an applied force

gravity

the normal force

an unbalanced force

Correct answer:

the normal force

Explanation:

The answer is "The normal force."

Forces are acting on us and everything around us, at all times! Even when things are not moving, forces are still acting on them. These forces are said to be “balanced” meaning that they are equal and opposite, and have a net value of zero. When an object is in motion, it is being acted on by an “unbalanced” force. 

The force of gravity is what holds us down on Earth. It acts in the downward direction, or perpendicular to Earth's surface regardless of the placement of the object. The normal force is the force of surfaces that pushes back up against objects in the opposite direction of gravity. Gravity and the normal force are balanced forces if an object is on a surface and not moving in the up or down direction. Forces applied in other directions are usually referred to as "applied forces."

Example Question #5 : Forces And Motion

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Based on this image, what can you say about the motion of this object?

Possible Answers:

The object is moving left because the forces are balanced.

The object is moving right because the forces are balanced.

The object is moving left because the forces are unbalanced

The object is moving right because the forces are unbalanced

Correct answer:

The object is moving right because the forces are unbalanced

Explanation:

The answer is "This object is moving right, because the left and right forces are unbalanced." The reason the object is moving right is because the stronger force of 2,356 N is acting in that direction.

Forces are acting on us and everything around us, at all times! Even when things are not moving, forces are still acting on them. These forces are said to be “balanced” meaning that they are equal and opposite, and have a net value of zero. When an object is in motion, it is being acted on by an “unbalanced” force. 

The force of gravity is what holds us down on Earth. It acts in the downward direction, or perpendicular to Earth's surface regardless of the placement of the object. The normal force is the force of surfaces that pushes back up against objects in the opposite direction of gravity. Gravity and the normal force are balanced forces if an object is on a surface and not moving in the up or down direction. Forces applied in other directions are usually referred to as "applied forces."

Example Question #5 : Describe Balanced And Unbalanced Forces

Balanced forces are:

Possible Answers:

equal and going in the same direction

equal and opposite

unequal and opposite

unequal and going in the same direction

Correct answer:

equal and opposite

Explanation:

The answer is "equal and opposite."

Forces are acting on us and everything around us, at all times! Even when things are not moving, forces are still acting on them. These forces are said to be “balanced” meaning that they are equal and opposite, and have a net value of zero. When an object is in motion, it is being acted on by an “unbalanced” force. 

The force of gravity is what holds us down on Earth. It acts in the downward direction, or perpendicular to Earth's surface regardless of the placement of the object. The normal force is the force of surfaces that pushes back up against objects in the opposite direction of gravity. Gravity and the normal force are balanced forces if an object is on a surface and not moving in the up or down direction. Forces applied in other directions are usually referred to as "applied forces."

Example Question #6 : Describe Balanced And Unbalanced Forces

Which of these statements is true?

Possible Answers:

Forces are acting on everything at all times.

Objects that are not moving are being acted upon by balanced forces.

all of these

Objects that are moving are being acted upon by unbalanced forces.

Correct answer:

all of these

Explanation:

The answer is "all of these."

Forces are acting on us and everything around us, at all times! Even when things are not moving, forces are still acting on them. These forces are said to be “balanced” meaning that they are equal and opposite, and have a net value of zero. When an object is in motion, it is being acted on by an “unbalanced” force. 

The force of gravity is what holds us down on Earth. It acts in the downward direction, or perpendicular to Earth's surface regardless of the placement of the object. The normal force is the force of surfaces that pushes back up against objects in the opposite direction of gravity. Gravity and the normal force are balanced forces if an object is on a surface and not moving in the up or down direction. Forces applied in other directions are usually referred to as "applied forces."

Example Question #7 : Describe Balanced And Unbalanced Forces

Unbalanced forces:

Possible Answers:

all of these

can be applied forces

are unequal

make objects move

Correct answer:

all of these

Explanation:

The answer is "all of these."

Forces are acting on us and everything around us, at all times! Even when things are not moving, forces are still acting on them. These forces are said to be “balanced” meaning that they are equal and opposite, and have a net value of zero. When an object is in motion, it is being acted on by an “unbalanced” force. 

The force of gravity is what holds us down on Earth. It acts in the downward direction, or perpendicular to Earth's surface regardless of the placement of the object. The normal force is the force of surfaces that pushes back up against objects in the opposite direction of gravity. Gravity and the normal force are balanced forces if an object is on a surface and not moving in the up or down direction. Forces applied in other directions are usually referred to as "applied forces."

Example Question #8 : Describe Balanced And Unbalanced Forces

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Assuming gravity is equal to the normal force, and the men are all pushing the boxes with equal force in newtons, which of these images shows balanced forces? 

Possible Answers:

none of the images

the image on the right

the image on the left

both of the images

Correct answer:

the image on the right

Explanation:

The answer is "the image on the right" because the two men are pushing in equal and opposite directions.

Forces are acting on us and everything around us, at all times! Even when things are not moving, forces are still acting on them. These forces are said to be “balanced” meaning that they are equal and opposite, and have a net value of zero. When an object is in motion, it is being acted on by an “unbalanced” force. 

The force of gravity is what holds us down on Earth. It acts in the downward direction, or perpendicular to Earth's surface regardless of the placement of the object. The normal force is the force of surfaces that pushes back up against objects in the opposite direction of gravity. Gravity and the normal force are balanced forces if an object is on a surface and not moving in the up or down direction. Forces applied in other directions are usually referred to as "applied forces."

Example Question #10 : Forces And Motion

Screen shot 2020 05 22 at 2.43.37 pm

Assuming that gravity is equal to the normal force, which of these images shows unbalanced forces?

Possible Answers:

the image on the left only

the image on the right only

neither of these

the image on the left and possibly the image on the right, but it depends on how hard each of the men are pushing.

Correct answer:

the image on the left and possibly the image on the right, but it depends on how hard each of the men are pushing.

Explanation:

The answer is "the image on the left and possibly the image on the right, but it depends on how hard each of the men are pushing." The image on the left shows unbalanced forces pushing in the leftward direction. The image on the right could be showing unbalanced forces if one of the men is pushing with a stronger force.

Forces are acting on us and everything around us, at all times! Even when things are not moving, forces are still acting on them. These forces are said to be “balanced” meaning that they are equal and opposite, and have a net value of zero. When an object is in motion, it is being acted on by an “unbalanced” force. 

The force of gravity is what holds us down on Earth. It acts in the downward direction, or perpendicular to Earth's surface regardless of the placement of the object. The normal force is the force of surfaces that pushes back up against objects in the opposite direction of gravity. Gravity and the normal force are balanced forces if an object is on a surface and not moving in the up or down direction. Forces applied in other directions are usually referred to as "applied forces."

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