Collisions and the Center of Mass
By Walter Lewin - MIT
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2,731
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Lecture Description
Momentum and its conservation during collisions is introduced. Kinetic energy can decrease or increase during collisions. When kinetic energy is conserved, we call it an elastic collision. The momentum vector, internal forces, external forces and the conservation of momentum are discussed. Professor Lewin does some air track experiments where the released energy is from a compressed spring; kinetic energy increases but momentum is conserved. The definition of the center of mass is described. The center of mass behaves as if all the matter were together at that point.
Course Description
This course is a first-semester freshman physics class in Newtonian Mechanics, Fluid Mechanics, and Kinetic Gas Theory. In addition to the basic concepts a variety of interesting topics are covered in this course: Binary Stars, Neutron Stars, Black Holes, Resonance Phenomena, Musical Instruments, Stellar Collapse, Supernovae, Astronomical observations from very high flying balloons (lecture 35), and you will be allowed a peek into the intriguing Quantum World.
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