Re: Banked road

["Daniel L. MacIsaac" <Dan.MacIsaac@NAU.EDU>]

> Acceleration along an inclined plane does not change N but
> the circular motion does. In both cases N is a reaction
> force. In the first case it the reaction to the perpendicular
> component of mg, in the second case N also has a component
> which is the reaction to the CENTRIFUGAL force. Is this an
> acceptable interpretation?

Now you're going to make me into that which I fear most -- the language
police.  I'd not consider CENTRIFUGAL a worthwhile term to use except
as an example of less complete reasoning to move away from.  Trying
to use CENTRIFUGAL forces in FBDs can lead you astray immediately unless
you develop sophisticated rules for frames of reference, in which case
you are violating N1.  These rules are also more complex (the phrase
cognitive overhead comes to mind here) than simply doing the analysis in a
dynamic (accelerating) frame of reference.

Other than the word CENTRIFUGAL, the rest looks good for instructional
language to me.

Dan M

Dan MacIsaac, Assistant Professor of Physics and Astronomy, Northern AZ Univ
danmac@nau.edu          http://purcell.phy.nau.edu         PHYS-L list owner