Physics Interview Question:

What is larger the force the earth exerts on you or the force you exert on the earth?

Submitted by: Administrator

A non-scientist's initial stab at this: If you are talking about gravity, they are equal. I don't see how they can be anything BUT equal. Gravity is an attractive force between two bodies. Every particle of my body attracts every particle of the earth. It wouldn't be stated any differently from the earth's point of view. [Actually, there is a flaw in the way you are framing the question, since the 2 "forces" you refer to can never be separated and studied independently]. The earth has much more inertia, so I move toward the earth.

The attractive force between the earth and moon is much greater than the attractive force between the earth and me. If I were in the moon's orbital path (but nowhere close to the moon) and traveling at the same velocity as the moon, I'd fly off into space, or maybe enter a wildly eccentric orbit that would eventually bring me crashing into the earth.
Submitted by: Administrator