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. 2023 Oct 16;120(43):e2310223120. doi: 10.1073/pnas.2310223120

Table 1.

Ten laws of classical physics, adapted from refs. 3 and 4

Newton’s laws of motion
  • 1.

    First law of motion: A body will continue in its state of rest, or of uniform motion in a straight line, unless it is compelled to change that state by forces imposed upon it.

  • 2.

    Second law of motion: Force equals mass times acceleration.

  • 3.

    Third law of motion: To every action force there is an equal and opposite reaction force.

Newton’s law of gravitational attraction
  • 4.

    Between any two objects there is an attractive force proportional to the products of the two masses divided by the square of the distance between them.

Laws of thermodynamics
  • 5.

    First law of thermodynamics: In a closed system, the total amount of energy is conserved.

  • 6.

    Second law of thermodynamics: Heat will not flow spontaneously from a colder to a warmer body.

Laws of electromagnetism (electricity and magnetism are two aspects of the same force)
  • 7.

    Electrostatics (Coulomb’s Law): The force between any two electrically charged objects is proportional to the product of their charges divided by the square of the distance between them.

  • 8.

    Magnetostatics: Every magnet is a dipole; like magnetic poles repel each other while unlike poles attract.

  • 9.

    Electromagnetism: Magnetic fields are created by moving electrical charges.

  • 10.

    Electromagnetic induction: Electrical fields and electrical currents are created by changing magnetic fields.