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Last Modified: 1:01pm 10 Aug 11

Momentum turns out to be enormously useful in solving problems which involve collisions, even when you don't know the details. Why? Because under very common circumstances, the total momentum of a set of colliding objects will be the same before and after they collide; in other words, momentum is conserved.
Discussion of conservation of momentum (10 min)
Complications: Collisions in two dimensions, Gravity, Rockets
So far, all the examples have shown objects which are constrained to move in just one direction. What happens when objects are free to move in two dimensions? Can we still use momentum to figure out their motions after a collision? The answer, thank goodness, is "yes". We just have to apply conservation of momentum in each direction....
We have assumed in all examples so far that the objects involved in a collision retain their original mass throughout the process. But what happens if the mass of an object changes as it moves? This complicates the analysis, but forms the basis for rocket science.
Last Modified: 1:01pm 10 Aug 11

Momentum turns out to be enormously useful in solving problems which involve collisions, even when you don't know the details. Why? Because under very common circumstances, the total momentum of a set of colliding objects will be the same before and after they collide; in other words, momentum is conserved.
Discussion of conservation of momentum (10 min)
Complications: Collisions in two dimensions, Gravity, Rockets
So far, all the examples have shown objects which are constrained to move in just one direction. What happens when objects are free to move in two dimensions? Can we still use momentum to figure out their motions after a collision? The answer, thank goodness, is "yes". We just have to apply conservation of momentum in each direction....
We have assumed in all examples so far that the objects involved in a collision retain their original mass throughout the process. But what happens if the mass of an object changes as it moves? This complicates the analysis, but forms the basis for rocket science.
Last Modified: 1:01pm 10 Aug 11

Momentum turns out to be enormously useful in solving problems which involve collisions, even when you don't know the details. Why? Because under very common circumstances, the total momentum of a set of colliding objects will be the same before and after they collide; in other words, momentum is conserved.
Discussion of conservation of momentum (10 min)
Complications: Collisions in two dimensions, Gravity, Rockets
So far, all the examples have shown objects which are constrained to move in just one direction. What happens when objects are free to move in two dimensions? Can we still use momentum to figure out their motions after a collision? The answer, thank goodness, is "yes". We just have to apply conservation of momentum in each direction....
We have assumed in all examples so far that the objects involved in a collision retain their original mass throughout the process. But what happens if the mass of an object changes as it moves? This complicates the analysis, but forms the basis for rocket science.
Last Modified: 1:01pm 10 Aug 11
