SOAL CRP University of Minnesota Physics Education Research and Development

11/28/2014
UniversityofMinnesotaPhysicsEducationResearchandDevelopment
UniversityofMinnesota
http://www.umn.edu/
6126255000
PhysicsEducationResearchandDevelopmentGroup
OnlineArchiveofContextrichProblems:
Mechanicsproblems:
LinearKinematics:
OnedimensionalMotionataConstantVelocity
1. YouarewritingashortadventurestoryforyourEnglishclass.Inyourstory,twosubmarinesonasecretmissionneedtoarriveataplaceinthe
middleoftheAtlanticoceanatthesametime.Theystartoutatthesametimefrompositionsequallydistantfromtherendezvouspoint.They
travelatdifferentvelocitiesbutbothgoinastraightline.Thefirstsubmarinetravelsatanaveragevelocityof20km/hrforthefirst500km,40
km/hrforthenext500km,30km/hrforthenext500kmand50km/hrforthefinal500km.Intheplot,thesecondsubmarineisrequiredto
travelataconstantvelocity,sothecaptainneedstodeterminethemagnitudeofthatvelocity.
2. Itisabeautifulweekenddayand,sincewinterwillsoonbehere,youandfourofyourfriendsdecidetospenditoutdoors.Twoofyourfriends
justwanttorelaxwhiletheothertwowantsomeexercise.Youneedsomequiettimetostudy.Tosatisfyeveryone,thegroupdecidestospend
thedayontheriver.Twopeoplewillputacanoeintheriverandjustdriftdownstreamwiththe1.5mileperhourcurrent.Thesecondpairwill
beginatthesametimeasthefirstfrom10milesdownstream.Theywillpaddleupstreamuntilthetwocanoesmeet.Sinceyouhavebeen
canoeingwiththesepeoplebefore,youknowthattheywillhaveanaveragevelocityof2.5milesperhourrelativetotheshorewhentheygo
againstthisrivercurrent.Whenthetwocanoesmeet,theywillcometoshoreandyoushouldbetheretomeetthemwithyourvan.Youdecide
togotothatspotaheadoftimesoyoucanstudywhileyouwaitforyourfriends.Wherewillyouwait?
3. It'sasunnySundayafternoon,about65F,andyouarewalkingaroundLakeCalhounenjoyingthelastoftheautumncolor.Thesidewalkis
crowdedwithrunnersandwalkers.Younoticearunnerapproachingyouwearingateeshirtwithwritingonit.Youreadthefirsttwolines,but
areunabletoreadthethirdandfinallinebeforehepasses.Youwonder,"Hmm,ifhecontinuesaroundthelake,IbetI'llseehimagain,butI
shouldanticipatethetimewhenwe'llpassagain."Youlookatyourwatchanditis3:07p.m.Yourecallthelakeis3.4milesincircumference.
Youestimateyourwalkingspeedat3milesperhourandtherunner'sspeedtobeabout7milesperhour.
4. YouhavejoinedtheUniversityteamracingasolarpoweredcar.Theoptimalaveragespeedforthecardependsontheamountofsunhittingits
solarpanels.Yourjobistodeterminestrategybyprogrammingacomputertocalculatethecar'saveragespeedforadayconsistingofdifferent
raceconditions.Todothisyouneedtodeterminetheequationfortheday'saveragespeedbasedonthecar'saveragespeedforeachpartofthe
trip.Aspracticeyouimaginethattheday'sraceconsistsofsomedistanceunderbrightsun,thesamedistancewithpartlycloudyconditions,
andtwicethatdistanceundercloudyconditions.
5. Becauseofyourtechnicalbackground,youhavebeengivenajobasastudentassistantinaUniversityresearchlaboratorythathasbeen
investigatingpossibleaccidentavoidancesystemsforoiltankers.YourgroupisconcernedaboutoilspillsintheNorthAtlanticcausedbya
supertankerrunningintoaniceberg.Thegrouphasbeendevelopinganewtypeofdownlookingradarwhichcandetectlargeicebergs.They
areconcernedaboutitsrathershortrangeof2miles.Yourresearchdirectorhastoldyouthattheradarsignaltravelsatthespeedoflightwhich
is186,000milespersecondbutoncethesignalarrivesbackattheshipittakesthecomputer5minutestoprocessthesignal.Unfortunately,the
supertankersaresuchhugeshipsthatittakesalongtimetoturnthem.Yourjobistodeterminehowmuchtimewouldbeavailabletoturnthe
tankertoavoidacollisiononcethetankerdetectsaniceberg.AtypicalsailingspeedforsupertankersduringthewinterontheNorthAtlantic
isabout15milesperhour.Assumethatthetankerisheadingdirectlyatanicebergthatisdriftingat5milesperhourinthesamedirectionthat
thetankerisgoing.
Thefollowingfourproblemsaremathematicallyequivalent,withdifferentcontexts.
6. Youandyourfriendrunoutdoorsatleast10mileseverydaynomatterwhattheweather(wellalmost).Todaythetemperatureisatabrisk0oF
witha20oFwindchill.Yourfriend,arealrunningfanatic,insiststhatitisOKtorun.Youagreetothismadnessaslongasyoubothbeginat
yourhouseandendtherunathernicewarmhouseinawaythatneitherofyouhastowaitinthecold.Youknowthatsherunsatavery
consistentpacewithanaveragespeedof3.0m/s,whileyouraveragespeedisaconsistent4.0m/s.Yourfriendfinisheswarmingupfirstsoshe
cangetaheadstart.Theplanisthatshewillarriveatherhousefirstsothatshecanunlockthedoorbeforeyouarrive.Fiveminuteslater,you
noticethatshedroppedherkeys.Ifshefinishesherrunfirstshewillhavetostandaroundinthecoldandwillnotbehappy.Howfarfromyour
housewillyoubewhenyoucatchuptoherifyouleaveimmediately,runatyourusualpace,anddon'tforgettotakeherkeys?
investigatingpossibleaccidentavoidancesystemsforoiltankers.YourgroupisconcernedaboutoilspillsintheNorthAtlanticcausedbya
supertankerrunningintoaniceberg.Thegrouphasbeendevelopinganewtypeofdownlookingradarwhichcandetectlargeicebergs.They
areconcernedaboutitsrathershortrangeof2miles.Yourresearchdirectorhastoldyouthattheradarsignaltravelsatthespeedoflightwhich
is186,000milespersecondbutoncethesignalarrivesbackattheshipittakesthecomputer5minutestoprocessthesignal.Unfortunately,the
http://groups.physics.umn.edu/physed/Research/CRP/onlineArchive/ola.html
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supertankersaresuchhugeshipsthatittakesalongtimetoturnthem.Yourjobistodeterminehowmuchtimewouldbeavailabletoturnthe
tankertoavoidacollisiononcethetankerdetectsaniceberg.AtypicalsailingspeedforsupertankersduringthewinterontheNorthAtlantic
isabout15milesperhour.Assumethatthetankerisheadingdirectlyatanicebergthatisdriftingat5milesperhourinthesamedirectionthat
thetankerisgoing.
investigatingpossibleaccidentavoidancesystemsforautomobiles.Youhavejustbegunastudyofhowbatsavoidobstacles.Inyourstudy,a
batisfittedwithatransceiverthatbroadcaststhebatsvelocitytoyourinstruments.Yourresearchdirectorhastoldyouthatthesignaltravelsat
thespeedoflightwhichis1.0ft/nanosecond(1nanosecondis109seconds).Youknowthatthebatdetectsobstaclesbyemittingaforward
goingsoundpulse(sonar)whichtravelsat1100ft/sthroughtheair.Thebatdetectstheobstaclewhenthesoundpulsereflectfromtheobstacle
andthatreflectedpulseisheardbythebat.Youaretoldtodeterminethemaximumamountoftimethatabathasafteritdetectstheexistence
ofanobstacletochangeitsflightpathtoavoidtheobstacle.Intheexperimentyourinstrumentstellyouthatabatisflyingstraighttowarda
wallataconstantvelocityof20.0ft/sandemitsasoundpulsewhenitis10.0ftfromthewall.
9. YouhavebeenhiredtoworkinaUniversityresearchlaboratoryassistinginexperimentstodeterminethemechanismbywhichchemicalssuch
asaspirinrelievepain.Yourtaskistocalibrateyourdetectionequipmentusingthepropertiesofaradioactiveisotope(anatomwithan
unstablenucleus)whichwilllaterbeusedtotrackthechemicalthroughthebody.Youhavebeentoldthatyourisotopedecaysbyfirstemitting
anelectronandthen,sometimelater,itemitsaphotonwhichyouknowisaparticleoflight.Yousetupyourequipmenttodeterminethetime
betweentheelectronemissionandthephotonemission.Yourapparatusdetectsbothelectronsandphotons.Youdeterminethattheelectron
andphotonfromadecayarriveatyourdetectoratthesametimewhenitis2.0feetfromyourradioactivesample.Apreviousexperimenthas
shownthattheelectronfromthisdecaytravelsatonehalfthespeedoflight.Youknowthatthephotontravelsatthespeedoflightwhichis1.0
footpernanosecond.Ananosecondis109seconds.
OnedimensionalMotionataConstantAcceleration
10. Youarepartofacitizen'sgroupevaluatingthesafetyofahighschoolathleticprogram.Tohelpjudgethedivingprogramyouwouldliketo
knowhowfastadiverhitsthewaterinthemostcomplicateddive.Thecoachhashisbestdiverperformforyourgroup.Thediver,after
jumpingfromthehighboard,movesthroughtheairwithaconstantaccelerationof9.8m/s2.Laterinthedive,shepassesnearalowerdiving
boardwhichis3.0mabovethewater.Withyourtrustystopwatch,youdeterminethatittook0.20secondstoenterthewaterfromthetimethe
diverpassedthelowerboard.Howfastwasshegoingwhenshehitthewater?
11. Asyouaredrivingtoschooloneday,youpassaconstructionsiteforanewbuildingandstoptowatchforafewminutes.Acraneisliftinga
batchofbricksonapallettoanupperfloorofthebuilding.Suddenlyabrickfallsofftherisingpallet.Youclockthetimeittakesforthebrick
tohitthegroundat2.5seconds.Thecrane,fortunately,hasheightmarkingsandyouseethebrickfelloffthepalletataheightof22meters
abovetheground.Afallingbrickcanbedangerous,andyouwonderhowfastthebrickwasgoingwhenithittheground.Sinceyouaretaking
physics,youquicklycalculatetheanswer.
12. Becauseofyourknowledgeofphysics,youhavebeenhiredasatechnicaladviseronanewactionmovie.Inonescene,theheropursuesthe
villainuptothetopofabungeejump.Thevillaincreatesadiversionbydroppingabottlefilledwithdeadlygas.Thescriptcallsfortheheroto
quicklystrapona100ft.bungeecordandjumpstraightdowntograbthebottleoutoftheairjustasthebungeecordbeginstostretch.Your
jobistodeterminethefeasibilityofthestuntbyfindingtheinitialspeedwithwhichtheherolengthneedstojumpdownwardtocatchthe
bottle.Youestimatethattheherocanreacttothevillain'sdroppingthebottlebystrappingonthebungeecordandjumpingin2.0seconds.
13. YouarehelpingafrienddevisesomechallengingtricksfortheupcomingTwinCitiesFreestyleSkateboardCompetition.Toplanaseriesof
moves,heneedstoknowtheratethattheskateboard,withhimonboard,slowsdownasitcoastsupthecompetitionrampwhichisat30to
thehorizontal.Assumingthatthisrateisconstant,youdecidetohavehimconductanexperiment.Whenheistravelingasfastaspossibleon
hiscompetitionskateboard,hestopspushingandcoastsupthecompetitionramp.Youmeasurethathetypicallygoesabout95feetin6
seconds.Yourfriendweighs170lbswearingallofhissafetygearandtheskateboardweighs6lbs.
14. YouhaveasummerjobworkingforaUniversityresearchgroupinvestigatingthecausesoftheozonedepletionintheatmosphere.Theplanis
tocollectdataonthechemicalcompositionoftheatmosphereasafunctionofthedistancefromthegroundusingamassspectrometerlocated
inthenoseconeofarocketfiredvertically.Tomakesurethedelicateinstrumentssurvivethelaunch,yourtaskistodeterminetheacceleration
oftherocketbeforeitusesupitsfuel.Therocketislaunchedstraightupwithaconstantaccelerationuntilthefuelisgone30secondslater.To
collectenoughdata,thetotalflighttimemustbe5.0minutesbeforetherocketcrashesintotheground.
OnedimensionalMotionataConstantVelocityandAcceleration
15. YouhavelandedasummerjobasthetechnicalassistanttothedirectorofanadventuremovieshothereinMinnesota.Thescriptcallsfora
largepackagetobedroppedontothebedofafastmovingpickuptruckfromahelicopterthatishoveringabovetheroad,outofviewofthe
camera.Thehelicopteris235feetabovetheroad,andthebedofthetruckis3feetabovetheroad.Thetruckistravelingdowntheroadat40
miles/hour.Youmustdeterminewhentocuetheassistantinthehelicoptertodropthepackagesoitlandsinthetruck.Thedirectorispaying
$20,000perhourforthechopper,sohewantsyoutodothissuccessfullyinonetake.
16. Justforthefunofit,youandafrienddecidetoenterthefamousTourdeMinnesotabicycleracefromRochestertoDuluthandthentoSt.Paul.
Youareridingalongatacomfortablespeedof20mphwhenyouseeinyourmirrorthatyourfriendisgoingtopassyouatwhatyouestimate
tobeaconstant30mph.Youwill,ofcourse,takeupthechallengeandacceleratejustasshepassesyouuntilyoupassher.Ifyouaccelerateat
aconstant0.25milesperhoureachseconduntilyoupassher,howlongwillshebeaheadofyou?
17. Inyournewjob,youarethetechnicaladvisorforthewritersofagangstermovieaboutBonnieandClyde.InonesceneBonnieandClydetry
tofleefromonestatetoanother.(Iftheygotacrossthestateline,theycouldevadecapture,atleastforawhileuntiltheybecameFederal
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fugitives.)Inthescript,Bonnieisdrivingdownthehighwayat108km/hour,andpassesaconcealedpolicecarthatis1kilometerfromthe
stateline.TheinstantBonnieandClydepassthepatrolcar,thecoppullsontothehighwayandacceleratesataconstantrateof2m/s2.The
writerswanttoknowiftheymakeitacrossthestatelinebeforethepursuingcopcatchesupwiththem.
18. TheUniversitySkydivingClubhasaskedyoutoplanastuntforanairshow.Inthisstunt,twoskydiverswillstepoutofoppositesidesofa
stationaryhotairballoon5,000feetabovetheground.Thesecondskydiverwillleavetheballoon20secondsafterthefirstskydiverbutyou
wantthembothtolandonthegroundatthesametime.Theshowisplannedforadaywithnowindsoassumethatallmotionisvertical.To
getaroughideaofthesituation,assumethataskydiverwillfallwithaconstantaccelerationof32ft/sec2beforetheparachuteopens.Assoon
astheparachuteisopened,theskydiverfallswithaconstantvelocityof10ft/sec.Ifthefirstskydiverwaits3secondsaftersteppingoutofthe
balloonbeforeopeningherparachute,howlongmustthesecondskydiverwaitafterleavingtheballoonbeforeopeninghisparachute?
19. Becauseparentsareconcernedthatchildrenarelearning"wrong"sciencefromTV,youhavebeenaskedtobeatechnicaladvisorforascience
fictioncartoonshowonSaturdaymorning.Intheplot,aviciouscriminal(NatashaNogood)escapesfromaspacestationprison.Theprisonis
locatedbetweengalaxiesfarawayfromanystars.Natashastealsasmallspaceshipandblastsofftomeetherpartnerssomewhereindeep
space.Thestolenshipacceleratesinastraightlineatitsmaximumpossibleaccelerationof30m/sec2.After10minutesallofthefuelis
burnedupandtheshipcoastsataconstantvelocity.Meanwhile,thehero(CaptainStarr)learnsoftheescapewhilediningintheprisonwith
thewarden'sdaughter(VirginiaLovely).Ofcourseheimmediately(assoonashefinishesdessert)rushesofftherecaptureNatasha.Hegives
chaseinanidenticalship,whichhasanidenticalmaximumacceleration,goinginanidenticaldirection.Unfortunately,Natashahasa30
minuteheadstart.Luckily,Natasha'sshipdidnotstartwithafullloadoffuel.Withhisfullloadoffuel,CaptainStarrcanmaintainmaximum
accelerationfor15minutes.HowlongwillittakeCaptainStarr'sshiptocatchuptoNatasha's?
