The acceleration of an object is proportional to the resultant force acting on the object and inversely proportional to the mass of the object
Calculating force required to accelerate an object
Force (N) = Mass (kg) x Acceleration (m/s^2)
Estimating speed, acceleration and forces for everyday road transport
Cars travel around 13 m/s on main roads, 30 m/s on motorways
Typical acceleration from main road to motorway is around 2 m/s^2
Typical force required for a family car is around 2,000 N
Inertia
An object will stay stationary or continue moving at the same speed and direction unless a resultant force is applied
Inertial mass
A measure of how difficult it is to change the velocity of an object, defined as the ratio of the force needed to accelerate an object over the acceleration produced
An object with a large inertial mass will require a larger force to produce a given acceleration
An object with a smaller inertial mass will require a smaller force to produce a given acceleration
