The force of gravity on a 2.0 kg rock is twice as great as on a 1 kg rock. Why doesnt the heavier rock fall faster?

acceleration depends on force, and the amount of inertia. On the rock with twice the force, it also has twice the inertia.

a=F/m

To understand why the heavier rock does not fall faster, we need to consider the concept of gravitational acceleration. Gravitational acceleration is the same for all objects near the surface of the Earth and is denoted by the symbol "g."

The force of gravity acting on an object is given by the equation F = m * g, where F represents the force, m represents the mass of the object, and g represents the gravitational acceleration.

In this case, let's assume the gravitational acceleration is the same for both rocks. So, the force of gravity on the 2.0 kg rock would be twice as great as the force of gravity on the 1 kg rock (since the force of gravity is directly proportional to the mass).

However, according to Newton's Second Law of Motion, F = m * a, where a represents the acceleration of the object. We can rearrange this equation to solve for acceleration: a = F / m.

Since the gravitational acceleration is the same for both rocks, we can use this equation to calculate their individual acceleration.

For the 1 kg rock:
a₁ = F₁ / m₁
Since F₁ = m₁ * g, we have:
a₁ = (m₁ * g) / m₁
Canceling out m₁:
a₁ = g

Similarly, for the 2 kg rock:
a₂ = F₂ / m₂
Since F₂ = (2 * m₂) * g, we have:
a₂ = [(2 * m₂) * g] / m₂
Canceling out m₂:
a₂ = 2 * g

Comparing the two accelerations, a₁ = g and a₂ = 2 * g. We can clearly see that the acceleration of the heavier rock is twice the acceleration of the lighter rock, just as the force of gravity is twice as much.

So, in conclusion, both rocks experience the same gravitational acceleration despite having different masses. This means that both rocks will fall towards the Earth at the same rate.