Levers, Newton's Laws and Stability

What Levers, Newton's Laws and Stability covers

Levers, Newton's Laws and Stability is examined in Component 1, Scientific principles of physical education. It covers lever systems in the body, mechanical advantage and disadvantage of levers, Newton's laws of motion and force calculations and centre of mass and stability.

The 4 subtopics

Each one has its own page.

• Lever systems in the bodyThe effort, fulcrum and load of a lever, first-, second- and third-class arrangements and how to identify them, levers at the neck, elbow, ankle, knee and hip, and why third-class levers are the most common.Open →
• Mechanical advantage and disadvantage of leversEffort arm and resistance arm, calculating mechanical advantage at the ankle and elbow, the biceps force to hold a dumbbell, the trade-offs of second- and third-class levers, rackets and bats, the deadlift and the javelin thrower's shoulder.Open →
• Newton's laws of motion and force calculationsNewton's first, second and third laws with a penalty kick, a sprint start and a swimmer's turn, inertia, force and momentum, resultant and balanced forces, and worked weight, reaction, resultant force and acceleration calculations.Open →
• Centre of mass and stabilityThe centre of mass and how it moves, the line of gravity, the base of support, height, body mass and points of contact, the sprinter's set position, the goalkeeper's stance, the rugby player before contact and the trade-off with mobility.Open →

What you need to know

Answer each one before you reveal it.

Take Levers, Newton's Laws and Stability further

The same content, four other ways.

Commonly confused

Pairs that lose marks when they are blurred together.

• Second-class lever vs Third-class lever

  Second-class lever: an arrangement with the load between the pivot and the effort. Third-class lever: an arrangement with the effort between the pivot and the load.

• Effort arm vs Resistance arm

  Effort arm: the distance from the pivot to where the muscle pulls. Resistance arm: the distance from the pivot to the load being moved.

• Mass vs Weight

  Mass: the quantity of matter in a body, measured in kilograms. Weight: the gravitational pull on a body, measured in newtons.

Questions from this topic

Each one with the model answer underneath.

1. 1

   Name the three components of a lever.

   Model answer

   A lever has a fulcrum, an effort and a load, also called the resistance.

2. 2

   What provides each component of a lever in the human body?

   Model answer

   The joint acts as the fulcrum and the bone acts as the lever arm. The muscle supplies the effort, and the load is the body part or object being moved.

3. 3

   How is a first-class lever arranged?

   Model answer

   A first-class lever has the fulcrum between the effort and the load.

4. 4

   How is a second-class lever arranged?

   Model answer

   A second-class lever has the load between the fulcrum and the effort.

5. 5

   How is a third-class lever arranged?

   Model answer

   A third-class lever has the effort between the fulcrum and the load.

6. 6

   What is the quickest way to identify the class of a lever?

   Model answer

   The component in the middle decides the class. A fulcrum in the middle gives first class, a load gives second class and an effort gives third class.

What is inside Levo

Six ways to work the same material.

Levers, Newton's Laws and Stability revision questions

What does Levers, Newton's Laws and Stability cover in Edexcel A-Level Physical Education?

4 subtopics: lever systems in the body, mechanical advantage and disadvantage of levers, newton's laws of motion and force calculations and centre of mass and stability. Each one has its own page with questions and model answers.

How is Levers, Newton's Laws and Stability organised?

By the Edexcel 9PE0 specification, subtopic by subtopic, so it matches the order you are taught it in.