Have you conspicuously spent time wondering what causes you to lean forward when a car stops suddenly? Or even ponder on what actually makes a soccer ball keep rolling until it is stopped by something? The reason behind these actions is called inertia. In this guide, we’ll elaborate on inertia and cover how it operates alongside its examples which can be found in daily life.
This doesn’t just revolve around physics, but instead forms part of human life. By the time you finish reading this article, I believe you’ll gain insights on how to spot inertia everywhere, right alongside me.
Understanding Inertia: What Is It?
Inertia refers to the diverse size resistance within objects when it comes to changes in motion. No movement tracked defines an object that isn’t moving and no altering in direction defines an object in motion, claiming inertia resists change of either starting, stopping or switching direction.
This theory originates from Newton’s First Law of Motion which states that –
“An object at rest stays at rest, and an object in motion stays in motion with the same speed and in the same direction unless acted upon by an external force.”
In shallow level phrases, to put it simply, things don’t change what they’re doing unless something makes them. The something in question could be a person, a force of gravity, a frictional force or even a wall.
Why Inertia Matters in Real Life
Perhaps you are for wondering, “Okay, and how is this relevant for me?” Inertia is not solely an academic principle, it is integrated in body mechanics and physical interactions with the environment every single day. Inertia helps make sense of an incredible amount of actions, such as phoning walking, driving, and even throwing a ball.
An understanding of inertia enables an individual to:
- Comprehend vehicle mechanics and vehicle safety systems.
- Informed choices when engaging in sports or other forms of physical activities.
- Improve safety in everyday movements and actions.
- Observe activity or quiescence in the immediate environment.
Inertia in Daily Life Examples
Now, let us explore the more interesting parts using real life scenarios that illustrate inertia.
1. Riding in a Car
Imagine yourself in a car. I know you have experienced when the car accelerates and, so you feel a backward pull. The same sensation is experienced when the car decelerates. This is because your body is resisting change in speed. Quite astonishing I know, but that is how it works.
In the event that you were not wearing seatbelts, if the vehicle halts movement immediately, your body would indeed continue its motion and that is why we have seatbelts. They place a force that prevents your body from moving forward as the car does not.
Other Car-Related Inertia Examples
When you hastily apply brakes, your coffee moves forward and spills.
During a sharp turn, you lean your body sideways.
When starting the car abruptly, the items on your seat topple over and fall backward.
In reality, all these scenarios illustrate, inertia, occurring within a moving vehicle.
2. Moving Heavy Objects at Home
Have you tried to slide a couch or bed around your home? It feels like a fight to start it. After putting some effort, you are able to get it to move, and when it does, maintaining it in motion is much simpler. That is inertia again. The couch is lazy to begin moving (inertia of rest) but once it is moving, it does not want to stop (inertia of motion).
Even smaller items, like a chair, show inertia. Although they’re more readily moved, you may not notice it as much, but it’s still there.
3. Pouring and Spilling Liquids
If you’re pouring water into a glass and then stop suddenly by releasing the jug the water will motivate itself to continue pouring out even after you release the pitcher and in some cases spill. Water was already set in motion, and in this case inertia is something that keeps it moving.
In another case of say you drop a sustainer, after having kept it at a certain height, inside that container there is liquid and the moment it hits the floor that liquid will splash out because of the movement it had while the container was suspended above a surface.
4. Playing Sports
Athletes are a world in their own, unlike for example in sports like football, basketball break dancing or even in games like rugby for a fraction of time they perform independnt activities as a set of these countless fraction of a second moves composes a very large set of movements, while individual actions that build a movement can be called sets of exercises.
Running and Stopping
Your body does not come to an immediate stop when you halts while sprinting. Instead, it continues in that direction and hence, you lean forward or take a few extra steps until you succesfully halt.
Throwing a Ball
When you throw a basketball or kick a soccer ball, there are multiple stoping points such as air resistance, the ground, or the net. up until and unless the net is not obstructing the path, the ball will keep in forward motion due to inertia.
Jumping and Landing
As your body is in free fall, you also have to self-absorb your motion. Hence, you need to bend your knees for more effective and easier stopping—this way the body can stop more safely.
5. Dropping Objects
When something falls off a table, it does not only drop straight down; it may fly off the edge a little as well. This is due to the fact that it was already moving with the table (maybe you bumped it) and retains that motion. Just because something is falling, that does not mean it will stop moving sideways.
This is why fragile items break when they fall. They shatter the instant they hit the ground because they also have the motion that they have while suspended in the air.
6. Public Transportation and Elevators
You have probably felt the sensation of inertia while riding a subway or a bus. When the vehicle starts moving, you sway backward, and when it stops, you lean forward. This is your body’s attempt at keeping its current state, be rest or in motion.