20. Becauseparentsareconcernedthatchildrenarelearning"wrong"sciencefromTV,youhavebeenaskedtobeatechnicaladvisorforanew
sciencefictionshow.Theshowtakesplaceonaspacestationatrestindeepspacefarawayfromanystars.Intheplot,aviciouscriminal
(AliciaBadax)escapesfromthespacestationprison.Aliciastealsasmallspaceshipandblastsofftomeetherpartnerssomewhereindeep
space.Ifsheistojustbarelyescape,howlongdoherpartnershavetotransportheroffhershipbeforesheisdestroyedbyaphotontorpedo
fromthespacestation?Inthestory,thestolenshipacceleratesinastraightlineatitsmaximumpossibleaccelerationof30m/sec2.After10
minutes(600seconds)allofthefuelisburnedandtheshipcoastsataconstantvelocity.Meanwhile,theheroofthisepisode(MajorStarr)
learnsoftheescapewhilediningwiththestation'scommander.OfcoursesheimmediatelyrushesofftofirephotontorpedoesatAlicia.Once
fired,aphotontorpedotravelsataconstantvelocityof20,000m/s.BythattimeAliciahasa30minute(1800seconds)headstartonthephoton
torpedo.
21. YouwanttovisityourfriendinSeattleanddecidetotakethetrain.Unfortunately,youarelategettingtothetrainstation.Youarerunningas
fastasyoucan,but30metersaheadofyouthetrainbeginstopullout.Youcanrunatamaximumspeedof8m/sandthetrainisaccelerating
at1m/s/s.In50metersyouwillreachabarrier.Canyoucatchuptoyourtrain?
22. Becauseofyourknowledgeofphysics,youhavebeenassignedtoinvestigateatrainwreckbetweenafastmovingpassengertrainandaslower
movingfreighttrainbothgoinginthesamedirection.Youhavestatementsfromtheengineerofeachtrainandthestationmasteraswellas
somemeasurementswhichyoumake.Tochecktheconsistencyofeachperson'sdescriptionoftheeventsleadinguptothecollision,you
decidetocalculatethedistancefromthestationthatthecollisionshouldhaveoccurredifeveryoneweretellingwhatreallyhappenedand
comparethatwiththeactualpositionofthewreckwhichis0.5milesfromthestation.Inthiscalculationyoudecidethatyoucanignoreall
reactiontimes.Hereiswhatyouknow:
1. Thestationmasterclaimsthatshenotedthatthefreighttrainwasbehindschedule.Asregulationsrequire,sheswitchedonawarninglight
justasthelastcarofthefreighttrainpassedher.
2. Thefreighttrainengineersayshewasgoingataconstantspeedof10milesperhour.
3. Thepassengertrainengineersaysshewasgoingatthespeedlimitof40milesperhourwhensheapproachedthewarninglight.Justasshe
reachedthewarninglightshesawitgoonandimmediatelyhitthebrakes.
4. Thewarninglightislocatedsothatatraingetstoit2.0milesbeforeitgetstothestation.
5. Thepassengertrainslowsdownataconstantrateof1.0mileperhourforeachminuteassoonasyouhitthebrakes.
DOONLYTHEPROBLEMSOLVINGSTEPSNECESSARYTOFOCUSTHEPROBLEMANDDESCRIBETHEPHYSICSOFTHE
PROBLEM.DONOTSOLVETHISPROBLEM.
TwodimensionalMotionataConstantAcceleration(Projectile)
23. WhileonavacationtoKenya,youvisittheportcityofMombassaontheIndianOcean.OnthecoastyoufindanoldPortuguesefortprobably
builtinthe16thcentury.Largestonewallsriseverticallyfromtheshoretoprotectthefortfromcannonfirefrompirateships.Walkingaround
ontheramparts,youfindthefort'scannonsmountedsuchthattheyfirehorizontallyoutofholesnearthetopofthewallsfacingtheocean.
Leaningoutofoneofthesegunholes,youdroparockwhichhitstheocean3.0secondslater.Youwonderhowcloseapirateshipwouldhave
tosailtotheforttobeinrangeofthefort'scannon?Ofcourseyourealizethattherangedependsonthevelocitythatthecannonballleavesthe
cannon.Thatmuzzlevelocitydepends,inturn,onhowmuchgunpowderwasloadedintothecannon.(a)Calculatethemuzzlevelocity
necessarytohitapirateship300metersfromthebaseofthefort.(b)Todeterminehowthemuzzlevelocitymustchangetohitshipsat
differentpositions,makeagraphofhorizontaldistancetraveledbythecannonball(range)beforeithitstheoceanasafunctionofmuzzle
velocityofthecannonballforthisfort.
24. Becauseofyourknowledgeofphysics,youhavebeenhiredasaconsultantforanewJamesBondmovie,"Oldfinger".Inonescene,Bond
jumpshorizontallyoffthetopofaclifftoescapeavillain.Tomakethestuntmoredramatic,thecliffhasahorizontalledgeadistanceh
beneaththetopofthecliffwhichextendsadistanceLfromtheverticalfaceofthecliff.Thestuntcoordinatorwantsyoutodeterminethe
minimumhorizontalspeed,intermsofLandh,withwhichBondmustjumpsothathemissestheledge.
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25. Youareonthetargetrangepreparingtoshootanewriflewhenitoccurstoyouthatyouwouldliketoknowhowfastthebulletleavesthegun
(themuzzlevelocity).Youbringtherifleuptoshoulderlevelandaimithorizontallyatthetargetcenter.Carefullyyousqueezeofftheshotat
thetargetwhichis300feetaway.Whenyoucollectthetargetyoufindthatyourbullethit9.0inchesbelowwhereyouaimed.
26. YouhaveagreatsummerjobworkingonthespecialeffectsteamforaMinnesotamovie,thesequeltoFargo.Abodyisdiscoveredinafield
duringthefallhuntingseasonandthesheriffbeginsherinvestigation.Onesuspectisahunterwhowasseenthatmorningshootinghisrifle
horizontallyinthesamefield.Heclaimshewasshootingatadeerandmissed.Youaretodesigntheflashbackscenewhichshowshis
versionoffiringtherifleandthebulletkickingupdirtwhereithitstheground.Thesherifflaterfindsabulletintheground.Sheteststhe
hunter'srifleandfindsthevelocitythatitshootsabullet(muzzlevelocity).Inordertosatisfythenitpickerswhodemandthatmoviesbe
realistic,thedirectorhasassignedyoutocalculatethedistancefromthehunterthatthisbulletshouldhitthegroundasafunctionofthebullet's
muzzlevelocityandtherifle'sheightabovetheground.
27. ThePoliceDepartmenthashiredyouasaconsultantinarobberyinvestigation.Athiefallegedlyrobbedabankand,toescapethepursing
securityguards,tooktheexpresselevatortotheroofofthebuilding.Then,inordertonotbecaughtwiththeevidence,thethiefallegedly
threwthemoneybagtoawaitingaccompliceontheroofofthenextbuilding.Thedefenseattorneycontendsthatinordertoreachtheroofof
thatnextbuilding,thedefendantwouldhavehadtothrowthemoneybaghorizontallywithaminimumvelocityof10meters/second.However,
inatest,theaccusedcouldthrowthebagwithamaximumhorizontalvelocityofnomorethan5meters/second.Howwillyouadvisethe
prosecutingattorney?Youdeterminethatthebankbuildingis250metershigh,thenextbuildingis100metershighandthedistancebetween
themis20meters.
28. Youarewatchingpeoplepracticingarcherywhenyouwonderhowfastanarrowisshotfromabow.Withaflashofinsightyouremember
yourphysicsandseehowyoucaneasilydeterminewhatyouwanttoknowbyasimplemeasurement.Youaskoneofthearcherstopullback
herbowstringasfaraspossibleandshootanarrowhorizontally.Thearrowstrikesthegroundatanangleof86degreesfromtheverticalat
100feetfromthearcher.
29. YoureadinthenewspaperthatrocksfromMarshavebeenfoundonEarth.YourfriendsaysthattherockswereshotoffMarsbythelarge
volcanoesthere.Youareskepticalsoyoudecidetocalculatethemagnitudeofthevelocitythatvolcanoesejectrocksfromgeological
evidence.YouknowthegravitationalaccelerationofobjectsfallingnearthesurfaceofMarsisonly40%thatontheEarth.Youcanlookup
theheightofMartianvolcanoesanddeterminethedistancerocksfromavolcanohitthegroundfrompicturesoftheMartiansurface.Ifyou
assumetherocksfarthestfromavolcanowereejectedatanangleof45degrees,whatisthemagnitudeoftherock'svelocityasafunctionofits
distancefromthevolcanoandtheheightofthevolcanofortherockfurthestfromthevolcano?
30. Watchingtheworldseries(onlyasanexampleofphysicsinaction),youwonderabouttheabilityofthecatchertothrowoutabaserunner
tryingtostealsecond.Supposeacatcheriscroucheddownbehindtheplatewhenheobservestherunnerbreakingforsecond.Afterhegetsthe
ballfromthepitcher,hethrowsashardasnecessarytosecondbasewithoutstandingup.Ifthecatcherthrowstheballatanangleof30degrees
fromthehorizontalsothatitiscaughtatsecondbaseataboutthesameheightasthatcatcherthrewit,howmuchtimedoesittakefortheball
totravelthe120feetfromthecatchertosecondbase?
31. Becauseofyourphysicsbackground,youhavebeenhiredasaconsultantforanewmovieaboutGalileo.Inonescene,heclimbsuptothetop
ofatowerand,infrustrationoverthepeoplewhoridiculehistheories,throwsarockatagroupofthemstandingontheground.Therock
leaveshishandat30fromthehorizontal.Thescriptcallsfortherocktoland15mfromthebaseofthetowernearagroupofhisdetractors.It
isimportantforthescriptthattherocktakeprecisely3.0secondstohitthegroundsothatthereistimeforagoodexpressivecloseup.Theset
coordinatorisconcernedthattherockwillhitthegroundwithtoomuchspeedcausingcementchipsfromtheplazatoinjureoneofthehigh
pricedactors.Youaretoldtocalculatethatspeed.
32. Whilewatchingasoftballgameyouseeaplaythatmakesyouwonderhowfastafieldercantoreacttoahit,runtothefence,andleapupto
makethecatch.Inthisplay,thebatterhitsaballwhenitisbarelyofftheground.Itlookslikeahomerunovertheleftcenterfieldwallwhich
is200ftfromhomeplate.Assoonastheballishit,theleftfielderrunstothewall,leapshigh,andcatchestheitjustbeforeitclearsthetopof
10fthighwall.Youestimatethattheballleftthebatatanangleof30degrees.
33. Youarestillamemberofacitizen'scommitteeinvestigatingsafetyinthehighschoolsportsprogram.Nowyouareinterestedinkneedamage
toathletesparticipatinginthelongjump(sometimescalledthebroadjump).Thecoachhasherbestlongjumperdemonstratetheeventfor
you.Herunsdownthetrackand,atthetakeoffpoint,jumpsintotheairatanangleof30degreesfromthehorizontal.Hecomesdownina
sandpitatthesamelevelasthetrack26feetawayfromhistakeoffpoint.Withwhatvelocity(bothmagnitudeanddirection)didhehitthe
ground?
34. Inyournewjob,youarehelpingtodesignstuntsforanewmovie.Inonescenethewriterswantacartojumpacrossachasmbetweentwo
cliffs.Thecarisdrivingalongahorizontalroadwhenitgoesoveronecliff.Acrossthechasm,whichis1000feetdeep,isanotherroadata
lowerheight.Theywanttoknowtheminimumvalueofthespeedofthecarsothatitdoesnotfallintothechasm.Theyhavenotyetselected
thecarsotheywantanexpressionforthespeedofthecar,v,intermsofthecar'smass,m,thewidthofthechasm,w,andtheheightofthe
upperroad,h,abovethelowerroad.Thestuntdirectorwillplugintheactualnumbersafteracarispurchased.
35. YourfriendhasdecidedtomakesomemoneyduringthenextStateFairbyinventingagameofskillthatcanbeinstalledintheMidway.Inthe
gameasshehasdevelopeditsofar,thecustomershootsarifleata5.0cmdiametertargetfallingstraightdown.Anyonewhohitsthetargetin
thecenterwinsastuffedanimal.Eachshotwouldcost50cents.Theriflewouldbemountedonapivot1.0meterabovethegroundsothatit
canpointinanydirectionatanyangle.Whenshooting,thecustomerstands100metersfromwherethetargetwouldhitthegroundifthebullet
misses.Attheinstantthatthebulletleavestherifle(withamuzzlevelocityof1200ft/secaccordingtothemanual),thetargetisreleasedfrom
itsholder7.0metersabovetheground.Yourfriendasksyoutotryoutthegamewhichshehassetuponafarmoutsideoftown.Beforeyou
firethegunyoucalculatewhereyoushouldaim.
36. Youhaveasummerjobwithaninsurancecompanyandhavebeenaskedtohelpwiththeinvestigationofatragic"accident."Whenyouvisit
thescene,youseearoadrunningstraightdownahillwhichhasaslopeof10degreestothehorizontal.Atthebottomofthehill,theroadgoes
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horizontallyforaveryshortdistancebecomingaparkinglotoverlookingacliff.Thecliffhasaverticaldropof400feettothehorizontal
groundbelowwhereacariswrecked30feetfromthebaseofthecliff.Wasitpossiblethatthedriverfellasleepatthewheelandsimplydrove
overthecliff?Afterlookingpensive,yourbosstellsyoutocalculatethespeedofthecarasitleftthetopofthecliff.Sheremindsyoutobe
carefultowritedownallofyourassumptionssoshecanevaluatetheapplicabilityofthecalculationtothissituation.Obviously,shesuspects
foulplay.
37. Atyourjobwithaninsurancecompany,youhavebeenaskedtohelpwiththeinvestigationofatragic"accident."Atthesceneisaroadthat
runsstraightdownahillwithaslopeof10degreesbelowthehorizontal.Atthebottomofthehill,theroadgoeshorizontallyforaveryshort
distance,thenendsinaparkinglotoverlookingacliff.Thecliffhasaverticaldropof400feettothehorizontalgroundbelowwherethe
wreckedcarlies30feetfromthebaseofthecliff.Theonlywitnessclaimsthatthecarwasparkedsomewhereonthehill,hecan'texactly
rememberwhere,andthecarjustbegancoastingdowntheroad.Thewitnessdidnothearanengineandthinksthatthedriverwasdrunkand
passedoutknockingoffhisemergencybrake.Thewitnessalsoremembersthatthecartookabout3secondstogetdownthehill.Thelead
investigatordropsastonefromtheedgeofthecliffand,fromthesoundofithittingthegroundbelow,determinesthatittakes5.0secondsto
falltothebottom.Basedonthatinformation,youaretoldtocalculatethecar'saverageaccelerationcomingdownthehillusingthestatement
ofthewitnessandtheotherfactsinthecase.Youareremindedtowritedownallofyourassumptionssotheinvestigationteamcanevaluate
theapplicabilityofyourcalculationtothissituation.
38. Yourgrouphasbeenselectedtoserveonacitizen'spaneltoevaluateanewproposaltosearchforlifeonMars.Onthisunmannedmission,the
landerwillleaveorbitaroundMarsfallingthroughtheatmosphereuntilitreaches10,000metersabovethesurfaceoftheplanet.Atthattimea
parachuteopensandtakesthelanderdownto500meters.Becauseofthepossibilityofverystrongwindsnearthesurface,theparachute
detachesfromthelanderat500metersandthelanderfallsfreelythroughthethinMartianatmospherewithaconstantaccelerationof0.40gfor
1.0second.RetrorocketsthenfiretobringthelandertoasoftlytothesurfaceofMars.AteamofbiologistshassuggestedthatMartianlife
mightbeveryfragileanddecomposequicklyintheheatfromthelander.Theysuggestthatanysearchforlifeshouldbeginatleast9meters
fromthebaseofthelander.Thisbiologyteamhasdesignedaprobewhichisshotfromthelanderbyaspringmechanisminthelander2.0
metersabovethesurfaceofMars.Toreturnthedata,theprobecannotbemorethan11metersfromthebottomofthelander.Combiningthe
dataacquisitionrequirementswiththebiologicalrequirementstheteamdesignedtheprobetoenterthesurfaceofMars10metersfromthe
baseofthelander.Fortheprobetofunctionproperlyitmustimpactthesurfacewithavelocityof8.0m/satanangleof30degreesfromthe
vertical.Canthisprobeworkasdesigned?
