Newton’s First Law of Motion -- Inertia Chapter 2 Newton’s First Law of Motion -- Inertia

Aristotle (384-322)BC

Aristotelian School of Thought Natural Motion Every Object in the universe has a proper place, determined by its nature. Heavier objects strive harder to be in their proper place. This implies that heavier objects fall faster than lighter objects.

Violent Motion: All motion results from a push or pull. Except for celestial objects (the realm of the Gods), the normal “natural” state of an object was to be at rest. The Earth does not move. Aristotle’s school of thought dominated western culture for the next 2000 years, until the 16th century.

Celestial Spheres

Ptolemaic Model

Copernicus and the Moving Earth

Copernican Model

Copernicus asserts that the Sun is at the center of the solar system instead of the Earth. This runs contrary to the Aristotelian school of thought. 1543 – Copernicus publishes De Revolutionibus

Galileo Galilei

Galileo is considered to be the father of experimental science. Galileo demolished the Aristotelian model by doing experiments and proving it wrong. Inclined plane demo

Galileo’s Inclined Planes Inertia The tendency of a body to resist changes in its motion. Mass is a measure of inertia – A more massive body has more inertia.