Verifying F=ma

Newton’s second law is verified in this lab through the use of a cart and rail attached to a pulley system, tested with various masses on the cart and a constant hanging mass. Thus, if we know the force applied and the mass, we can use this equation to calculate the acceleration of an object. Conversely, if we can measure the acceleration and mass of an object, we can also compute the applied force. Our results were confirmed by the values obtained as a result of this experiment.