39. Youhavebeenhiredasatechnicalconsultantforanewactionmovie.Thedirectorwantsasceneinwhichacargoesuponesideofanopen
drawbridge,leapsoverthegapbetweenthetwosidesofthebridge,andcomesdownsafelyontheothersideofthebridge.Thisdrawbridge
opensinthemiddlebyincreasingtheanglethateachsidemakeswiththehorizontalbyanequalamount.Thedirectorwantsthecartobe
stoppedatthebottomofonesideofthebridgeandthenaccelerateupthatsideinanamountoftimewhichwillallowforallthenecessary
dramaticcamerashots.Hewantsyoutodeterminethenecessaryconstantaccelerationasafunctionofthattime,thegapbetweenthetwosides
oftheopenbridge,theanglethatthesideoftheopenbridgemakeswiththehorizontal,andthemassofthecar.
TwodimensionalMotionataConstantVelocityandAcceleration
Thefollowingthreeproblemshaveaveryunfamiliarcontexts.
40. YouaresittinginfrontofyourTVwaitingfortheWorldSeriestobeginwhenyourmindwanders.Youknowthattheimageonthescreenis
createdwhenelectronsstrikethescreenwhichthengivesofflightfromthatpoint.InthefirstTVsets,theelectronbeamwasmovedaround
thescreentomakeapicturebypassingtheelectronsbetweentwoparallelsheetsofmetalcalledelectrodes.Beforetheelectronsenteredthe
gapbetweentheelectrodes,whichdeflectthebeamvertically,theelectronshadavelocityof1.0x106m/sdirectlytowardthecenterofthe
gapandtowardthecenterofthescreen.Eachelectrodewas5.0cmlong(directiontheelectronwasgoing),2.0cmwideandthetwowere
separatedby0.5cm.Avoltagewasappliedtotheelectrodeswhichcausedtheelectronspassingbetweenthemtohaveaconstantacceleration
directlytowardoneoftheelectrodesandawayfromtheother.Aftertheelectronsleftthegapbetweentheelectrodestheywerenotaccelerated
andtheycontinueduntiltheyhitthescreen.Thescreenwas15cmfromtheendoftheelectrodes.Whatverticalelectronaccelerationbetween
theelectrodeswouldbenecessarytodeflecttheelectronbeam20cmfromthecenterofthescreen?DOONLYTHEPROBLEMSOLVING
STEPSNECESSARYTOFOCUSTHEPROBLEMANDDESCRIBETHEPHYSICSOFTHEPROBLEM.DONOTSOLVETHIS
PROBLEM.
41. Youhaveasummerjobinthecancertherapydivisionofahospital.Thishospitaltreatscancerbyhittingthetumorwithhighenergyprotons
fromacyclotron.Whentheprotonsleavethecyclotrontheyaregoingathalfthespeedoflight.Youareinchargeofdeflectingtheprotonsso
theyhitthepatent'stumor.Thisdeflectionisaccomplishedbypassingtheprotonbeambetweentwoflat,parallelelectrodesthathavealength
of10feetintheenteringbeamdirection.Theprotonsentertheregionbetweentheelectrodesgoingparalleltotheirsurface.Thetwoelectrodes
areseparatedby1.5inches.Ahighvoltageisappliedtotheelectrodessothattheprotonspassingbetweenthemhaveaconstantaccelerationas
theyareattracteddirectlytowardoneandrepelledbytheother.Aftertheprotonsleavetheregionbetweentheplates,theyarenolonger
acceleratedduringtheremaining200feettothepatient.Tosetthecorrecthighvoltage,youneedtocalculatethemagnitudeoftheacceleration
theprotonsneedwhentheyarebetweentheplatessothattheyaredeflectedby1.0degree,theanglebetweentheincidentbeamandthebeam
hittingthepatient.Thespeedoflightis1.0footpernanosecond.
42. YouhaveasummerjobasanassistantinaUniversityresearchgroupthatisdesigningadevisetosampleatmosphericpollution.Inthisdevise,
itisusefultoseparatefastmovingionsfromslowmovingones.Todothistheionsarebroughtintothedeviceinanarrowbeamsothatallof
theionsaregoinginthesamedirection.Theionbeamthenpassesbetweentwoparallelmetalplates.Eachplateis5.0cmlong,4.0cmwide
andthetwoplatesareseparatedby3.0cm.Ahighvoltageisappliedtotheplatescausingtheionspassingbetweenthemtohaveaconstant
accelerationdirectlytowardoneoftheplatesandawayfromtheotherplate.Beforetheionsenterthegapbetweentheplates,theyaregoing
directlytowardthecenterofthegapparalleltothesurfaceoftheplates.Aftertheionsleavethegapbetweentheplates,theyarenolonger
acceleratedduringthe50cmjourneytotheiondetector.Yourbossasksyoutocalculatethemagnitudeofaccelerationbetweentheplates
necessarytoseparateionswithavelocityof100m/sfromthoseinthebeamgoing1000m/sby2.0cm?
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Forcesandacceleration
Note:Eachproblembeginswithalistofforcesnecessarytosolvethecontextrichproblem.Theseareforthebenefitoftheinstructor.Deletethelist
beforeusingtheproblemsinyourclass.
LinearAcceleration,NoForceComponents
1. Tension,WeightSOLUTION:FORTHEFOLLOWINGPLANTHEPROBLEM.Anartistfriendofyourswantsyouropinionofhisideafora
newkineticsculpture.Thebasicconceptistobalanceaheavyobjectwithtwolighterobjectsusingtwoverylightpulleys,whichare
essentiallyfrictionless,andlotsofstring.Thesculpturehasonepulleyhangingfromtheceilingbyastringattachedtoitscenter.Another
stringpassesoverthispulley.Oneendofthisstringisattachedtoa25lbobjectwhiletheothersupportsanotherpulleyatitscenter.This
secondpulleyalsohasastringpassingoveritwithoneendattachedtoa10lbobjectandtheothertoa15lbobject.Yourfriendhasn'tquite
figuredouttherestofthesculpturebutwantstoknowif,ignoringthemassofthepulleyandstring,the25lbobjectwillremainstationary
duringthetimethatthe10and15lbobjectsareaccelerating.DONOTSOLVETHEPROBLEM.
2. Weight,Normal:YouhavealwaysbeenimpressedbythespeedoftheelevatorsintheIDSbuildinginMinneapolis(especiallycomparedto
theoneinthePhysicsbuilding).Youwonderaboutthemaximumaccelerationfortheseelevatorsduringnormaloperation,soyoudecideto
measureitbyusingyourbathroomscale.Whiletheelevatorisatrestonthegroundfloor,yougetin,putdownyourscale,andstandonit.The
scalereads130lbs.Youcontinuestandingonthescalewhentheelevatorgoesup,carefullywatchingthereading.Duringthetriptothe50th
floor,thegreatestscalereadingwas180lbs.
3. Youaredesigningalampfortheinteriorofaspecialexecutiveexpresselevatorinanewofficebuilding.Thelamphastwosectionsthathang
onedirectlybelowtheother.Thebottomsectionisattachedtothetoponebyasinglethinwireandtheuppersectionisattachedtotheceiling
byanothersinglethinwire.Becausetheideaistomakeeachsectionappeartobefloatingwithoutsupport,youwanttousethethinnest(and
thusweakest)wirepossible.Youdecidetocalculatetheforceeachwiremustexertonthelampsectionsincaseofanemergencystop.The
elevatorhasallthelatestsafetyfeaturesandwillstopwithanaccelerationofg/3inanyemergency.Eachsectionofthelampweighs7.0N.
4. Youareinvestigatinganelevatoraccidentwhichhappenedinatallbuilding.Anelevatorinthisbuildingisattachedtoastrongcablewhich
runsoverapulleyattachedtoasteelsupportintheroof.Theotherendofthecableisattachedtoablockofmetalcalledacounterweightwhich
hangsfreely.Anelectricmotoronthesideoftheelevatordrivestheelevatorupordownbyexertingaforceonthesideoftheelevatorshaft.
Yoususpectthatwhentheelevatorwasfullyloaded,therewastoolargeaforceonthemotor.Afullyloadedelevatoratmaximumcapacity
weighs2400lbs.Thecounterweightweighs1000lbs.Theelevatoralwaysstartsfromrestatitsmaximumaccelerationofg/4whetheritis
goingupordown.(a)Whatforcedoesthewalloftheelevatorshaftexertonthemotoriftheelevatorstartsfromrestandgoesup?(b)What
forcedoesthewalloftheelevatorshaftexertonthemotoriftheelevatorstartsfromrestandgoesdown?
5. Tension,Weight:Anartistfriendofyourswantsyouropinionofhisideaforanewkineticsculpture.Thebasicconceptistobalanceaheavy
objectwithtwolighterobjectsusingtwoverylightpulleys,whichareessentiallyfrictionless,andlotsofstring.Thesculpturehasonepulley
hangingfromtheceilingbyastringattachedtoitscenter.Anotherstringpassesoverthispulley.Oneendofthisstringisattachedtoa25lb
objectwhiletheothersupportsanotherpulleyatitscenter.Thissecondpulleyalsohasastringpassingoveritwithoneendattachedtoa10lb
objectandtheothertoa15lbobject.Yourfriendhasn'tquitefiguredouttherestofthesculpturebutwantstoknowif,ignoringthemassof
thepulleyandstring,the25lbobjectwillremainstationaryduringthetimethatthe10lband15lbobjectsareaccelerating.DOONLYTHE
PROBLEMSOLVINGSTEPSNECESSARYTOFOCUSTHEPROBLEM,DESCRIBETHEPHYSICSOFTHEPROBLEM,ANDPLAN
ASOLUTION.DONOTSOLVETHISPROBLEM.
6. Weight,Normal,Friction:Becauseofyourphysicsbackground,youhavebeenaskedtocheckthefeasibilityofaactionmoviestunt.Inthe
script,theheroandvillainarefightingontopofalocomotiveheadingdownastraighttrackat25mph.Havingjumpedonthetrainasitpassed
overalake,theheroisdressedinarubberwetsuit.Duringthefight,theheroslipsoffandbarelyhangsonoverthetopedgeofthefrontofthe
locomotive,whichisessentiallyaverticalsmoothsteelface.Thevillainstompsonthehero'sfingerstocausetheherotoletgoandbecrushed
underthetrain.Meanwhile,thehero'spartnerhasbeentryingtostopthetrain,whosebrakeshavebeenlockedbythevillain.Seeingtheheros
fingersgiveway,thepartnerimmediatelyopensthethrottle,causingthetraintoaccelerateforwardandtheherotostayonthefrontfaceofthe
locomotivewithoutslippingdownuntilthebrakescanbeunlocked.Themoviecompanywantstoknowwhatminimumaccelerationis
necessarytoperformthisstunt.Theheroweighs180lbs.andthelocomotiveweighs100tons.Lookinginabookgivingthepropertiesof
materials,youfindthatforrubberonsteel,thecoefficientofkineticfrictionis0.50andthecoefficientofstaticfrictionis0.60.
7. Weight,Normal,Friction:Whileworkinginamechanicalstructureslaboratory,yourbossassignsyoutotestthestrengthofropesunder
differentconditions.Yourtestsetupconsistsoftworopesattachedtoa30kgblockwhichslidesona5.0mlonghorizontaltabletop.Two
lowfriction,lightweightpulleysaremountedatoppositeendsofthetable.Oneropeisattachedtoeachendofthe30kgblock.Eachofthese
ropesrunshorizontallyoveradifferentpulley.Theotherendofoneoftheropesisattachedtoa12kgblockwhichhangsstraightdown.The
otherendofthesecondropeisattachedtoa20kgblockalsohangingstraightdown.Thecoefficientofkineticfrictionbetweentheblockon
thetableandthetable'ssurfaceis0.08.The30kgblockisinitiallyheldinplacebyamechanismthatisreleasedwhenthetestbeginsso,that
theblockisacceleratingduringthetest.Duringthistest,whatistheforceexertedontheropesupportingthe12kgblock?
LinearAcceleration,ForceComponents
8. Human,Weight,Normal:Youaretakingcareoftwosmallchildren,SarahandRachel,whoaretwins.Onanicecold,cleardayyoudecideto
takethemiceskatingonLakeoftheIsles.TotravelacrossthefrozenlakeyouhaveSarahholdyourhandandRachel'shand.Thethreeofyou
formastraightlineasyouskate,andthetwochildrenjustglide.Sarahmustreachupatanangleof60degreestograspyourhand,butshe
grabsRachel'shandhorizontally.Sincethechildrenaretwins,theyarethesameheightandthesameweight,50lbs.Togetstartedyou
accelerateat2.0m/s2.Youareconcernedabouttheforceonthechildren'sarmswhichmightcauseshoulderdamage.Soyoucalculatethe
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forceSarahexertsonRachel'sarm,andtheforceyouexertonSarah'sotherarm.Youassumethatthefrictionalforcesoftheicesurfaceonthe
skatesarenegligible.
9. Tension,Weight,Normal,andFriction:Youareplanningtobuildalogcabinandwillneedtopullthelogsupahilltothebuildingsiteby
meansofaropeattachedtoawinch.Inordertobuytherope,youneedtoknowhowstrongtheropemustbeanddecidetodoaquick
calculationforthis.Thelogsweigh500lbs.atmostandthehillisatanangleof30withrespecttothehorizontal.Youestimatethatthe
coefficientofkineticfrictionbetweenalogandthehillis0.90.Whenpullingalogupthehill,youwillmakesurethattheropestaysparallelto
thesurfaceofthehillandtheaccelerationofthelogisnevermorethan0.80m/s^2.
10. Tension,Weight,Normal,Friction:Atyourjobatawarehouse,youhavedesignedamethodtohelpgetheavypackagesupa15ramp.The
packageisattachedtoaropethatrunsparalleltotherampandpassesoverapulleyatthetopoftheramp.Theotherendoftheropeisattached
toacounterweightthathangsstraightdown.Themassofthecounterweightisalwaysadjustedtobetwicethemassofthepackage.However,
yourbossisworriedthattheaccelerationofthepackagewillmakeittoodifficulttohandleatthetopoftherampandtellsyoutocalculateit.
Todeterminetheinfluenceoffrictiononthepackagebytheramp,yourunsometestsandfindthatusingahorizontalforceof250Newtons,
youcanpusha50kgpackageataconstantspeedalongalevelfloormadeofthesamematerialastheramp.
11. Tension,Weight,Normal,Friction:AftergraduatingyougetajobinNorthernCalifornia.Tomovethere,yourentatruckforallofyour
possessions.Youalsodecidetotakeyourcarwithyoubytowingitbehindthetruck.Theinstructionsyougetwiththetrucktellsyouthatthe
maximumtruckweightwhenfullyloadedis20,000lbsandthatthetowinghitchthatyourentedhasamaximumstrengthof1000lbs.Just
beforeyouleave,youweighthefullyloadedtruckandfindittobe15,000lbs.Atthesametimeyouweighyourcarandfindittoweigh3000
lbs.Youbegintoworryifthehitchisstrongenough.Thenyourememberthatyoucanpushyourcarandcaneasilykeepitmovingata
constantvelocity.Youknowthatairresistancewillincreaseasthecargoesfasterbutfromyourexperienceyouestimatethatthesumofthe
forcesduetoairresistanceandfrictiononthecarisnotmorethan300lbs.Ifthelargesthillyouhavetogoupisslopedat10ofromthe
horizontal,whatisthemaximumaccelerationyoucansafelyhaveonthathill?DOONLYTHEPROBLEMSOLVINGSTEPSNECESSARY
TOFOCUSTHEPROBLEM,DESCRIBETHEPHYSICSOFTHEPROBLEM,ANDPLANASOLUTION.DONOTSOLVETHIS
PROBLEM.
12. Weight,Normal,Friction:Becauseofyourphysicsbackground,youhavebeenabletogetajobwithacompanydevisingstuntsforan
upcomingadventuremoviebeingshotinMinnesota.Inthescript,theherohasbeenfightingthevillainonthetopofthelocomotiveofatrain
goingdownastraighthorizontaltrackat20mph.Hehasjustsnuckonthetrainasitpassedoveralakesoheiswearinghisrubberwetsuit.
