100 words, provided referenced list. Theory According to Newton’s Second Law, F=ma, F is the net force acting on the object of mass m and a is the resulting acceleration of the object. For a cart of mass m_1 on a horizontal track with a string attached over a pulley to a mass m_2 (see Figure 1.1), then the net force F on the entire system (cart and hanging mass) is the weight of the hanging mass, F=m_2 g, assuming that friction is negligible. According to Newton’s Second Law, this net force should be equal to ma, where m is the total mass that is being accelerated, which in this case is m_1+m_2. This experiment will check to see if m_2 g is equal to (m_1+m_2)a when friction is ignored. To obtain the acceleration, the cart will be started from rest, and the time (t) it takes for it to travel a certain distance (s) will be measured. Then since s=1/2 at^2, the acceleration can be calculated using: a=2s/t^2 (assuming a=constant)