Article
Article
- Physics
- Classical mechanics
- Inertia
Inertia
Article By:
Nedelsky, Leo Formerly, Department of Physical Science, University of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois.
Last reviewed:2014
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1036/1097-8542.342400
That property of matter which manifests itself as a resistance to any change in the motion of a body. Thus when no external force is acting, a body at rest remains at rest and a body in motion continues moving in a straight line with a uniform speed (Newton's first law of motion). The mass of a body is a measure of its inertia. See also: Mass
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