Please tell me how does the physics involve to the rocking horse?

Question

HOW DOES THE PHYSICS INVOLVES TO THE ROCKING CRITTER/HORSE??
IT'S FOR MY PHYSICS RESEARCH~
AND WHERE CAN I FIND IT??

Answer 1

According to Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Newton%27s_Laws
"Briefly stated, the three laws are:

1. An object will remain at rest, or continue to move at a constant velocity, unless a net force acts on it.
2. Net force on an object is equal to its mass multiplied by its acceleration.
3. For every force acting on an object, the object will exert an equal, yet opposite, force on its cause. "

1. The rocking horse will remain still and at rest unless it is moved and once inertia has been overcome and it starts to move it will want to remain moving until friction slows it down.
2. The force you apply to the rocking horse is answered in the equation F=ma; your force = your mass X the acceleration you impart to the horse.
3. THIS IS THE IMPORTANT ONE. When you push forward on the rocking horse then that same force is applied to the springs and the spring's recoil is what knocks you back. OR if you are using an old fashioned one with no springs then the forward push moves your center of gravity forward and the arc of the rockers stops you from falling forward, then that same force is applied against you pushing you backwards. Most often known as: "Every action has an equal and opposite reaction".

If you use springs or a rocker the principle is the same the horse goes back and forth in an oscillating fashion and it wants to keep going that way until entropy slows it down. In a perfect world you would just keep rocking, but entropy is that show stealer that slows everything down.

Basically entropy (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Entropy) is the tendency of the universe to go degrade toward chaos. In this case the energy is lost in the springs or the friction of you constantly moving back and forth causes you to slow down. Then there is air resistance and the simple fact that nature seems to abhor perpetual motion machines.

If you were to balance your rocking horse on top of the International Space Station in micro gravity and in a near airless void you would still slow down thanks to entropy, it would just take longer.