According to Newton's first law, what happens to an object at rest?

According to Newton's first law of motion, often referred to as the law of inertia, an object at rest will remain at rest unless acted upon by a net external force. This principle highlights the concept that objects tend to maintain their current state of motion—whether that be at rest or moving with constant velocity—unless influenced by an outside force.

In practical terms, this means that if no net force is applied to an object that is stationary, it will not start moving on its own; it will stay where it is. This is foundational in understanding motion and forces, as it emphasizes the role of external influences in changing the state of an object.

The other options do not align with this principle: an object at rest cannot continue moving indefinitely without a force acting, it does not randomly change its state, and it does not simply start to accelerate on its own without a net force being applied. Thus, the most accurate representation of this law is that an object at rest will stay at rest unless a net force acts on it.