Duringthefight,theheroslipsandhangsbyhisfingersonthetopedgeofthefrontofthelocomotive.Thelocomotivehasasmoothsteelfront
faceslopedat20ofromtheverticalsothatthebottomofthefrontismoreforwardthatthetop.Nowthevillainstompsonthehero'sfingersso
hewillbeforcedtoletgoandslipdownthefrontofthelocomotiveandbecrushedunderitswheels.Meanwhile,thehero'spartnerisatthe
controlsofthelocomotivetryingtostopthetrain.Toaddtothesuspense,thebrakeshavebeenlockedbythevillain.Itwilltakeher10
secondstoopenthelock.Toherhorror,sheseesthehero'sfingersgivewaybeforeshecangetthelockoff.Sincesheisthebrainsoftheoutfit,
sheimmediatelyopensthethrottlecausingthetraintoaccelerateforward.Thiscausestheherotostayonthefrontfaceofthelocomotive
withoutslippingdowngivinghertimetosavethehero'slife.Themoviecompanywantstoknowwhatminimumaccelerationisnecessaryto
performthisstunt.Theheroweighs180lbsinhiswetsuit.Thelocomotiveweighs100tons.Youlookinabookgivingthepropertiesof
materialsandfindthatthecoefficientofkineticfrictionforrubberonsteelis0.50anditscoefficientofstaticfrictionis0.60.
13. Gravitational:YouhavebeenhiredasaconsultantforthenewStarTrekTVseriestomakesurethatanyscienceontheshowiscorrect.Inthis
episode,thecrewoftheEnterprisediscoversanabandonedspacestationindeepspacefarfromanystars.Thisstationisobviouslytheworkof
anadvancedraceandconsistsoffouridentical3x1020kgasteroidsconfiguredsothateachisatthecornerofasquarewith200kmsides.
Accordingtothetricorder,thestationhasbeenabandonedforatleasttwocenturies.Youknowthatsuchaconfigurationisunstableandworry
whethertherewouldbeobservablemotionoftheasteroidsaftertwohundredyearssoyoucalculatetheaccelerationofoneoftheasteroidsin
theproposedconfiguration.Makesureyougiveboththemagnitudeandthedirectionoftheacceleration.
14. Gravitational:Becausethemovieindustryistryingtomakethetechnicaldetailsofmoviesascorrectaspossible,youhavebeenmadea
memberofapanelreviewingthedetailsofanewsciencefictionscript.Althoughneitherastronomynornavigationisyourfield,youare
disturbedbyonesceneinwhichaspaceshipwhichislowonfuelisattemptingtolandontheEarth.Astheshipapproaches,itisheading
straightforthecenteroftheEarth.Thecommandercutsofftheship'senginessothatitwillbepulledinbytheEarth'sgravitationalforce.As
thecommanderlooksintheviewer,sheseestheEarthstraightaheadandtheMoonofftotheleftatanangleof30o.Thelinebetweenthe
centersoftheMoonandEarthisatrightanglestotheinitialpathofthespaceship.Undertheseconditionsyoudon'tthinktheshipwill
continueheadingtowardtheEarth,soyoucalculatethecomponentofitsaccelerationwhichisperpendiculartotheinitialpathoftheship.First
youlookupthedistancebetweentheEarthandtheMoon(3.8x105km),themassoftheEarth(6.0x1024kg),themassoftheMoon(7.3x
1022kg),theradiusoftheEarth(6.4x103km),theradiusoftheMoon(1.7x103km),andtheuniversalgravitationalconstant(6.7x1011N
m2/kg2).Asafirstapproximation,youdecidetoneglecttheeffectoftheSunandtheotherplanetsinthesolarsystem.Youguessthataspace
shipsuchasdescribedinthescriptmighthaveamassofabout100,000kg.
NoAcceleration(a=0),NoForceComponents
15. WeightBuoyancy,Normal,Friction,Electric:Thequarterisalmostoversoyoudecidetohaveaparty.Toaddatmospheretoyourotherwise
drabapartment,youdecidetodecoratewithballoons.Youbuyaboutfiftyandblowthemupsothattheyareallsittingonyourcarpet.After
puttingmostofthemup,youdecidetoplaywiththefewballoonsleftonthefloor.Youruboneonyoursweaterandfindthatitwill"stick"to
awall.Ahha,youknowimmediatelythatyouareobservingtheelectricforceinaction.Sinceitwillbesometimebeforeyouguestsarriveand
youhavealreadymadetheoniondip,youdecidetocalculatetheminimumelectricforceofthewallontheballoon.Youknowthattheair
exertsanetupwardforce(the"buoyant"force)ontheballoonwhichmakesitalmostfloat.Youmeasurethattheweightoftheballoonminus
thebuoyantforceoftheairontheballoonis0.05lb.Byreadingyourphysicsbook,youestimatethatthecoefficientofstaticfrictionbetween
thewallandtheballoon(rubberandconcrete)is0.80.
16. Tension,Weight,Electric:WhileworkinginaUniversityresearchlaboratoryyouaregiventhejoboftestinganewdeviceforprecisely
measuringtheweightofsmallobjects.Thedeviceconsistsoftwoverylightstringsattachedatoneendtoasupport.Anobjectisattachedto
theotherendofeachstring.Thestringsarefarenoughapartsothatobjectshangingonthemdon'ttouch.Oneoftheobjectshasavery
accuratelyknownweightwhiletheotherobjectistheunknown.Apowersupplyisslowlyturnedontogiveeachobjectanelectriccharge
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whichcausestheobjectstoslowlymoveawayfromeachother(repel)becauseoftheelectricforce.Whenthepowersupplyiskeptatits
operatingvalue,theobjectscometorestatthesamehorizontallevel.Atthatpoint,eachofthestringssupportingthemmakesadifferentangle
withtheverticalandthatangleismeasured.Totestthedevice,youwanttocalculatetheweightofanunknownspherefromthemeasured
anglesandtheweightofaknownsphere.Youuseastandardspherewithaknownweightof2.000Nsupportedbyastringwhichmakesan
angleof10.0withthevertical.Theunknownsphere'sstringmakesanangleof20.0withthevertical.
17. Gravitational:YouarewritingashortsciencefictionstoryforyourEnglishclass.Yougetyourideafromthefactthatwhenpeoplecrossthe
Earth'sequatorforthefirsttime,theyareawardedacertificatetocommemoratetheexperience.Inyourstoryitisthe21stCenturyandyouare
thetourdirectorforatriptothemoon.TransplanetaryTourspromisestourparticipantsacertificatetocommemoratetheirpassagefromthe
strongerinfluenceoftheEarth'sgravitationalpulltothestrongergravitationalpullofthemoon.Tofinishthestory,youneedtofigureout
whereonthetripyoushouldawardthecertificate.InyourphysicsbookyoulookupthedistancebetweentheEarthandtheMoon(3.8x105
km),themassoftheEarth(6.0x1024kg),themassoftheMoon(7.3x1022kg),theradiusoftheEarth(6.4x103km),theradiusofthe
Moon(1.7x103km),andtheuniversalgravitationalconstant(6.7x1011Nm2/kg2).
18. Gravitational:YouhavebeenhiredasaconsultantforthenewStarTrekTVseriestomakesurethatthescienceintheshowiscorrect.Inthis
episode,thecrewoftheEnterprisegoesintostandardorbitaroundanewlydiscoveredplanet.Theplotrequiresthattheplanetishollowand
containstheundergroundcitiesofalostcivilization.Fromorbitthescienceofficerdeterminesthattheradiusoftheplaneris1/4(onefourth)
thatofEarth.Thefirstofficerbeamsdowntothesurfaceoftheplanetandmeasuresthathisweightisonly1/2(onehalf)ofhisweighton
Earth.HowdoesthemassofthisplanetcomparewiththemassoftheEarth?Ifitwerehollow,itsdensitywouldbelessthanEarth.Arethe
measurementsconsistentwithahollowplanet?
19. Gravitational,Electric:Youandafriendarereadinganewspaperarticleaboutnuclearfusionenergygenerationinstars.Thearticledescribes
theheliumnucleus,madeupoftwoprotonsandtwoneutrons,asverystablesoitdoesn'tdecay.Youimmediatelyrealizethatyoudon't
understandwhytheheliumnucleusisstable.Youknowthattheprotonhasthesamechargeastheelectronexceptthattheprotonchargeis
positive.Neutronsyouknowareneutral.Why,youaskyourfriend,don'ttheprotonssimplyrepeleachothercausingtheheliumnucleustofly
apart?Yourfriendsayssheknowswhytheheliumnucleusdoesnotjustflyapart.Thegravitationalforcekeepsittogether,shesays.Her
modelisthatthetwoneutronssitinthecenterofthenucleusandgravitationallyattractthetwoprotons.Sincetheprotonshavethesame
charge,theyarealwaysasfarapartaspossibleonoppositesidesoftheneutrons.Whatmasswouldtheneutronhaveifthismodelofthe
heliumnucleusworks?Isthatareasonablemass?Lookinginyourphysicsbook,youfindthatthemassofaneutronisaboutthesameasthe
massofaprotonandthatthediameterofaheliumnucleusis3.0x1013cm.
NoAcceleration(a=0),ForceComponents
20. Tension,Weight,Friction:Youaretakingadvantageofanearlysnowtogosledding.Afteralongafternoonofgoingupanddownhillswith
yoursled,youdecideitistimetogohome.Youarethankfulthatyoucanpullyoursledwithoutclimbinganymorehills.Asyouarewalking
home,draggingthesledbehindyoubyaropefastenedtothefrontofthesled,youwonderwhatthecoefficientoffrictionofthesnowonthe
sledis.Youestimatethatyouarepullingontheropewitha2poundforce,thatthesledweighs10pounds,andthattheropemakesanangleof
25degreestothelevelground.
21. Human,Weight,Normal,Friction:Youarehelpingafriendmoveintoanewapartment.Aboxweighing150lbsneedstobemovedtomake
roomforacouch..Youaretallerthanthebox,soyoureachdowntopushitatanangleof50degreesfromthehorizontal.Thecoefficientof
staticfrictionbetweentheboxandtheflooris0.50andthecoefficientofkineticfrictionbetweentheboxandtheflooris0.30.(a)Ifyouwant
toexerttheminimumforcenecessary,howhardwouldyoupushtokeeptheboxmovingacrossthefloor?(b)Supposeyoubentyourkneesso
thatyourpushwerehorizontal.Howhardwouldyoupushtokeeptheboxmovingacrossthefloor?
22. Human,Weight,Normal,Friction:Youarehelpinganinvestigationofbackinjuriesintheconstructionindustry.Yourassignmentisto
determinewhythereisacorrelationoftheheightoftheworkertothelikelihoodofbackinjury.Yoususpectthatsomebackinjuriesarerelated
tothewaypeoplepushheavyobjectsinordertomovethem.Whenpeoplepushanobject,suchasabox,acrossthefloortheytendtolean
downandpushatanangletothehorizontal.Tallerpeoplepushatalargeranglewithrespecttothehorizontalthanshorterpeople.Topresent
yourideastotherestoftheresearchteam,youdecidetocalculatetheforcea200lbboxexertsona150lbpersonwhentheypushitacrossa
typicalfloorataconstantvelocityof7.0ft/sasafunctionoftheanglewithrespecttothehorizontalatwhichthepersonpushesthebox.Once
youhaveyourfunction,youwilluseanglesof0o,10o,20o,30o,and40otomakeagraphoftheresultforthepresentation.Oneofyour
coworkerstellsyouthatatypicalcoefficientofstaticfrictionbetweenaboxandafloorof0.60andwhileatypicalcoefficientofkinetic
frictionbetweenaboxandaflooris0.50.(Don'tforgettomakethegraph).
23. Tension,Weight:Yourarepartofateamtohelpdesigntheatriumofanewbuilding.Yourboss,themanageroftheproject,wantstosuspend
a20lbsculpturehighovertheroombyhangingitfromtheceilingusingthin,clearfishingline(string)sothatitwillbedifficulttoseehow
thesculptureisheldup.Theonlyplacetofastenthefishinglineistoawoodenbeamwhichrunsaroundtheedgeoftheroomattheceiling.
Thefishinglinethatshewantstousewillhold20lbs(20lbtest)soshesuggestsattachingtwolinestothesculpturetobesafe.Eachline
wouldcomefromtheoppositesideoftheceilingtoattachtothehangingsculpture.Herinitialdesignhasonelinemakinganangleof20owith
theceilingandtheotherlinemakinganangleof40owiththeceiling.Sheknowsyoutookphysics,sosheasksyouifherdesigncanwork.
24. Electric,Weight,Tension:WhileworkinginaUniversityresearchlaboratoryyouaregiventhejoboftestinganewdevice,calledan
electrostaticscale,forpreciselymeasuringtheweightofsmallobjects.Thedeviceisquitesimple.Itconsistsoftwoverylightbutstrong
stringsattachedtoasupportsothattheyhangstraightdown.Anobjectisattachedtotheotherendofeachstring.Oneoftheobjectshasavery
accuratelyknownweightwhiletheotherobjectistheunknown.Apowersupplyisslowlyturnedontogiveeachobjectanelectriccharge
whichcausestheobjectstoslowlymoveawayfromeachother(repel)becauseoftheelectricforce.Whenthepowersupplyiskeptatits
operatingvalue,theobjectscometorestatthesamehorizontallevel.Atthatpoint,eachofthestringssupportingthemmakesadifferentangle
withtheverticalandthatangleismeasured.Totestthedevice,youwanttocalculatetheweightofanunknownspherefromthemeasured
anglesandtheweightofaknownsphere.Youuseastandardspherewithaknownweightof2.00000Nsupportedbyastringwhichmakesan
angleof10.00owiththevertical.Theunknownsphere'sstringmakesanangleof20.00owiththevertical.
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ForcesandLinearKinematics
Problems
1. Weight,Normal:Whiledrivinginthemountains,younoticethatwhenthefreewaygoessteeplydownhill,thereareemergencyexitsevery
fewmiles.Theseemergencyexitsarestraightdirtrampswhichleavethefreewayandareslopeduphill.Theyaredesignedtostoptrucksand
carsthatlosetheirbreaksonthedownhillstretchesofthefreewayeveniftheroadiscoveredinice.Youarecurious,soyoustopatthenext
emergencyroad.Youestimatethattheroadrisesatanangleof10ofromthehorizontalandisabout100yards(300ft)long.Whatisthe
maximumspeedofatruckthatyouaresurewillbestoppedbythisroad,evenifthefrictionalforceoftheroadsurfaceisnegligible?
2. Weight,Normal:Whiledrivinginthemountains,younoticethatwhenthefreewaygoessteeplydownhill,thereareemergencyexitsevery
fewmiles.Theseemergencyexitsarestraightdirtrampswhichleavethefreewayandareslopeduphill.Theyaredesignedtostoptrucksand
carsthatlosetheirbreaksonthedownhillstretchesofthefreewayeveniftheroadiscoveredinice.Youwonderatwhatanglefromthe
horizontalanemergencyexitshouldrisetostopa50tontruckgoing70mphuparamp100yards(300ft)long,evenifthefrictionalforceof
theroadsurfaceisnegligible.
3. Weight,Normal:Youhaveopenedasmalldeliverybusinessthatguaranteestodeliveranyboxbetween5lbs.and500lbs.toanylocationin
theareabythenextday.Atyourdistributioncenter,boxesslidedownarampbetweenthedeliveryandthesortingarea.Youmustdetermine
theanglethisrampshouldhavesothataboxwilltake5.0secondstoslidedowntherampwhenstartingfromrestatthetop.Whenthebox
arrivesatthebottomoftheramp,youdecidethatitsspeedshouldbenolargerthan10ft/ssoasnottodamagethecontentsofthebox.Using
thelatesttechnology,thesurfaceoftherampwillbeextremelyslippery.
4. Weight,Normal:Youarewatchingaskijumpcontestontelevisionwhenyouwonderhowhightheskieriswhensheleavesthestartinggate.
Intheskijump,theskierglidesdownalongramp.Attheendoftheramp,theskierglidesalongashorthorizontalsectionwhichendsabruptly
sothattheskiergoesintotheair.Youmeasuredthattheskierwasintheairfor2.3secondsandlanded87meters,inthehorizontaldirection,
fromthepointshewentintotheair.Makethebestestimateoftheheightofthestartinggateatthetopoftherampfromthehorizontalsection
fromwhichtheskiertakesoffintotheair.Makeclearonwhatassumptionsyouranswerdepends(thisiswhyitisanestimate).
