AP® Physics C: Mechanics · Unit 2 · Topic 2.1
Choosing a System
Watch it explained
- How it worksHow does drawing a boundary make some forces internal and leave the rest external?
- Common mistakeWhy doesn't an internal force ever move a system's center of mass?
- Going furtherWhat happens to your equations when you redraw the boundary to swallow the Earth as well?
- Ties togetherHow does the choice of system link a force analysis to an energy analysis of the same event?
Check yourself
Your turn1 of 2
A system consists of two blocks connected by a compressed spring, initially at rest with no external forces acting. The spring pushes them apart. What happens to the system's center of mass?End of topic.