Newton's First Law

• Newton’s First Law is also known as the Law of Inertia.
• It states that an object at rest tends to remain at rest and an object in motion tends to remain in motion unless externally acted upon by a force.
• This law applies to both objects at rest and objects in motion.
• The ‘inertia’ in the Law of Inertia refers to the tendency of an object to resist any change in its state of motion.
• A static object will not move unless a force is applied to it.
• Similarly, an object moving at a constant speed will continue to do so unless a force is applied.
• The force required to alter an object’s state of motion is dependent on the mass of the object; larger masses require larger forces.
• The law explains why we experience a jolt when a vehicle starts or stops suddenly - our bodies have the tendency to maintain their state of motion.
• It also explains why objects in space continue to move even when no force is applied, as there is no friction to slow them down.