5. Weight,Normal,Friction:Youarepassingaconstructionsiteonthewaytophysicsclass,andstoptowatchforawhile.Theconstruction
workersappeartobegoingoncoffeebreak,andhaveleftalargeconcreteblockrestingatthetopofawoodenramp.Assoonastheirbacksare
turned,theblockbeginstoslidedowntheramp.Youquicklyclockthetimefortheblocktoreachthebottomoftherampat10seconds.You
wonderhowlongtherampis.Youestimatethattherampisatanangleofabout20otothehorizontal.Inyourphysicsbookyoufindthatthe
coefficientofkineticfrictionbetweenconcreteandwoodis0.35.
6. Weight,Normal,Friction:Youhaveasummerjobatacompanythatspecializesinthedesignofsportsfacilities.Thecompanyhasbeengiven
thecontracttodesignanewhockeyrinktotrytokeeptheNorthStarsintown.Therinkfloorisveryflatandhorizontalandcoveredwitha
thickcoatofice.Yourtaskistodeterminetherefrigerationrequirementswhichgivesbesttemperaturefortheice.Youhaveatablewhich
givesthecoefficientofstaticandkineticfrictionbetweeniceandthestandardNHLhockeypuckasafunctionoficetemperature.Youhave
beentoldthatthehockeygamewillbemoreexcitingifpassesareswiftandsure.Expertssaythatthepassinggameisbestif,afteritgoes5.0
m,apuckhasaspeedwhichis90%ofthespeedwithwhichitleftthehockeystick.Apucktypicallyhasaspeedof20km/hrwhenitleaves
thehockeystickforapass.
7. Weight,Normal,Friction:YouandsomefriendsvisittheMinnesotaStateFairanddecidetoplayagameontheMidway.Toplaythegame
youmustslideametalhockeytypepuckupawoodenrampsothatitdropsthroughaholeatthetopoftheramp.Yourprize,ifyouwin,isa
large,pink,andrathergaudy,stuffedpoodle.Yourealizethesecrettowinningisgivingthepuckjustenoughvelocityatthebottomofthe
ramptomakeittothehole.Youestimatethedistancefromthebottomoftheramptotheholeatabout10feet,andtherampappearstobe
inclinedwithanangleof10ofromthehorizontal.Youjustgotoutofphysicsclassandrecallthecoefficientofstaticfrictionbetweensteeland
woodis0.1andthecoefficientofkineticfrictionbetweensteelandwoodis0.08.Themassofthepuckisabout2.5lbs.Youdecidetoimpress
yourfriendsbyslidingthepuckattheprecisespeedonthefirsttrysoastolanditinthehole.Youslidethepuckat8.0ft/sec.Doyouwinthe
stuffedpoodle?
8. Weight,Normal,Tension,Friction:FinallyyouareleavingMinneapolistogetafewdaysofSpringbreak,butyourcarbreaksdowninthe
middleofnowhere.Atowtruckweighing4000lbscomesalongandagreestotowyourcar,whichweighs2000lbs,tothenearesttown.The
driverofthetruckattacheshiscabletoyourcaratanangleof20otothehorizontal.Hetellsyouthathiscablehasastrengthof500lbs.He
planstotake10secondstotowyourcarataconstantaccelerationfromrestinastraightlinealongtheflatroaduntilhereachesthemaximum
speedlimitof45miles/hour.Canthedrivercarryouthisplan?Youassumethatrollingfrictionbehaveslikekineticfriction,andthe
coefficientofrollingfrictionbetweenyourtiresandtheroadis0.10.
9. Weight,Normal,Friction:WhilevisitingafriendinSanFranciscoyoudecidetodrivearoundthecity.Youturnacornerandaredrivingupa
steephill.Suddenly,asmallboyrunsoutonthestreetchasingaball.Youslamonthebrakesandskidtoastopleavinga50footlongskid
markonthestreet.Theboycalmlywalksawaybutapolicemanwatchingfromthesidewalkwalksoverandgivesyouaticketforspeeding.
Youarestillshakingfromtheexperiencewhenhepointsoutthatthespeedlimitonthisstreetis25mph.Afteryourecoveryourwits,you
examinethesituationmoreclosely.Youdeterminethatthestreetmakesanangleof20owiththehorizontalandthatthecoefficientofstatic
frictionbetweenyourtiresandthestreetis0.80.Youalsofindthatthecoefficientofkineticfrictionbetweenyourtiresandthestreetis0.60.
Yourcar'sinformationbooktellsyouthatthemassofyourcaris1570kg.Youweigh130lbs.Witnessessaythattheboyhadaweightof
about60lbsandtook3.0secondstocrossthe15footwidestreet.Willyoufighttheticketincourt?
10. Weight,Lift,Thrust,Drag:Onemorningwhilewaitingforclasstobegin,youarereadinganewspaperarticleaboutairplanesafety.This
articleemphasizestheroleofmetalfatigueinrecentaccidents.Metalfatigueresultsfromtheflexingofairframepartsinresponsetotheforces
ontheplaneespeciallyduringtakeoffandlandings.Asanexample,thereporterusesaplanewithatakeoffweightof200,000lbsandtakeoff
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speedof200mphwhichclimbsatanangleof30owithaconstantaccelerationtoreachitscruisingaltitudeof30,000feetwithaspeedof500
mph.Thethreejetenginesprovideaforwardthrustof240,000lbsbypushingairbackwards.Thearticlethengoesontoexplainthataplane
canflybecausetheairexertsanupwardforceonthewingsperpendiculartotheirsurfacecalled"lift."Youknowthatairresistanceisalsoa
veryimportantforceonaplaneandisinthedirectionoppositetothevelocityoftheplane.Thearticletellsyouthisforceiscalledthe"drag."
Althoughthereporterwritesthatsomemetalfatigueisprimarilycausedbytheliftandsomebythedrag,shenevertellsyoutheirsizeforher
exampleplane.Luckilythearticlecontainsenoughinformationtocalculatethem,soyoudo.
ForcesandCircularMotionatConstantSpeed
NoRadialForcecomponents
1. Weight,Normal:JustbeforefinalsyoudecidetovisitanamusementparksetupintheMetrodome.Sinceitisaweekend,youinviteyour
favoriteniecealong.ShelovestorideonaFerriswheel,andthereisoneattheamusementpark.TheFerriswheelhasseatsontherimofa
circlewitharadiusof25m.TheFerriswheelrotatesataconstantspeedandmakesonecompleterevolutionevery20seconds.Whileyouwait,
yourniecewhohasamassof42kg,ridestheFerriswheel.Tokilltimeyoudecidetocalculatethetotalforce(bothmagnitudeanddirection)
onherwhensheisonequarterrevolutionpastthehighestpoint.BecausetheFerriswheelcanberunatdifferentspeeds,youalsodecideto
makeagraphwhichgivesthemagnitudeoftheforceonheratthatpointasafunctionoftheperiodoftheFerriswheel.
2. Weight,Normal:WhilewatchingTV,youseeacircusshowinwhichaperformerdrivesamotorcyclearoundtheinsideofaverticalring.You
wonderhowfarthecyclewouldfalliftheridermadeamistakeatthetopoftheloopandfelloffthetrackanddecidetocalculateit.You
determinethatthecycleisgoingaroundataconstantspeedandthatittakesatmost4.0secondstogetaroundthering.Atthisspeed,the
motorcyclejustbarelylosescontactwiththeringatthetopwhenitisupsidedownandisinfreefall.
3. Weight,Normal,Friction:Theproducerofthelastfilmyouworkedonwassoimpressedwiththewayyouhandledahelicopterscenethatshe
hiredyouagainastechnicaladvisorforanew"JamesBond"film.Thescenecallsfor007tochaseavillainontoamerrygoround.An
accomplicestartsthemerrygoroundrotatinginanefforttotoss007(playedinthisnewversionbyBillyCrystal)offintoanadjacentpool
filledwithhungrysharks.Youmustdetermineasaferateofrotationsuchthatthestuntman(youdidn'tthinkBillywoulddohisownstunts
didyou?)willnotflyoffthemerrygoroundandintothesharkinfestedpool.(Actuallytheyaremechanicalsharks,buttheaudiencedoesn't
knowthat.)Youmeasurethediameterofthemerrygoroundas50meters.Youdeterminethatthecoefficientofstaticfrictionbetween007's
shoesandthemerrygoroundsurfaceis0.7andthecoefficientofkineticfrictionis0.5.
4. Weight,Normal,Friction:Anewpackagemovingsysteminthenew,improvedpostofficeconsistsofalargecirculardisc(i.e.aturntable)
whichrotatesonceevery3.0secondsataconstantspeedinthehorizontalplane.Packagesareputontheouteredgeoftheturntableononeside
oftheroomandtakenoffontheoppositeside.Thecoefficientofstaticfrictionbetweenthediscsurfaceandapackageis0.80whilethe
coefficientofkineticfrictionis0.60.Ifthissystemistowork,whatisthemaximumpossibleradiusoftheturntable?
5. Weight,Normal,Friction:Youaredrivingwithafriendwhoissittingtoyourrightonthepassengersideofthefrontseat.Youwouldliketo
beclosertoyourfriendanddecidetouseyourknowledgeofphysicstoachieveyourromanticgoal.Soyou'llmakeasharpturn.Which
directionshouldyouturnsoastomakeyourfriendslideclosertoyou?Ifthecoefficientofstaticfrictionbetweenyourfriendandtheseatof
thecaris0.40,andyoudriveataconstantspeedof18m/s,whatisthemaximumradiusyoucouldmakeyourturnandstillhaveyourfriend
slideyourway?
6. Weight,Normal,Friction:Duringafreewaysafetyreview,youarestudyingapieceofoneroadwithacurvethatisessentially1/8ofacircle
witharadiusof0.5miles.Thecurveisbankedsothattheroadmakesanangleof4degreestothehorizontalthroughoutthecurve.Yourboss
asksyoutohelpdeterminethespeedlimitforastandardpassengercar(about2000lbs)tocompletetheturn.Youdecidetostartby
consideringtheworstcasescenario,aslick,icecoveredroad,andfindingtheconstantspeedacarmusttravelinordertomaintainahorizontal
paththroughtheturn.
7. Weight,Tension:Afterwatchingthemovie"CrocodileDundee,"youandsomefriendsdecidetomakeacommunicationsdeviceinventedby
theAustralianAborigines.Itconsistsofanoisemakerswunginaverticalcircleontheendofastring.Yourdesigncallsfora400gramnoise
makerona60cmstring.Youareworriedaboutwhetherthestringyouhavewillbestrongenough,soyoudecidetocalculatethetensioninthe
stringwhenthedeviceisswungwithanaccelerationwhichhasaconstantmagnitudeof20m/s2.Youandyourfriendscan'tagreewhetherthe
maximumtensionwilloccurwhenthenoisemakerisatthehighestpointinthecircle,atthelowestpointinthecircle,orisalwaysthesame.
Tosettletheargumentyoudecidetocalculatethetensionatthehighestpointandatthelowestpointandcomparethem.
8. YouarewatchingaTVnewsprogramwhentheyswitchtosomescenestakenaboardthespaceshuttlewhichcircles500milesabovetheEarth
onceevery95minutes.Toallowtheaudiencetoappreciatethedistancesinvolved,theannouncertellsyouthattheradiusoftheEarthisabout
4000milesandthedistancefromtheEarthtotheMoonisabout250,000miles.Whenanastronautdropsherpenitfloatsinfrontofherface.
Youimmediatelywonderhowtheaccelerationofthedroppedpencomparestotheaccelerationofapenthatyoumightdrophereonthe
surfaceoftheEarth.
9. Gravitational:YouarestillaconsultantforthenewStarTrekTVseries.Youwerehiredtomakesurethatanyscienceontheshowiscorrect.
Inthisepisode,thecrewoftheEnterprisediscoversanabandonedspacestationindeepspacefarfromanystars.Thisstation,whichwasbuilt
byEarthinthe21stcentury,isalargewheellikestructurewherepeopleliveandworkintherim.Inordertocreate"artificialgravity,"the
spacestationrotatesonitsaxis.Thespecialeffectsdepartmentwantstoknowatwhatrateaspacestation200metersindiameterwouldhave
torotatetocreate"gravity"equalto0.7thatofEarth.
10. Gravitational:Youdidsowellinyourphysicscoursethatyoudecidedtotrytogetasummerjobworkinginaphysicslaboratoryatthe
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University.YougotthejobasastudentlabassistantinaresearchgroupinvestigatingtheozonedepletionattheEarth'spoles.Thisgroupis
planningtoputanatmosphericmeasuringdeviceinasatellitewhichwillpassoverbothpoles.Tocollectsamplesoftheupperatmosphere,the
satellitewillbeinacircularorbit200milesabovethesurfaceoftheEarth.Toadjusttheinstrumentsfortheproperdatatakingrate,youneed
tocalculatehowmanytimesperdaythedevicewillsampletheatmosphereovertheSouthpole.UsingtheinsidecoverofyourtrustyPhysics
textyoufindthattheradiusoftheEarthis6.38x103km,themassoftheEarthis5.98x1024kg,andtheuniversalgravitationalconstantis
6.7x1011Nm2/kg2.
11. Gravitational:Youdidsowellinyourphysicscoursethatyoudecidedtotrytogetasummerjobworkinginaphysicslaboratoryatthe
satellitewillbeinacircularorbit200milesabovethesurfaceoftheEarthwheregis95%ofitsvalueontheEarth'ssurface.Toadjustthe
instrumentsfortheproperdatatakingrate,youneedtocalculatehowmanytimesperdaythedevicewillsampletheatmosphereoverthe
Southpole.UsingtheinsidecoverofyourtrustyPhysicstextyoufindthattheradiusoftheEarthis6.38x103kmandthemassoftheEarthis
5.98x1024kg.
12. Gravitational:Youarereadingamagazinearticleaboutpulsars.Afewyearsago,asatelliteinorbitaroundtheEarthdetectedXrayscoming
fromsourcesinouterspace.TheXraysdetectedfromonesource,calledCygnusX3,hadanintensitywhichchangedwithaperiodof4.8
hours.Thistypeofastronomicalobjectemittingperiodicsignalsiscalledapulsar.Onepopulartheoryholdsthatthepulsarisanormalstar
(similartoourSun)whichisinorbitaroundamuchmoremassiveneutronstar.TheperiodoftheXraysignalisthentheperiodoftheorbit.In
thistheory,thedistancebetweenthenormalstarandtheneutronstarisapproximatelythesameasthedistancebetweentheEarthandourSun.
Yourealizethatifthistheoryiscorrect,youcandeterminehowmuchmoremassivetheneutronstaristhanourSun.Allyouneedtodoisfirst
findthemassoftheneutronstarintermsoftwounknowns,theuniversalgravitationalconstantGandtheradiusoftheEarth'sorbit.Thenfind
themassofourSunintermsofthesametwounknowns,GandtheradiusoftheEarth'sorbit.(TheperiodoftheEarth'sorbitis1year).Then
youcancalculatehowmanytimesmoremassivetheneutronstaristhanourSun.
RadialForceComponents
13. Weight,Lift:Youarereadinganarticleabouttheaestheticsofairplanedesign.Oneexampleinthearticleisabeautifulnewdesignfor
commercialairliners.Youareworriedthatthislightwingstructuremightnotbestrongenoughtobesafe.Thearticleexplainsthatanairplane
canflybecausetheairexertsaforce,called"lift,"onthewingssuchthattheliftisalwaysperpendiculartothewingsurface.Forlevelflying,
thewingsarehorizontal.Toturn,thepilot"banks"theplanesothatthewingsareorientedatanangletothehorizontal.Thiscausestheplane
tohaveatrajectorywhichisahorizontalcircle.Thespecificationsofthe100x103lbplanerequirethatitbeabletoturnwitharadiusof2.0
milesataconstantspeedof500miles/hr.Thearticlestatesthattestsshowthatthenewwingstructurewillsupportaforce4timesthelift
necessaryforlevelflight.Isthewingstructuresufficientlystrongfortheplanetomakethisturn?
14. Weight,Lift:YouareflyingtoChicagowhenthepilottellsyouthattheplanecannotlandimmediatelybecauseofairportdelaysandwillhave
tocircletheairport.Thisisstandardoperatingprocedure.Shealsotellsyouthattheplanewillmaintainaspeedof400mphatanaltitudeof
20,000feetwhiletravelinginahorizontalcirclearoundtheairport.Topassthetimeyoudecidetofigureouthowfaryouarefromtheairport.
