Simple mechanical systems and the Galilean transformation

HAL (Le Centre pour la Communication Scientifique Directe)

Abstract

Simple mechanical systems such as idealised pendulums are quite easy to comprehend both qualitatively and quantitatively. The Galilean transformation does not pose any particular conceptual challenge either. Yet students often have problems with the application of such coordinate transformations to simple mechanical systems. With three examples I will highlight various pitfalls, thus confirming that it is very instructive to analyse a system from different frames of reference.

Authors 1

1. Thomas Hebbeker corresponding Aachen

   RWTH Aachen University

   Affiliation as printed

   Rheinisch-Westfälische Technische Hochschule Aachen University