A passenger is standing in a train. The train accelerates and the passenger falls backwards. Use Newton's first law of motion to explain why he fell backwards.

First we want to state what Newton's first law is. 

Newton's first law of motion states that an object at rest will remain at rest, or if in motion, will remain in motion at a constant velocity unless acted on by a net external force

The friction between the floor and the passenger’s feet creates a net force on the feet. Then when the train accelerates the passenger continues travelling for a small instant at the original velocity. So the feet move forwards faster than the rest of the body causing the person to fall backwards. If you are still confused draw a simple diagram with a stick man and add arrows for the direction of travel and direction of acceleration.

Answered by Alice J. Physics tutor

13401 Views

See similar Physics A Level tutors

Related Physics A Level answers

All answers ▸

What is the stress in a cylindrical rod of 10.0cm diameter when loaded by 50.0N force at each end?


Given that a light ray enters a glass prism at angle of 50 degrees from the normal and is refracted to an angle of 30 degrees from the normal, calculate the speed of light in glass.


A 80kg man is hanging from two 1.5m ropes that lie at 60 degrees from the horizontal. What is the tension in each rope required to prevent the man from dropping?


A projectile is launched from the ground at a speed of 40ms^-1 at an angle of 30 degrees to the horizontal, where does it land? What is the highest point the projectile reaches?


We're here to help

contact us iconContact usWhatsapp logoMessage us on Whatsapptelephone icon+44 (0) 203 773 6020
Facebook logoInstagram logoLinkedIn logo

© MyTutorWeb Ltd 2013–2025

Terms & Conditions|Privacy Policy
Cookie Preferences