If students really understand that 'centripetal force' is shorthand for the
net force directed towards the center of the circular motion, then fine.
The problem is, often students think centripetal force is a separate entity
such as weight, or tension, or friction and fail to identify the actual
force causing the centripetal force--or more likely, add the centripetal
force as an extra force after already identifying the actual forces
involved.
Rick
----- Original Message -----
From: "Kilmer, Skip" <kilmers@GREENHILL.ORG>
To: <PHYS-L@lists.nau.edu>
Sent: Monday, November 17, 2003 8:40 AM
Subject: Re: Centrifugal force
Do you have the same objection to the forward force of tension, the backward
force of friction or the downward force of gravity. It seems to me that the
terms "centripetal" and "centrifugal" simply describe the direction of
particular forces or groups of forces. If our students use a system schema
to determine the objects interacting by each force, their force diagrams
tend to be more accurate and instructive.
skip