Discussion 10: Hooke's Law Answer the question below. Why does the restoring (elastic) force in Hooke's law have negative sign? Explain the meaning of the negative sign in $F_{spring} = -kx$ (Hooke's law).
Added by Timothy W.
Close
Step 1
The negative sign in Hooke's law indicates that the restoring force is always directed opposite to the displacement. In other words, when the spring is stretched or compressed, it will always try to return to its equilibrium position. This negative sign is Show more…
Show all steps
Your feedback will help us improve your experience
Sufiyan Alam and 96 other Physics 103 educators are ready to help you.
Ask a new question
Labs
Want to see this concept in action?
Explore this concept interactively to see how it behaves as you change inputs.
Key Concepts
Recommended Videos
In the equation for Hooke's Law, what does the minus sign indicate? It indicates that the restoring force acts in the opposite direction as the displacement. Mechanical energy in the system decreases as the oscillations increase. It indicates that the restoring force acts in the same direction as the displacement. When displacement is in the positive direction, energy will be negative.
Adi S.
Hooke’s law is stated as Fs = -kx. Which of the following statements is true about this law? Group of answer choices Negative sign is used to transfer a non-linear relationship into a linear one Negative sign implies that the spring force is always in the opposite direction of the displacement Negative sign implies that the frequency of an oscillating spring is negative Negative sign implies that the period of an oscillating spring is negative Negative sign is used because value of k is always negative
Neelesh S.
QUESTIONS Why is the elastic property of the spring an example of Hooke's law? Using the graph, explain the horizontal line through the Y-intercept of the straight line graph and form a triangle. Draw a vertical line through the last data point to prove that the area of the triangle is the work done in stretching the spring. From the graph, compute the work done in stretching the spring. CONCLUSION
Recommended Textbooks
University Physics with Modern Physics
Physics: Principles with Applications
Fundamentals of Physics
18,000,000+
Students on Numerade
Trusted by students at 8,000+ universities
Watch the video solution with this free unlock.
EMAIL
PASSWORD