2026 (Current Year) Faculty Courses Liberal arts and basic science courses Basic science and technology courses
Fundamentals of Mechanics 2 M
- Academic unit or major
- Basic science and technology courses
- Instructor(s)
- Satoshi Okuma
- Class Format
- Lecture (Face-to-face)
- Media-enhanced courses
- -
- Day of week/Period
(Classrooms) - 3-4 Fri (WL2-401(W641))
- Class
- M
- Course Code
- LAS.P102
- Number of credits
- 100
- Course offered
- 2026
- Offered quarter
- 2Q
- Syllabus updated
- Mar 5, 2026
- Language
- Japanese
Syllabus
Course overview and goals
Following Fundamentals of Mechanics 1, this course teaches the mechanics of systems of interacting particles and rigid bodies (defined as systems of particles in which the distances between particles are fixed) as well as particle motion observed in a coordinate system undergoing acceleration.
Mechanics is important for understanding nature, and is essential for the study of science, engineering, life sciences, and other specialized courses. Building on the mechanics of single particles, students will learn the mechanics of systems of interacting particles. From this, they will learn the motion and balance of rigid bodies. In addition, they will learn particle motion in coordinate systems undergoing accelerated motion as well as inertial forces. At the end of class, students will be able to solve general problems in mechanics.
Thermodynamics, waves, and energy utilization are also key topics that will be covered in this course.
Course description and aims
By completing this course, students will be able to:
1) Correctly understand the concepts of momentum, angular momentum, energy, etc. in systems of particles; the center of mass, moment of inertia, etc. in rigid bodies; and mathematically describe them.
2) Correctly understand motion and equilibrium of rigid bodies, and solve actual physical problems by applying the appropriate mathematical formulas.
3) Correctly understand the concept of inertial forces (Coriolis force and centrifugal force) and mathematically describe them.
4) Correctly understand oscillatory and wave motion, and mathematically describe them.
5) Find mathematical solutions to problems in mechanics, expressed by the appropriate equations, and explain the physical meaning of said solutions.
Keywords
relative coordinates, reduced mass, center of mass, momentum, angular momentum, energy, rigid bodies, equilibrium, moment of inertia, inertial force, Coriolis force, centrifugal force, thermodynamics, waves
Competencies
- Specialist skills
- Intercultural skills
- Communication skills
- Critical thinking skills
- Practical and/or problem-solving skills
Class flow
Two-thirds of each class is devoted to fundamentals and the rest to advanced content or application. To allow students to get a good grasp of the course contents and practice problem solving skills, problems related to the contents of this course are provided in Exercises in Physics I.
Course schedule/Objectives
| Course schedule | Objectives | |
|---|---|---|
| Class 1 | Angular momentum, torque, law of conservation of angular momentum |
Explain the conditions for angular momentum conservation. |
| Class 2 | Motion of planets, Newton's law of gravitation, Kepler's law, polar coordinates, angular momentum |
Explain Kepler's three laws. |
| Class 3 | Motion in an accelerated coordinate system: inertial force, Coriolis force, centrifugal force, Foucault pendulum |
Explain the Coriolis force and the centrifugal force. |
| Class 4 | System of particles: two-body collision, relative coordinate, system of N particles |
Consider the motion of the Moon and the Earth in relative coordinates. |
| Class 5 | Angular momentum and energy of a system of particles, rigid body mechanics: center of mass |
Calculate the center of mass of a cone. |
| Class 6 | Rigid body mechanics: moment of inertia, equations of motion for a rigid body |
Calculate the moment of inertia for a cone and a hemisphere |
| Class 7 | Rotational motion about a fixed axis, planar motion of a rigid body, some problems on rigid body motion |
Explain the relation between a torque and rotation of a rigid body. |
Study advice (preparation and review)
To enhance effective learning, students are encouraged to spend approximately 100 minutes preparing for class and another 100 minutes reviewing class content afterwards (including assignments) for each class.
They should do so by referring to textbooks and other course material.
Textbook(s)
Toda Morikazu, RIKIGAKU (Mechanics). Iwanami Shoten, Publishers; ISBN-13: 978-4000298612 (Japanese)
Reference books, course materials, etc.
Lecture notes are uploaded before lecture.
Evaluation methods and criteria
Evaluated by final exam.
Related courses
- LAS.P105 ： Exercises in Physics I
Prerequisites
No prerequisites.