Younoticethattocircle,thepilot"banks"theplanesothatthewingsareorientedat10otothehorizontal.Anarticleinyourinflightmagazine
explainsthatanairplanecanflybecausetheairexertsaforce,called"lift,"onthewings.Theliftisalwaysperpendiculartothewingsurface.
Themagazinearticlegivestheweightofthetypeofplaneyouareonas100x103poundsandthelengthofeachwingas150feet.Itgivesno
informationonthethrustoftheenginesorthedragoftheairframe.
15. Becauseofyourphysicsbackground,youhavebeenhiredasamemberoftheteamthestatehighwaydepartmenthasassignedtoreviewthe
safetyofMinnesotafreeways.Thisweekyouarestudying35Wwhichhasacurvewhichisessentially1/8ofacirclewitharadiusof0.5
miles.Theroadhasbeendesignedwithabankedcurvesothattheroadmakesanangleof4tothehorizontalthroughoutthecurve.Tobegin
thestudy,theheadofyourdepartmentasksthatyoucalculatethemaximumspeedforastandardpassengercar(about2000lbs)tocomplete
theturnwhilemaintainingahorizontalpathalongtheroad.Sheasksthatyoufirstconsiderthecaseofaslick,icecoveredroad.Whenyou
havecompletedthatcalculationshewantsyoutodothecaseofadry,clearroadwherethecoefficientofkineticfrictionis0.70andthe
coefficientofstaticfrictionis0.80betweenthetiresandtheroad.ThiswillgiveherteamthetwoextremesofMinnesotadrivingconditionson
whichtobasetheanalysis.
16. Tension,Weight:Aneighbor'schildwantstogotoaneighborhoodcarnivaltoexperiencethewildrides.Theneighborisworriedaboutsafety
becauseoneoftherideslooksdangerous.Sheknowsthatyouhavetakenphysicsandsoasksyouradvice.Therideinquestionhasa10lb
chairwhichhangsfreelyfroma30ftlongchainattachedtoapivotonthetopofatalltower.Whenachildenterstheride,thechainishanging
straightdown.Thechildisthenattachedtothechairwithaseatbeltandshoulderharness.Whentheridestartsupthechainrotatesaboutthe
tower.Soonthechainreachesitsmaximumspeedandremainsrotatingatthatspeed.Itrotatesaboutthetoweronceevery3.0seconds.When
youasktheoperator,hesaysthattherideisperfectlysafe.Hedemonstratesthisbysittinginthestationarychair.Thechaincreaksbutholds
andheweighs200lbs.Hastheoperatorshownthatthisridesafefora50lbchild?
ConservationofEnergyandConservationofMomentum
ConservationofEnergy(Mechanical,Gravitational)
1. YouarewatchingaNationalGeographicSpecialontelevision.Onesegmentoftheprogramisaboutarcherfish,whichinhabitstreamsin
southeastAsia.Thisfishactually"shoots"wateratinsectstoknockthemintothewatersoitcaneatthem.Thecommentatorstatesthatthe
archerfishkeepsitsmouthatthesurfaceofthestreamandsquirtsajetofwaterfromitsmouthat13feet/second.Youwatchanarcherfish
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shootajuicymothoffaleafintothewater.Youestimatethattheleafwasabout2.5feetaboveastream.Youwonderatwhatminimumangle
fromthehorizontalthewatercanbeejectedfromthefish'smouthtohitthemoth.Sinceyouhavetimeduringthecommercial,youquickly
calculatethisangle.
2. Yourartistfriendisdesigningakineticsculptureandasksforyourhelpsincesheknowsthatyouhavehadphysics.Partofhersculpture
consistsofa6.0kgobject(youcan'ttellwhatitissupposedtobe,butit'sart)anda4.0kgobjectwhichhangstraightdownfromopposite
endsofaverythin,flexiblewire.Thiswirepassesoverasmooth,cylindrical,horizontal,stainlesssteelpipe3.0metersabovethefloor.The
frictionalforcebetweentherodandthewireisnegligible.The6.0kgobjectisheld2.0metersabovethefloorandtheotherobjecthangs0.50
metersabovethefloor.Whenthemechanismreleasesthe6.0kgobject,bothobjectsaccelerateandonewilleventuallyhitthefloorbutthey
don'thiteachother.Todetermineifthefloorwillbedamaged,calculatethespeedoftheobjectwhichhitsthefloor.
3. Youaredrivingyourcaruphillalongastraightroad.Suddenly,youseeacarrunaredlightandentertheintersectionjustaheadofyou.You
slamonyourbrakesandskidinastraightlinetoastop,leavingskidmarks100feetlong.Apolicemanobservesthewholeincidentandgivesa
tickettotheothercarforrunningaredlight.Healsogivesyouaticketforexceedingthespeedlimitof30mph.Whenyougethome,youread
yourphysicsbookandestimatethatthecoefficientofkineticfrictionbetweenyourtiresandtheroadwas0.60,andthecoefficientofstatic
frictionwas0.80.Youestimatethatthehillmadeanangleofabout10owiththehorizontal.Youlookinyourowner'smanualandfindthatyour
carweighs2,050lbs.Willyoufightthetrafficticketincourt?
4. YouhavelandedasummerjobwithacompanythathasbeengiventhecontracttodesigntheskijumpforthenextWinterOlympics.Thetrack
iscoatedwithsnowandhasanangleof25ofromthehorizontal.Askierzipsdowntheskijumprampsothatheleavesitathighspeed.The
winneristhepersonwhojumpsthefarthestafterleavingtheendoftheramp.Yourtaskistodeterminetheheightofthestartinggateabovethe
endoftheramp,whichwilldeterminethemechanicalstructureoftheskijumpfacility.Youhavebeentoldthatthetypicalskijumperpushes
offfromthestartinggateataspeedof2.0m/s.Forsafetyreasons,yourdesignshouldbesuchthatforaperfectrundowntheramp,theskier's
speedbeforeleavingtheendoftherampandsailingthroughtheairshouldbenomorethan80km/hr.Yourunsomeexperimentsonvarious
skiesusedbythejumpersanddeterminethatthecoefficientofstaticfrictionbetweenthesnowandtheskisis0.10anditscoefficientofkinetic
frictionis0.02.Sincetheskijumpersbendoverandwearveryaerodynamicsuits,youdecidetoneglecttheairresistancetomakeyourdesign.
5. TheNavywantsanewairplanelauncherfortheiraircraftcarriersthatisbasicallyalargespringandyourjobistodeterminethenecessary
springconstant.Thelauncherpushestheplaneforashortdistancealongamuchlongerrunway.Duringthatsametime,theplane'sjetengines
supplyaconstantthrustforcefortheentirelengthoftherunway.Theplanesneedtohaveaminimumvelocitybythetimetheyreachtheend
oftherunwayinordertotakeoffsuccessfully.
6. Youhavebeenhiredtodesignasafetysystemtoprotectdriversgoingdownhillsduringanicestorm.Theplannedsystemconsistsofa
bumper,whichcanbeconsideredastiffspring,atthebottomofthehill.Inthescenarioyouaregiven,thecarstartsfromrestatthetopofahill
whichmakesanangleqwiththehorizontal.ThedistancethatthecarslidesfromthetopofthehilluntilitisstoppedbythespringisL.Forthe
worstcasescenario,assumethatthereisnofrictionalforcebetweenthecarandroadduetotheice.Ifthemaximumcompressionofthespring
fromitsequilibriumpositionisD,yourjobistocalculatetherequiredspringconstantkintermsofD,Landq.
7. YouworkfortheNationalParkServicetestingasmallcannonusedtopreventavalanchesbyshootingdownsnowoverhangingthesidesof
mountains.Inordertodeterminetherangeofthecannon,itisnecessarytoknowthespeedwithwhichtheprojectileleavesthecannon(muzzle
speed),relativetotheground.Thecannonyouaretestinghasaweightof500lbs.andshootsa20lb.projectile.Duringlabtestswherethe
cannonisheldandcannotmove,themuzzlespeedis400m/s.Youwanttocalculatetheprojectile'smuzzlespeedwithrespecttotheground
underfieldconditionswhenthecannonismountedsothatitisfreetomove(recoil)whenfired.Youtakethecasewherethecannonisfired
horizontallyusingthesameshellsasinthelaboratory.
8. SuperDavehasjustreturnedfromthehospitalwherehespentaweekconvalescingfrominjuriesincurredwhenhewas"shot"outofacannon
tolandinanairbagwhichwastoothin.Undaunted,hedecidestocelebratehisreturnwithanewstunt.Heintendstojumpoffa100foottall
towerwithanelasticcordtiedtooneankle,andtheotherendtiedtothetopofthetower.Thiscordisverylightbutverystrongandstretches
sothatitcanstophimwithoutpullinghislegoff.Suchacordexertsaforcewiththesamemathematicalformasthespringforce.Hewantsit
tobe75feetlongsothathewillbeinfreefallfor75feetbeforethecordbeginstostretch.Tominimizetheforcethatthecordexertsonhis
leg,hewantsittostretchasfaraspossible.Youhavebeenassignedtopurchasethecordforthestuntandmustdeterminetheelasticforce
constantwhichcharacterizesthecordthatyoushouldorder.Beforethecalculation,youcarefullymeasureDave'sheighttobe6.0ftandhis
weighttobe170lbs.Formaximumdramaticeffect,hisjumpwillbeoffadivingboardatthetopofthetower.Fromtestsyouhavemade,you
determinethathismaximumspeedcomingoffthedivingboardis10ft/sec.NeglectairresistanceinyourcalculationletDaveworryabout
that.
9. Aspartofafundraiser,youwantthenewdeantobungeejumpfromacrane.Thejumpwillbemadefrom44mabovea2.5mdeeppoolof
Jello.A30mlongbungeecordwouldbeattachedtothedean'sankle.Youmustconvincethedeanthatyourplanissafeforapersonofhis
mass,70kg.Asthebungeecordstretches,itwillexertaforcewiththesamepropertiesastheforceexertedbyaspring.Yourplanhasthedean
steppingoffaplatformandbeinginfreefallforthe30mbeforethecordbeginstostretch.Youmustdeterminetheelasticconstantofthe
bungeecordsothatitstretchesonly12m,whichwillkeepthedean'sheadjustoutoftheJello.
10. Yourartistfriend'snewworkisasimple,highimpactkineticsculpturecalled'Destruction.'A200kgsteelblockishungfromtheceilingbyan
8footlongrope.Asecondropeisattachedtothesideoftheblock.Theotherendofthissecondropeisattachedtoamotorwhichiscleverly
mountedsothattheropealwayspullstheblockhorizontallywithaconstantforce.Theblockstartsfromrest,hangingstraightdown,andis
pulledslowlybythemotoruntilitishangingatanangleof30degreesfromthevertical.Thehorizontalropeisthenreleasedandtheblock
swingsandcrashesintoawall.Yourfriendknowsyouhavetakenphysicsandasksyoutheminimumenergythatthemotormustsupply.You
performatestanddeterminethattheblockisinequilibriumwhenithasbeenpulledsothatithangsat30degreesfromthevertical.
11. (GravitationalEnergy)Becauseofyourknowledgeofphysicsandinterestintheenvironment,youhavegottenasummerjobwithan
organizationwhichwantstoorbitasatellitetomonitortheamountofchlorineionsintheupperatmosphereoverNorthAmerica.Ithasbeen
determinedthatthesatelliteshouldcollectsamplesataheightof100milesabovetheEarth'ssurface.Unfortunately,atthatheightair
resistancewouldmaketheamountoftimethesatellitewouldstayinorbittooshorttobeuseful.Yousuggestthatanellipticalorbitwould
allowthesatellitetobeclosetotheEarthoverNorthAmerica,wheredatawasdesired,butfartherfromtheEarth,andthusoutofalmostallof
theatmosphere,ontheothersideofourplanet.Yourcolleagueestimatesthatthesatellitewouldbetravelingat10,000miles/hourwhenitwas
farthestfromtheEarthataheightof1,000miles.Howfastwouldthesatellitebetravelingwhenittookitsairsamplesifyouneglectair
friction?
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ConservationofEnergy(Mechanical)andForce
12. Atthetrainstation,younoticealargehorizontalspringattheendofthetrackwherethetraincomesin.Thisisasafetydevicetostopthetrain
sothatitwillnotplowthroughthestationiftheengineermisjudgesthestoppingdistance.Whilewaiting,youwonderwhatwouldbethe
fastesttrainthatthespringcouldstopatitsfullcompression,3.0ft.Tokeepthepassengerssafewhenthetrainstops,youassumeamaximum
stoppingaccelerationofg/2.Youalsoguessthatatrainweighshalfamillionlbs.Forpurposeofgettinganestimate,youdecidetoassumethat
allfrictionalforcearenegligible.
13. Yourcompanyisdesigninganapparatusforaniceskatingshow.Aniceskaterwillstartfromrestandslidedownanicecoveredramp.Atthe
bottomoftheramp,theskaterwillglidearoundanicecoveredloopwhichistheinsideofaverticalcirclebeforeemergingoutontotheskating
rinkfloor.Foraspectaculareffect,thecircularloopwillhaveadiameterof30feet.Yourtaskistodeterminetheminimumheightfromthe
rinkfloortothetopoftherampfortheskatertomakeitaroundtheloop.Whenbarelymakingitaround,theskaterbrieflylosescontactwith
theiceatthetopoftheloopandatthatpointtheskaterisinfreefall.
14. Inaweakmomentyouhavevolunteeredtobeahumancannonballatanamateurcharitycircus.The"cannon"isactuallya3footdiameter
tubewithabigstiffspringinsidewhichisattachedtothebottomofthetube.Asmallseatisattachedtothefreeendofthespring.The
ringmaster,oneofyoursoontobeexfriends,givesyouyourinstructions.Hetellsyouthatjustbeforeyouenterthemouthofthecannon,a
motorwillcompressthespringto1/10itsnormallengthandholditinthatposition.Youaretogracefullycrawlinthetubeandsitcalmlyin
theseatwithoutholdingontoanything.Thecannonwillthenberaisedtoananglesuchthatyourspeedthroughtheairatyourhighestpointis
10ft/sec.Whenthespringisreleased,neitherthespringnorthechairwilltouchthesidesofthe12footlongtube.Afterthedrumroll,the
springisreleasedandyouwillflythroughtheairwiththeappropriatesoundeffectsandsmoke.Withtheperfectaimofyourguncrew,you
willflythroughtheairovera15footwallandlandsafelyinthenet.Youarejustabitworriedanddecidetocalculatehowhighaboveyour
startingpositionyouwillbeatyourhighestpoint.Beforetherehearsal,thecannonistakenapartformaintenance.Youseethespring,whichis
nowremovedfromthecannon,ishangingstraightdownwithoneendattachedtotheceiling.Youdeterminethatitis10feetlong.Whenyou
hangonitsfreeendwithouttouchingtheground,itstretchesby2.0ft.Isitpossibleforyoutomakeitoverthewall?
ConservationofMomentum
15. Youareonacommitteeinvestigatinginjuriestostudentsparticipatinginsports,startingwiththehighincidenceofankleinjuriesonthe
basketballteam.Observingtheteampracticejumpshotsinspiresyoutotryasmallcalculation.A50kgstudentjumps1.0meterstraightup
andshootsthe0.80kgbasketballatthetopofthejump.Fromthepathofthebasketball,youestimatethattheballleftthehandat30degrees
fromthehorizontalat5m/s.Todeterminethehorizontalforcesontheankle,youdecidetocalculatethestudent'shorizontalvelocitywhen
hittingtheground.
16. Becauseofyourinterestintheenvironmentandyourphysicsexperience,youhavebeenaskedbytheCampusMuseumofNaturalHistoryto
assistintheproductionofananimatedfilmabouthawks.Inthescript,a1.5kghawkhoversmotionlesswithrespecttothegroundwhenitsees
agooseflyingbelowit.Thehawkdivesstraightdown.Itstrikesthegooseataspeedof60km/hranddigsitsclawsintothegoose'sbody.The
2.5kggoosewasflyingnorthat30km/hrjustbeforeitwasstruckbythehawkandkilledinstantly.Theanimatorswanttoknowthevelocity
ofthehawkanddeadgoosejustafterthestrike.
17. AspartofaninterviewforasummerjobwiththeCoastGuard,youareaskedtohelpdeterminethesearchareafortwosunkenshipsby
calculatingtheirvelocityjustaftertheycollided.Accordingtothelastradiotransmissionfromthe40,000tonluxuryliner,theHedonist,itwas
goingduewestataspeedof20knotsincalmseasthroughararefogjustbeforeitwasstruckbroadsidebythe60,000tonfreighter,the
Ironhorse,whichwastravelingnorthat10knots.Thetransmissionalsonotedthatwhenthefreighter'sbowpiercedthehulloftheliner,the
twoshipsstucktogetherandsanktogether.
