Contact and non-contact forces
Most forces act only while two things touch: a foot kicking a ball, a hand opening a door, friction between a box and the floor. These are contact forces. Some forces act across a gap, without touching: the Earth's gravity pulls a falling apple, a magnet pulls a paperclip, and a rubbed plastic comb pulls bits of paper with an electric force. Non-contact forces are still forces between two objects, and they can act through paper, glass and water.
Depth 1 · Foundation
You can tell contact forces from forces that act without touching, and name three non-contact forces: gravity, the magnetic force and the electric force.
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Foundation
You can tell contact forces from forces that act without touching, and name three non-contact forces: gravity, the magnetic force and the electric force.
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