Re: ACCELERATION

["Michael N. Monce" <mnmon@CONNCOLL.EDU>]

On Thu, 14 Sep 2000, Leigh Palmer wrote:

> What has been implicit here is that one is talking about the motion of a
> massive extended object - and idealizing it by discussing the motion
> of a point having no size - or substantial reality!


        True, we generally talk about such motions with regard to points,
but don't we also show that the motion of an extended object, or group of
smaller objects, can be described by applying Newton to the
center-of-mass; a point of no size.  So motion of extended (real) objects
can be modeled quite accurately by using a single point.

                        Mike Monce
                        Connecticut College