18. YouhavebeenhiredtocheckthetechnicalcorrectnessofanupcomingmadeforTVmurdermysterythattakesplaceinthespaceshuttle.In
onescene,anastronaut'ssafetylineiscutwhileonaspacewalk.Theastronaut,whois200metersfromtheshuttleandnotmovingwith
respecttoit,findsthatthesuit'sthrusterpackhasalsobeendamagedandnolongerworksandthatonly4minutesofairremains.Togetback
totheshuttle,theastronautunstrapsa10kgtoolkitandthrowsitawaywithaspeedof8m/s.Inthescript,theastronaut,whohasamassof80
kgwithoutthetoolkit,survives,butisthiscorrect?
ConservationofEnergy(Mechanical)anMomentum
19. Youhavebeenhiredasatechnicalconsultantforanearlymorningcartoonseriesforchildrentomakesurethatthescienceiscorrect.Inthe
script,awagoncontainingtwoboxesofgold(totalmassof150kg)hasbeencutloosefromthehorsesbyanoutlaw.Thewagonstartsfrom
rest50metersupahillwitha6oslope.Theoutlawplanstohavethewagonrolldownthehillandacrossthelevelgroundandthencrashintoa
canyonwherehisconfederateswait.Butinatree40metersfromtheedgeofthecanyonwaittheLoneRanger(mass80kg)andTonto(mass
70kg).Theydropverticallyintothewagonasitpassesbeneaththem.ThescriptstatesthatittakestheLoneRangerandTonto5secondsto
grabthegoldandjumpoutofthewagon,butisthiscorrect?.Youassumethatthewagonrollswithnegligiblefriction.
20. Youarehelpingyourfriendprepareforthenextskateboardexhibitionbydeterminingiftheplannedprogramwillwork.Yourfriendwilltake
arunningstartandthenjumpontoaheavyduty15lbstationaryskateboard.Theskateboardwillglideinastraightlinealongashort,level
sectionoftrack,thenupaslopedconcretewall.Thegoalistoreachaheightofatleast10feetabovethestartingpointbeforecomingback
downtheslope.Yourfriend'smaximumrunningspeedtosafelyjumpontheskateboardis23feet/second.Yourfriendweighs150lbs.
21. Becauseofyourphysicsbackground,youhavebeenhiredasatechnicaladvisorforanewJamesBondadventuremovie.Inthescript,Bond
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andhislatestloveinterest,whois2/3hisweight(includingskis,boots,clothes,andvarioushiddenweapons),areskiingintheSwissAlps.She
skisdownaslopewhilehestaysatthetoptoadjusthisboot.Whenshehasskieddownaverticaldistanceof100ft,shestopstowaitforhim
andiscapturedbythebadguys.Bondlooksupandseeswhatishappening.Henoticesthatsheisstandingwithherskispointeddownhill
whilesherestsonherpoles.Tomakeaslittlenoiseaspossible,Bondstartsfromrestandglidesdowntheslopeheadingrightather.Just
beforetheycollide,sheseeshimcomingandletsgoofherpoles.Hegrabsherandtheybothcontinuedownhilltogether.Atthebottomofthe
hill,anotherslopegoesuphillandtheycontinuetoglideupthatslopeuntiltheyreachthetopofthehillandaresafe.Thewriterswantyouto
calculatethemaximumpossibleheightthatthesecondhillcanberelativetothepositionwherethecollisiontookplace.BothBondandhisgirl
friendareusingnew,topsecretfrictionlessstealthskisdevelopedfortheBritishSecretService.
22. BecauseofyourconcernthatincorrectscienceisbeingtaughttochildrenwhentheywatchcartoonsonTV,youhavejoinedacommittee
whichisreviewinganewcartoonversionofTarzan.Inthisepisode,Tarzanisonthegroundinfrontofaherdofstampedingelephants.Justin
timeJane,whoisupinatalltree,seeshim.ShegrabsaconvenientvineandswingstowardsTarzan,whohastwicehermass,tosavehim.
Luckily,thelowestpointofherswingisjustwhereTarzanisstanding.Whenshereacheshim,hegrabsherandthevine.Theybothcontinueto
swingtosafetyovertheelephantsuptoaheightwhichlookstobeabout1/2thatofJane'soriginalposition.Todecideifyougoingtoapprove
thiscartoon,calculatethemaximumheightTarzanandJanecanswingasafractionofherinitialheight.
23. YouarewatchingaSaturdaymorningcartoonconcerningajungleherocalledGeorgeoftheJungle.Georgeattemptstosavehisfriend,anape
namedApe,fromastampedingherdofwildebeests.Apeisatthebaseofatalltreewhichhasavineattachedtoitstop.Georgeisinanother
treeholdingtheotherendofthevine.Georgeplanstoswingdownfromthetree,grabApeatthebottomoftheswing,andcontinueupto
safetyonaledgewhichishalfofGeorge'sinitialheightinthetree.AssumingthatApeweighsthesameasGeorge,willtheysuccessfully
makeittothetopoftheledge?
24. Yourfriendhasjustbeeninatrafficaccidentandhopesthatyoucanshowtheaccidentwastheotherdriversfault.Yourfriendscarwas
travelingNorthwhenitenteredtheintersection.Whenitreachedthecenteroftheintersection,thecarwasstruckbytheotherdriverscar
whichwastravelingEast.Thetwocarsremainedjoinedtogetherafterthecollisionandskiddedtoastop.Thespeedlimitonbothroadsis50
mph.Fromtheskidmarksstillvisibleonthestreet,youdeterminethatafterthecollisionthecarsskidded56feetatanangleof30degrees
northofeastbeforestopping.Thepolicereportgivesthemakeandyearofeachcar.Theweightofyourfriendscaris2600lbsandthatofthe
othercaris2200lbs,includingthedriversweightineachcase.Thecoefficientofkineticfrictionforarubbertireskiddingondrypavementis
0.80.Youdecidetoseeiftheotherdriverwasspeedingandifyourfriendwasunderthespeedlimit.
25. Becausemovieproducershavecomeunderpressureforteachingchildrenincorrectscience,youhavebeenappointedtohelpacommitteeof
concernedparentsreviewascriptforanewSupermanmovie.Inthesceneunderconsideration,SupermanrushestosaveLoisLanewhohas
beenpushedfromawindow300feetaboveacrowdedstreet.Supermanis0.5milesawaywhenhehearsLoisscreamandrushestosaveher.
Heswoopsdowninthenickoftime,arrivingwhenLoisisjust3.0feetabovethestreet,andstoppingherjustatgroundlevel.Loischangesher
expressionfromoneofhorroratherimpendingdoomtoasmileofgratitudeasshegentlyfloatstothegroundinSuperman'sarms.The
committeewantstoknowifthereisreallyenoughtimetoexpressthisrangeofemotions,evenifthereisapossibleacademyawardontheline.
ThechairmanasksyoutocalculatethetimeittakesforSupermantostopLois'sfall.Todothecalculation,youassumethatSupermanapplies
aconstantforcetoLoisinbreakingherfallandthatsheweighs120lbs.WhilethinkingaboutthissceneyoualsowonderifLoiscouldsurvive
theforcethatSupermanappliestoher.
26. ThisyearyouhaveasummerjobworkingfortheNationalParkService.Sincetheyknowthatyouhavetakenphysics,theystartyouoffinthe
laboratorywhichtestspossiblenewequipment.Yourfirstjobistotestasmallcannon.Duringthewinter,smallcannonsareusedtoprevent
avalanchesinpopulatedareasbyshootingdownheavysnowconcentrationsoverhangingthesidesofmountains.Inordertodeterminethe
rangeofthecannon,itisnecessarytoknowthevelocitywithwhichtheprojectileleavesthecannon(muzzlevelocity).Thecannonyouare
testinghasaweightof700lbsandshootsa40lbprojectile.Duringthelabteststhecannonisheldhorizontallyinarigidsupportsothatit
cannotmove.Underthoseconditions,youmeasurethemagnitudeofthemuzzlevelocitytobe400m/s.Whenthecannonisactuallyusedin
thefield,however,itismountedsothatitisfreetomove(recoil)whenitisfired.Yourbossasksyoutocalculatetheprojectile'sspeedleaving
thecannonunderfieldconditions,whenitisallowedtorecoil.Shetellsyoutotakethecasewherethecannonisfiredhorizontallyusing
cannonshellswhichareidenticaltothoseusedinthelaboratorytest.
27. Foraparttimejobwithamedicalphysicsgroup,youarestudyingacancertherapythatusesneutronstoknockaparticleoutofthenucleusof
theatomsofcancercells.Thisisaninelasticcollisioninwhichtheheavynucleusessentiallydoesnotmove.Afterthecollision,thenucleus
decaysandkillsthecancercell.Youdecidetomeasurethechangeininternalenergyofanitrogennucleusafteraneutroncollideswithit.In
theexperiment,aneutronhitsthenucleuswithaspeedof2.0x10^7m/sandyoudetecttwoneutronsbothcomingoutatanglesof30degrees
withrespecttothedirectionthattheneutroncomingin.
RotationalKinematicsandDynamics
Note:Eachproblembeginswithalistofthespecificprinciplesnecessarytosolvethecontextrichproblem.Theseareforthebenefitofthe
instructor.Deletethelistbeforeusingtheproblemsinyourclass.
CenterofMass,MomentofInertial,RotationalKinematics
1. CenterofMass:Youhavebeenhiredaspartofaresearchteamconsistingofbiologists,computerscientists,engineers,mathematicians,and
physicistsinvestigatingtheviruswhichcausesAIDS.Thiseffortdependsonthedesignofanewcentrifugewhichseparatesinfectedcellsfrom
healthycellsbyspinningacontainerofthesecellsatveryhighspeeds.Yourdesignteamhasbeenassignedthetaskofspecifyingthe
mechanicalstructureofthecentrifugearmwhichholdsthesamplecontainer.Foraerodynamicstability,thearmmusthaveuniform
dimensions.Yourteamdecidedtheshapewillbealong,thinstripoflengthL,widthw,andthicknesst.ThemassofthestripisM.Theactual
valuesofthesequantitieswillbeoptimizedbyacomputerprogram.Formechanicalreasons,thearmmustbestrongeratoneendthanatthe
other.Yourteamdecidedtousenewcompositematerialstoaccomplishthis.Usingthesematerialschangesthestrengthbychangingthe
densityofthearmalongitslengthwhilekeepingitsdimensionsconstant.Tocalculatethestrengthofthebracketsnecessarytosupportthe
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arm,youmustdeterminethepositionofthecenterofmassofthearm.Youdecidetodothisintwodifferentways.
(a)Firstyoumakeacrudeapproximationofyourdesignbyassumingthatthearmisarigid,masslessrodoflengthL.Onthisrodaremounted
foursmallobjectsofequalmass.Oneoftheseobjectsispositionedateachendoftherod,oneinthecenteroftherod,andonemidway
betweenthecenterandtheend.
(b)Nextyoudoamoreexactcalculationbyassumingthatarmisacontinuousmaterialwithadensitywhichvarieslinearlyalongitslengthas
(A+Bx).
2. CenterofMass,MomentofInertia:Youareonadevelopmentteaminvestigatinganewdesignforcomputermagneticdiskdrives.Youhave
beenaskedtodetermineifthestandarddiskdrivemotorwillbesufficientforthetestversionofthenewdisk.Todothisyoudecideto
calculatehowmuchenergyisneededtogetthe6.4cmdiameter,15gramdisktoitsoperatingspeedof350revolutionspersecond.Thetest
diskalsohas4differentsensorsattachedtoitssurface.Thesesmallsensorsarearrangedatthecornersofasquarewithsidesof1.2cm.To
assurestability,thecenterofmassofthesensorarrayisinthesamepositionasthecenterofmassofthedisk.Thedisk'saxisofrotationalso
goesthroughthecenterofmass.Youknowthatthesensorshavemassesof1.0grams,1.5grams,2.0grams,and3.0grams.Themomentof
inertiaofyourdiskisonehalfthatofaring.
3. CenterofMass,Momentum,Kinematics:Twogovernmentagents(FBIagentsMulderandScully)needyourphysicsexpertisetodetermine
whyanalienspaceshipexploded.ThewreckageofthespaceshipisinthreelargepiecesaroundanorthernMinnesotatown.Thecenterofmass
ofonepiece(mass=300kg)ofthespaceshiplanded6.0kmduenorthofthecenteroftown.Anotherpiece(mass=1000kg)landed1.6kmto
thesoutheast(36degreessouthofeast)ofthecenteroftown.Thelastpiece(mass=400kg)landed4.0kmtothesouthwest(65degreessouth
ofwest)ofthecenteroftown.Therearenomorepiecesofthespaceship.TheArmy,whichwaswatchingthespaceshiponitsradar,claimsit
washoveringmotionlessoverthecenteroftownwhenthespaceshipspontaneouslyexplodedandthepiecesfelltotheground.AgentsMulder
andScullydonotbelievethatthespaceshipexplodedonitsownaccord.Theythinkamissilehitit.Theyaskyoutodeterminewhetherthe
fragmentsfoundareconsistentwiththespaceshipexplodingspontaneously.Ifnot,determinefromwhatdirectionthemissilecame.(For
simplicity,assumethatthepiecesofthespaceshipaftertheexplosionaremovinghorizontally.)
4. Kinematics,MomentofInertia:Youareworkinginaresearchgroupinvestigatingmoreenergyefficientcitybusses.Oneoptionistostore
energyintherotationofaflywheelwhenthebusstopsandthenuseittoacceleratethebus.Theflywheelunderconsiderationisdiskof
uniformconstructionexceptthatithasamassive,thinrimonitsedge.Halfthemassoftheflywheelisintherim.Whenthebusstops,the
flywheelneedstorotateat20revolutionspersecond.Whenthebusisgoingatitsnormalspeedof30milesperhour,theflywheelrotatesat2
revolutionspersecond.Thematerialholdingtherimtotherestoftheflywheelhasbeentestedtowithstandanaccelerationofupto100gbut
youareworriedthatitmightnotbestrongenough.Tocheck,youcalculatethemaximumradiusoftherimforthecasewhentheflywheel
reaches20revolutionspersecondjustasthebusgoing30milesperhourmakesanemergencystopin0.50seconds.Youassumethatduring
thistimetheflywheelhasaconstantangularacceleration.Yourtrustyphysicstexttellsyouthatthemomentofinertiaofadiskrotatingabout
itscenterishalfthatofaringofthesamemassandradius.
5. Kinematics,Force:Youdidsowellinyourphysicscoursethatyoudecidedtotrytogetasummerjobworkinginaphysicslaboratoryatthe
satellitewillbeinacircularorbit200milesabovethesurfaceoftheEarthwhichhasaradiusofabout4000miles.Toadjusttheinstruments
fortheproperdatatakingrate,youneedtocalculatehowmanytimesperdaythedevicewillsampletheatmosphereovertheSouthpole.
6. Kinematics,Force:Whilelisteningtoyourprofessordroneon,youdreamaboutbecominganengineerhelpingtodesignanewspacestationto
bebuiltindeepspacefarfromanyplanetarysystems.Thisstateofthe(future)artstationispoweredbyasmallamountofneutronstarmatter
whichhasadensityof2x1014g/cm3.Thestationwillbealargelightweightwheelrotatingaboutitscenterwhichcontainsthepower
generator.Acontrolroomisatubewhichgoesallthewayaroundthewheelandis10metersfromitscenter.Thelivingspaceandlaboratories
arelocatedattheoutsiderimofthewheelandareanothertubewhichgoesallthewayarounditatadistanceof200metersfromthecenter.To
keeptheenvironmentasnormalaspossible,peopleinboththeouterrimandthecontrolroomshouldexperiencethesameweightasthey
hadonEarth.Thatisiftheywerestandingonabathroomscale,itwouldreadthesameasiftheywereonEarth.Thisisaccomplishedbya
combinationoftherotationofthestationandthegravitationalattractionoftheneutronstarmatterinthepowergenerator.Yousuddenlywake
upwhenyoudropyourpenbutdecidethattheideaisinterestingenoughtocalculatethenecessaryrateofrotationandgeneratormass.While
drawingthefreebodydiagrams,yourealizethatthepeoplearestandingwiththeirheadsinwardontherimofthestationandwiththeirheads
outwardinthecontrolroom.
