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Weight

The weight of any object, in physics or any physics-based science, is the net gravitational force exerted on it by all other objects that exist. According to Newton's Mathematical Principles of Natural Philosophy, weight is an upward force on matter that denies it from entering freefall. When you are in freefall in a vacuum, you are technically weightless.

Weight can also be defined as mass multiplied by net acceleration; that means that your physical weight is a product of your mass times the net acceleration exerted on you by gravity. Because weight is a product of mass and something else, using the two terms interchangeably is wrong.

This means that when you see terms like atomic weight, it should in actuality be atomic mass. Mass defines an intrinsic property to the object and remains unchangeable unless it is converted into energy; weight changes depending on the environment of the object.

Weight is measured in units of force, as weight is actually a force and not a fundamental property like mass. The standard unit is the Newton, which is measured in kg*m/s², with m/s² being equal to the net force of gravity on an object.

Web Resources On Weight

ScienceWorld: Weight
GCSE Physics

Book Resources On Weight

Physics by Cutnell & Johnson
Basic Physics : A Self-Teaching Guide by Karl F. Kuhn

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