---
id:"kb-2026-00372"
title:"Newton's Laws of Motion"
schema_type:"TechArticle"
category:"science"
language:"en"
confidence:"high"
last_verified:"2026-05-22"
generation_method:"ai_assisted"
ai_models:["claude-opus"]
derived_from_human_seed:true
primary_sources:
  - title:"Philosophiæ Naturalis Principia Mathematica (Newton, 1687)"
    type:"book"
    year:1687
    url:"https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/28233"
    institution:"Project Gutenberg"
secondary_sources:
  - title: "MDN Web Docs — HTTP"
    type: "documentation"
    year: 2026
    url: "https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Web/HTTP"
    institution: "Mozilla"
  - title: "RESTful Web APIs"
    authors: ["Richardson", "Amundsen"]
    type: "book"
    year: 2013
    url: "https://www.oreilly.com/library/view/restful-web-apis/9781449359713/"
    institution: "O'Reilly"
completeness: 0.88
ai_citations:
  last_citation_check:"2026-05-22"
---

## TL;DR

Newton's three laws (1687, Principia) form the foundation of classical mechanics. 1st Law (inertia): object at rest stays at rest; in motion stays in motion unless acted upon by force. 2nd Law: F = ma (force equals mass times acceleration). 3rd Law: every action has equal and opposite reaction.

## Core Explanation

1st Law: seatbelt prevents you from continuing forward when car stops — your body wants to keep moving (inertia). 2nd Law: heavier objects need more force to accelerate — why trucks accelerate slower than motorcycles. 3rd Law: rocket pushes exhaust down, exhaust pushes rocket up. Newton also: law of universal gravitation (F = Gm₁m₂/r²), calculus (simultaneously with Leibniz), optics (light = particles).

## Further Reading

- [Philosophiæ Naturalis Principia Mathematica (Newton, 1687)](https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/28233)