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NCERT Solutions Curiosity Chapter 5 .2 What Can a Force Do to the Objects on Which It Is Applied? · Table 5.1 — Activity 5.2: Let us analyse

Book page 645 Updated on2026-09-05

Q1.
Think of situations where a force (push or pull) is applied and list them in Table 5.1. Analyse each situation and write the effect of the force in Table 5.1. Some situations and their effects are already listed for you.
Answer

Here is Table 5.1 completed. The first three rows are the ones the book has already filled in; the rest are situations from everyday life.

S.No.ActionPush / PullEffect
1.Your friend holding your moving bicycle from behind to stop itPullStopping or decreasing the speed of the bicycle
2.Hitting a moving ball with a batPushChanging the direction of a moving ball
3.Pressing an inflated balloonPushChange in shape of the balloon
4.Kicking a football lying on the groundPushMakes the ball move from rest
5.Opening a drawerPullThe drawer moves from rest
6.Stretching a rubber bandPullChange in shape (it becomes longer and thinner)
7.Rolling a chapati with a belanPushChange in shape of the dough
8.Turning the steering handle of an autorickshawPush with one hand, pull with the otherChange in the direction of motion
9.Applying brakes on a moving bicyclePush on the brake leverSpeed decreases and the cycle finally stops
10.A fielder stopping a fast-moving ballPush (his palms push back on the ball)Speed of the ball becomes zero
Tip: when you fill this table yourself, first ask in which direction is the force applied? If it is away from the person, it is a push; if it is towards the person, it is a pull.
Q2.
What do you conclude from these examples? Does a force cause a moving object to stop? Can it change speed, or direction of motion, or change the shape of an object?
Answer

Yes to all of them. The examples show that a force applied on an object may

  • make an object move from rest (row 4, 5);
  • change the speed of an object if it is moving — including bringing it to a stop, which is simply a change of speed to zero (rows 1, 9, 10);
  • change the direction of motion of an object (rows 2, 8);
  • bring about a change in the shape of an object (rows 3, 6, 7);
  • cause some or all of these effects together.
Why it happens: the conclusion runs the other way too, and that is the more useful half of it — wherever you see a change in speed, in direction, or in shape, a force must be acting. Nothing on this list happens on its own.
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