“FOR EVERY ACTION . . .

. . . THERE IS AN OPPOSITE RE-ACTION”

This is the abbreviated, oft repeated, and highly misleading version of Newton’s 3rd Law of Motion

Think about it. This is one of three laws that govern all of the motion on Earth – and beyond! So what could this clipped version of Newton’s law possibly mean regarding motion? It means nothing in terms of understanding the influences of force and mass on the types of motion produced. Yet this scientifically meaningless phrase is used to explain a wide variety of irrelevant “life actions” including feelings, words, revenge, karma, or other interpersonal actions and the social reactions they produce.

So, here is the complete and scientific version of Newton’s 3rd Law of Motion:

“For every action FORCE(push or pull) exerted by a body on another body,

there is a reaction FORCE (push or pull) exerted by the second body on the first

that is equal in strength and opposite in direction.

The body that has the least inertia will move the most.”

It is often referred to as the LAW of PAIRED FORCES.

In essence, Newton’ 3rd Law of Motion describes how and why objects move. It also explains why objects are unable to move in the absence of paired forces.

Think about how and why things move forward – on land, in water, and through the air before reading the next post for some simple examples to help you understand.