The sensation is slightly different in elevators, but the principle remains the same. When it begins moving up, you feel a little heavier for a second. That is the inertia resisting the motion that’s acting on the body. Whenever there is a sudden stop, you end up feeling lighter for a brief moment because the body is still reacting to change.
7. Cleaning and Cooking
Cleaning—whether it’s mopping the floor, stirring a pot, or wiping a table—is more robotic than it seems.
When unstalled suddenly, vacuum cords usually retract.
Dust removal works because inertia keeps the dust stationary while the rug is in motion.
When the spoon is stopped after stirring, the liquid continues to swirl around the aching Primordial Soup whose granite-like surface crust stirs ever so slowly.
How Inertia Keeps You Safe
The reason that inertia is studied more than other principles of physics is because of its application when we are trying to figure out ways to keep people safe. There tends to be a good number of people who mitigate risk using devices such systems and structures engineered with sudden forces, impacts, or changes in an objects motion or speed. You will not be leisurely placed inside a classroom—everyday policies are made and lives are saved if there are real plans put in motion all because of a theory that needs exploration.
Here are several situations that are made where inertia has been applied in order to keep people safe:
Seatbelts and Airbags: Fighting Inertia in Cars
The first things that come to mind regarding a car’s safety features are usually seatbelts and airbags. These mechanisms are strategically made to deal with inertia’s effects during a collision. Let’s elaborate further:
Seatbelts
Seatbelts Imagine your car has come to a complete stop due to a collision. It is safe to assume that your body is still moving at the same speed as the car was traveling. If you had not worn a seatbelt, you would continue to lunge forward at full speed. Odds are you will end up severely injuring yourself due to the impact with the dashboard, windshield, or other parts of the car.
Seatbelts effectively hold you in place and apply a force opposing your motion which drastically reduces the chances of injury. As we mentioned before, seatbelts work by counteracting inertia and controlling the motion of your body even after the car has stopped.
Airbags
Airbags work by rapidly inflating during a collision. This serves the purpose of cushioning the body while also redistributing the impact force. Your body will want to keep moving as if you are in the car. An airbag gives ample amount of seconds for your body to come to a smooth stop. airbags are designed to make you slow down without inertia being able to push you.
As a team, seat belts and airbags are designed to mitigate the injury impact caused by inertia during a collision. The forces of inertia in a crash, without safety belts, could cause grave damage or even death.
Bike Helmets and Pads: Protecting Against Inertia When You Fall
While riding a bike, whether it is stationary or in motion, one’s body has inertia. Losing balance on a bike would make you fall. Inertia will push you forward after losing balance.
And that is where bike helmets and pads come into play. Here is how they help you deal with the negative impacts of inertia:
Helmets
When riding a bike, there is a danger of falling off, and if this happens, your head will continue moving forward which can lead to hitting the ground and sustaining some serious injuries. Bike helmets are made to protect you from this scratch by bringing some of the energy down, thereby reducing the head’s impact in a fall. They help with concussive injuries by absorbing elastically part of the impact.
They help with concussive forces by distributing injury of the head during any given impact; foam helps them perform this function. Inside the foam of a helmet, there is some air, and when any force is applied to the helmet will compress reducing the amount of force that is incurred on your head by increasing the distance. This ensures the process known as cushioning of the fall is absorbed is able to take place.
Pads and Knee Guards
Other protective equipment like knee pads, elbow pads, and elbow guards are meant to absorb impact from a fall. Medical problems such as scrapes, bruises, or even bone fractures could happen due to inertia if these pads were not placed on the body.
The pads that people wear when engaging in sports are designed to cushion the body and absorb the impact suffered when one is falling. Similarly to helmets, the pads serve the purpose of absorbing some portion of energy so that the forces enables a gradual stop instead of a full impact on the ground.
One of the things that requires understanding of physics is inertia while performing leisure activities such as cycling. That said, helmets alongside protective elbow and knee raises aid to immobilize the body during a fall for controlling substantial damage that could extend inertia exerted to the body to allow rapid readiness for riding the bike.
My Opinion| Inertia in Daily Life
What lessons does daily life examples teach us scrutinize with the application of inertia? Everything we interact, from our tools, cars, and even our physical body, functions according to a uniform law of motion. Evaluating these arguments strategies applies the most basic yet astonishing theories to understand and view the world around us with a whole new perspective.
The next time you are for instance riding a bus, playing catch or even carrying groceries, take a moment to consider ponder, “What is inertia doing at this moment?”. You will be amazed at how frequently it makes an appearance.