The Shattering Truth: Newton's Third Law Explained

why does the glass break newton 3rd law

Newton's third law states that action force equals reaction force in terms of magnitude. This means that when you punch a glass, the glass punches you back with an equal force. However, because glass is more fragile than the human hand, it breaks under the force of the punch. This is why a brick can break a window, but the window cannot break the brick.

Characteristics Values
Force on brick Greater than force on glass
Force on glass Equal to force on brick
Breaking of glass Reaction of glass to excess force

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The force on the brick is equal to the force on the glass

Newton's third law states that action force equals reaction force in terms of magnitude. This means that when a brick hits a window, the force on the brick is equal to the force on the glass. The brick breaks the glass because it takes a considerably smaller force to break a glass than to break a brick. For example, if a glass can sustain 100N of force and a brick exerts 150N of force, the glass will break. The brick will remain basically undamaged.

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The breaking of the glass is the reaction of the glass to the excess force exerted on it

Newton's third law states that action force equals reaction force in terms of magnitude. When a brick hits a window, they exert equal but opposite forces on each other. However, it takes a considerably smaller force to break a glass than to break a brick. For example, if a glass can sustain 100N of force and a person's muscles can exert up to 200N of force, the glass will break when punched. The breaking of the glass is the reaction of the glass to the excess force exerted on it.

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The force on the brick is smaller than the force on the glass

Newton's third law states that action force equals reaction force in terms of magnitude. In other words, when a brick hits a window, they exert equal but opposite forces on each other. However, the force required to break a brick is much greater than the force required to break glass. Therefore, when a brick hits a window, the force on the brick is smaller than the force on the glass, even though these forces are equal in magnitude.

For example, imagine a brick hits a window and exerts a force of 150 N. The brick and the window exert equal but opposite forces on each other, so the window also exerts a force of 150 N on the brick. However, it might only take 100 N to break the glass, while it would take 1000 N to break the brick. So, the glass breaks, and the brick remains basically undamaged.

This can also be seen when punching a glass. When you punch a glass, your hand will get a shock of 100 N (the force transferred to the glass, resulting in breaking the glass), while the remaining 100 N will be absorbed back by your shoulder. The breaking of the glass is the reaction of the glass to the excess force you have exerted on it.

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The force on the brick is in the same direction as the force on the glass

Newton's third law states that action force equals reaction force in terms of magnitude. This means that when a brick hits a window and breaks the glass, the force on the brick is equal to the force on the glass. The brick exerts a force on the glass, and the glass exerts an equal force back on the brick. However, the brick does not break because it takes a considerably smaller force to break a glass than to break a brick.

For example, suppose a glass can sustain a force of 100N, and a person's muscles can exert a force of 200N. If the person punches the glass with all their might, the glass will break, and the person will feel a force of 100N. The remaining 100N of force will be absorbed by the person's shoulder. This is because the glass can only apply a force equal to what it can sustain, which is 100N in this case.

Similarly, when a brick hits a glass window, they exert equal but opposite forces on each other. Let's say the force is 150N. The glass breaks because it takes only 100N to break it, while it takes 1000N to break the brick. So, the glass breaks, and the brick remains basically undamaged.

The breaking of the glass is a reaction to the excess force exerted on it. The force on the brick is in the same direction as the force on the glass because they are acting on each other directly. This is in accordance with Newton's third law, which states that action and reaction forces are equal and opposite.

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Punching a glass or a feather

Newton's third law states that action force equals reaction force in terms of magnitude. This means that when you punch a glass, the glass punches you back with an equal force. If you exert a greater force on the glass than it can withstand, it will break.

For example, imagine a glass that can sustain a force of 100N and a person whose muscles can exert a force of 200N. If the person punches the glass with all their might, the glass will break. This is because the glass can only apply a force of 100N back to the person, and so the force of 200N is too much for the glass to withstand.

Now, suppose you punch a feather in a vacuum. Does it matter if someone is holding the feather or if it is free? According to Newton's third law, the force you exert on the feather will be equal to the force the feather exerts on you. However, since the mass of a feather is much smaller than that of a glass, it will take a much smaller force to move or deform the feather.

When a brick hits a window and breaks the glass, the brick and the glass exert equal but opposite forces on each other. For example, the brick and the glass may exert forces of 150N on each other. However, it may only take a force of 100N to break the glass, while it would take a force of 1000N to break the brick. This is why the glass breaks and the brick remains basically undamaged.

Frequently asked questions

According to Newton's third law, action force equals reaction force in terms of magnitude. When you punch a glass, the glass punches you back with an equal force. If you exert a greater force on the glass than it can withstand, it will break.

When a brick hits a window, they exert equal but opposite forces on each other. It takes a considerably smaller force to break a window than to break a brick, so the window breaks and the brick remains basically undamaged.

Newton's third law still applies, but the force of the punch is absorbed by your shoulder, rather than the feather.

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