The Direction of Weight

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Weight is just a force, and like any other force, weight always has a direction.  When an object is at or near the surface of the earth, its weight always points downward toward the center of the earth.

For any object at or near the surface of the earth, weight (the force due to gravity) always points downward toward the center of the earth.

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Try out the "Mass and Weight Self-Quiz" below to see what you know about the two concepts.

Mass and Weight Self-Quiz

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1. True or false? Your mass depends on your location.
   1.   ?    True
   2.   ?    False
2. True or false? Your weight depends on your location.
   1.   ?    True
   2.   ?    False
3. True or false? The only difference between mass and weight is the SI units used.
   1.   ?    True
   2.   ?    False
4. True or false? Your weight is inversely proportional to your mass.
   1.   ?    True
   2.   ?    False
5. True or false? For an object which remains on the surface of the earth, an increase in mass results in an increase in weight.
   1.   ?    True
   2.   ?    False
6. True or false? An objects' weight is equal to its mass multiplied by the square of the acceleration due to gravity.
   1.   ?    True
   2.   ?    False
7. True or false? Mass is a vector quantity.
   1.   ?    True
   2.   ?    False
8. True or false? Weight is a vector quantity.
   1.   ?    True
   2.   ?    False
9. True or false? The SI unit for mass is the gram.
   1.   ?    True
   2.   ?    False
10. True or false? The SI unit for weight is the Newton.
    1.   ?    True
    2.   ?    False

 OK 

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