7. Kinematics,Force:YouhaveasummerjobatNASAwhereyourteamisresponsibleforspecifyingarockettoliftacommunicationssatellite
intoacircularorbitaroundtheEarth.Toeffectivelyrelaysignals,thesatellitewillhavetoalwaysremainoverthesamepointontheEarth's
equatorjustabovethecommunicationsstationwhichislocated50milesoutsideorNairobi,Kenya.Thesatellitewillhaveamassof3500kg.
Youhavebeenassignedthetaskofcalculatingtheradiusofthesatellite'sorbitanditsspeedwhileinorbitandpresentingthatcalculationto
yourteam.ForyourowncuriosityyoualsodecidetocalculatetheforcethatthesatelliteexertsontheEarthwhileitisinorbit.Fromyour
trustyphysicstextbookyoufindtheradiusoftheEarthis6370km,itsmassis5.96x1024kg,andtheuniversalgravitationalconstantis6.67x
1011Nm2/kg2.
RotationalEnergy
8. Energy:WhileworkinginanenvironmentalengineeringteamtodeterminethequalityoftheairindowntownMinneapolis,youhavebeen
giventhetaskofcalibratingthespectrumanalyzer.Thisdevicegivesyouthecompositionofthegassesinasamplebydeterminingthe
frequencyoflightabsorbedbythesample.Eachtypeofmoleculeabsorbsacertainsetoffrequencies(itsspectrum).Thefrequenciesactually
measuredarechangedifthemoleculeshaveanangularvelocityabouttheircenterofmass.Tocalibratetheanalyzer,youmustcalculatethe
expectedangularvelocityfortheOxygenmolecules(O2)inthesampleofMinneapolisair.Atthetemperaturesofyourgassample,you
calculatethatthecenterofmassspeedofatypicalmoleculeis500m/s.Basedonyouknowledgeofatomicsizes,youestimatethatthetypical
distancebetweenthenucleiofoxygenatomsinthemoleculeis108cm.Youalsoknowthatthe27x1027kgmassofanOxygenatomis
essentiallyconcentratedinitsverysmallnucleus.Yourbosstellsyoutoassumethattherotationalkineticenergyofthemoleculerotating
aboutanaxisthroughthecenterofthelinejoiningthenucleioftheatomsandperpendiculartothatlineis2/3itstranslationalkineticenergy.
9. Energy:WhileworkingonyourlatestnovelaboutsettlerscrossingtheGreatPlainsinawagontrain,yougetintoanargumentwithyourco
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authorregardingthemomentofinertiaofanactualwoodenwagonwheel.The70kgwheelis120cmindiameterandhasheavyspokes
connectingtherimtotheaxle.YourcoauthorclaimsthatyoucanapproximateusingI=MR2(likeforahoop)butyouanticipateIwillbe
significantlylessthanthatbecauseofthemasslocatedinthespokes.TofindIexperimentally,youmountthewheelonalowfrictionbearing
thenwrapalightcordaroundtheoutsideoftherimtowhichyouattacha20kgbagofsand.Whenthebagisreleasedfromrest,itdrops3.77
min1.6sduringwhichtimethewheelrotatesthroughanangleof2radians.Hint:Useenergyconsiderations.
10. Energy:YouhaveasummerjobhelpingtodesigntheopeningceremonyforthenextwinterOlympics.Oneofthechoreographer'sideasisto
haveskatersraceoutontotheiceandgrabaverylargering(thesymboloftheOlympics).Eachringisheldhorizontalatshoulderheightbya
verticalpolestuckintotheice.Thepoleisattachedtotheringonitscircumferencesothattheringcanrotatehorizontallyaroundthepole.The
planistohavetheskatergrabtheringatapointontheoppositesidefromwherethepoleisattachedand,holdingon,glidearoundthepoleina
circle.Youhavebeenassignedthejobofdeterminingtheminimumspeedthattheskatermusthavebeforegrabbingtheringintermsofthe
radiusofthering,themassofthering,themassoftheskater,andtheconstantfrictionalforcebetweentheskatesandtheice.The
choreographerwantstheskaterandringtogoaroundthepoleatleastfivetimes.Theskateristobemovingtangenttotheringjustbefore
grabbingit.
11. Energy,CenterofMass:Asaprojectyourteamisgiventhetaskofdesigningaspacestationconsistingoffourdifferenthabitats.Eachhabitat
isanenclosedspherecontainingallnecessarylifesupportandlaboratoryfacilities.Themassesofthesehabitatsare10x105kg,20x105kg,
30x105kg,and40x105kg.Theentirestationmustspinsothattheinhabitantswillexperienceanartificialgravity.Yourteamhasdecidedto
arrangethehabitatsatcornersofasquarewith1.0kmsides.Theaxisofrotationwillbeperpendiculartotheplaneofthesquareandthrough
thecenterofmass.Tohelpdecideifthisplanispractical,youcalculatehowmuchenergywouldbenecessarytosetthespacestationspinning
at5.0revolutionsperminute.Inyourteam'sdesign,thesizeofeachhabitatissmallcomparedtothesizeofthespacebetweenthehabitatsand
thestructurethatholdsthehabitatstogetherismuchlessmassivethananysinglehabitat.
12. Energy,CenterofMass:Youhaveagreatsummerjobworkingforamoviestudio.YourassignmentistocheckthescriptofanupcomingStar
Warsmovieforscientificaccuracy.Inonescene,theheroescapesbyputtingherspaceshipthroughawormholeinspace.Theengineshave
failedsotheshipiscoastingwhenitemergesinanotherpartofthegalaxyatthecenterofabinarystarsystem.Bothstarsinthesystemorbit
theircenterofmassandhaveequalmass.Youneedtodeterminetheminimumspeedofthespaceshipwhenitemergesfromthewormhole
perpendiculartotheplaneoftheorbitingstarssothatitisnotcapturedbythestarsystem.Whenthemovieisbetterdefined,youwillknowthe
massofeachstar,theradiusoftheirorbit,andthemassofthespaceship.Youassumethatevenalongtimeagoinagalaxyfar,farawaythe
gravitationalconstantisthesame.
13. Energy,Forces:Youhaveappliedforagreatsummerjobworkingwithaspecialeffectsteamatamoviestudio.Aspartofyourinterviewyou
havebeenaskedtoevaluatethedesignforastuntinanewIndianaJonesproduction.Alargesphericalboulderstartsfromrestandrollsdown
aninclinedtrack.Atthebottom,thetrackcurvesupintoaverticalcirclesothatthebouldercanrollaroundontheinsideofthecircleandcome
backtogroundlevel.Itisimportantthatthebouldernotfalloffthetrackatthetopofthecircleandcrushthestarstandingbelow.Youhave
beenaskedtodeterminetherelationshipbetweentheheightoftheboulder'sstartingpointontheramp(measuredfromthecenterofthe
boulder)andthemaximumradiusthecircularpartofthetrack.Youcandeterminethemassandtheradiusofthebouldershouldyouneedto
knowthem.Youhavealsobeentoldthatthemomentofinertiaofasphereis2/5thatofaringofthesamemassandradius.Aftersome
thoughtyoudecidethattheboulderwillstaymovinginaverticalcircleifitsradialaccelerationatthetopisjustthatprovidedbygravity.
Torques
14. Torque:Inabudgetcuttingmove,theUniversitydecidedtoreplacetheirhumanmascot,GoldieGopher,byarealgopher.Unfortunatelythe
new10lbGoldiehasotherideasandhasescapedtheclutchesoftheathleticdepartmentbyjumpingoutawindowontoaflagpoleattachedto
thebuilding.Thefiredepartmenthasbeencalledintorecovertherecalcitrantgopher.Theplanisforafiremantoclimboutontheflagpole
andgetGoldie.Goldieis3metersoutonthe4meterlongflagpole.Becauseofyourtechnicalbackground,youhaveaparttimejobasa
Universitysafetyofficerandareaskedtoapprovethisplan.Thepoleisattachedtothebuildingatanangleof37abovethehorizontaland
weighs22lbs.Ahorizontalcablewitharatedstrengthof300lbsconnectsthefarendofthepoletothebuildingseemsstrongenough.The
otherendofthepoleisconnectedtothebuildingbyasteelpinsupportedbyastrongsteelbrace.Youareworriedaboutwhetherthispinis
strongenoughsoyoucalculatetheforcesonthepin.ThelightestfiremanavailableforthejobofgettingGoldieweighs150lbsinallofher
gear.
Youfindthatthepinisstrongenoughsoyoumightapprovethisdaringrescue.Youwantittobeassafeaspossible.Youwillrequirethatthe
firemanwearasafetyharnesswhichisheldbysomeoneinsidethebuilding.Afterall,thecableholdinguptheflagpolehasbeenoutinthe
Minnesotawinterforyears.Ifthecabledoesbreak,theflagpolewillrotateaboutthepinsupportingitsbase.
Doingaquickintegral,youfindthatthemomentofinertiaofapoleaboutanaxisatoneendis1/3asmuchasifallitsmasswereconcentrated
attheotherendofthepole.Tosavethefiremanyoumustgetheroffbeforethepolegoesbelowahorizontalorientation.Thegopherwillbeon
itsown.Toseeifrescueispossible,youcalculatetheaccelerationoftheflagpolewiththefiremanandgopherclingingtoitforthetwo
extremecases,justafterthecablebreaksandjustasitreachesahorizontalorientation.
15. Torque:Theautomaticflagraisingsystemonahorizontalflagpoleattachedtotheverticaloutsidewallofatallbuildinghasbecomestuck.The
managementofthebuildingwantstosendapersoncrawlingoutalongtheflagpoletofixtheproblem.Becauseofyourphysicsknowledge,
youhavebeenaskedtoconsultwithagrouptodecidewhetherornotthisispossible.Youarealltooawarethatnoonecouldsurvivethe250
footfallfromtheflagpoletotheground.Theflagpoleisa120lbsteelIbeamwhichisverystrongandrigid.Onesideoftheflagpoleis
attachedtothewallofthebuildingbyahingesothatitcanrotatevertically.Ninefeetaway,theotherendoftheflagpoleisattachedtoa
strong,lightweightcable.Thecablegoesupfromtheflagpoleatanangleof30untilitreachesthebuildingwhereitisboltedtothewall.
Themechanicwhowillclimboutontheflagpoleweighs150lbsincludingequipment.Fromthespecificationsofthebuildingconstruction,
boththeboltattachingthecabletothebuildingandthehingehavebeentestedtoholdaforceof500lbs.Yourbosshasdecidedthattheworse
caseiswhenthemechanicisatthefarendoftheflagpole,ninefeetfromthebuilding.
16. Torque:Afterwatchinganewsstoryaboutafireinahighriseapartmentbuilding,youandyourfrienddecidetodesignanemergencyescape
devicefromthetopofabuilding.Toavoidenginefailure,yourfriendsuggestsagravitationalpoweredelevator.Thedesignhasalarge,heavy
turntable(ahorizontaldiskthatisfreetorotateaboutitscenter)ontheroofwithacablewoundarounditsedge.Thefreeendofthecablegoes
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horizontallytotheedgeofthebuildingroof,passesoveraheavyverticalpulley,andthenhangsstraightdown.Astrongwirecagewhichcan
hold5peopleisthenattachedtothehangingendofthecable.Whenpeopleenterthecageandreleaseit,thecableunrollsfromtheturntable
loweringthepeoplesafelytotheground.Toseeifthisdesignisfeasibleyoudecidetocalculatetheaccelerationofthefullyloadedelevatorto
makesureitismuchlessthang.Yourfriend'sdesignhastheradiusoftheturntablediskas1.5manditsmassistwicethatofthefullyloaded
elevator.Thediskwhichservesastheverticalpulleyhas1/4theradiusoftheturntableand1/16itsmass.InyourtrustyPhysicsbookyoufind
thatthemomentofinertiaofadiskis1/2thatofaring.
17. Torques,Kinematics:Becauseofyourphysicsbackground,youhavebeenaskedtobeastuntconsultantforamotionpictureabouta
geneticallysynthesizedprehistoriccreaturethatescapesfromcaptivityandterrorizesthecity.Thesceneyouareaskedtoreviewhasthethree
maincharactersofthemoviebeingchasedbythecreaturethroughanoldwarehouse.Attheexitofthewarehouseisathicksteelfiredoor10
feethighand6.0feetwideweighingabout2,000pounds.Inthescene,thethreeactorsaretofleefromthebuildingandclosethefiredoor
(initiallyatrest),thussealingthecreatureinsidethebuilding.Withthecreaturerunningat30mph,theyhave5.0secondstoshutthedoor.You
areaskedtodetermineiftheycandoit.Youestimatethateachactorcaneachpushonthedoorwithaforceof50pounds.Whentheypush
together,eachactorneedsaspaceofabout1.5feetbetweenthemandthenextactor.Thedoor,whichhasamomentofinertiaof1/3Mr2
arounditshinges,needstorotate120degreesforittoclosecompletely.
18. Torque,Kinematics:WhilewatchingthelocalTVnewsshow,youseeareportaboutgroundwatercontaminationandhowiteffectsfarms
whichgettheirwaterfromwells.Fordramaticeffect,thereporterstandsnexttoanoldstylewellwhichstillworksbyloweringabucketatthe
endofaropeintoadeepholeinthegroundtogetwater.Atthetopofthewellasingleverticalpulleyismountedtohelpraiseandlowerthe
bucket.Thethinropepassesoverthelargepulleywhichisessentiallyaheavysteelringsupportedbylightspokes.Todemonstratethedepthof
thewell,thereportercompletelywrapstheropearoundthepulleyandsuspendsthebucketfromoneend.Shethenreleasesthebucket,atrest
nearthepulley,anditdescendstothebottomofthewellunwindingtheropefromthepulleyasitfalls.Ittakes2.5seconds.Shedoesn'ttell
youthedepthofthewellsoyoudecidetocalculateit.Youestimatethatthepulleyhasthesamemassofthebucketandassumethatthemass
oftheropeandanyfrictioncanbeneglected.
19. EnergyorTorques,Kinematics:WhileyouwatchingaTVshowaboutlifeintheancientworld,youseethatthepeopleinonevillageuseda
solidspheremadeoutofclayasakindofpulleytohelphaulupwaterfromawell.Awellgreasedwoodenaxlewasplacedthroughthecenter
ofthesphereandfixedinahorizontalorientationabovethewell,allowingthespheretorotatefreely.Todemonstratethedepthofthewell,the
hostoftheprogramcompletelywrappedtheropearoundthesphereandsuspendedthebucketfromoneend.Shethenreleasedthebucket,at
restnearthesphere,andallowedittodescendtothebottomofthewellunwindingthestringfromthesphereasitwent.Ittook2.5seconds.
Youwonderwhatthedepthofthewellwassoyoudecidetocalculateit.Youestimatethatthespherehastwicethemassofthebucketand
assumethatthemassoftheropecanbeneglected.Youlookupthemomentofinertiaofasphereaboutanaxisthroughitscenterofmassand
finditis2/5thatofaringofthesamemassandradius.
20. EnergyorTorque,Kinematics:Youhavebeenaskedtohelpdesignasafetymechanismwhichwillautomaticallydropsaropefromthe
windowofanapartmentinthecaseoffire.Oneendoftheropeisfastenedtoaledgeontheoutsidewallofthebuildingwhiletheotheris
rolledtightlyaroundahollowcylinder.Whenafireisdetected,themechanismdropsthehollowcylindersothatitisparalleltotheground.
Thecylinderfallsstraightdownwithouttouchingthesideofthebuildingandtheropeunwindsfromaroundapointmidwayalongitslength.
Tooptimizeyourdesign,youneedtocalculatehowlongittakestofalltothegroundasafunctionoftheheightofthefall,theradiusofthe
cylinder,themassofthecylinder,andthelengthofthecylinder.
21. Torques,Forces:Afriendofyourswholikestofixhisowncarhasimprovisedacarliftingdeviceinhisgarage.Heexplainsthatheplansto
parkthecaronarectangularplatformwhichisliftedintotheairbyfourropeseachattachedtoacorneroftheplatform.Theplatformis
constructedofsteelIbeamsandhasaweightof250lbs.Itis12feetlongand5.0feetwidewithitscenterofmass5.0feetfromthefrontand
2.5feetfromeitherside.Hiscarhasaweightof1400lbsand75%ofthatweightiscarriedbythefronttires.Thedistancebetweenthecenters
ofthetiresis7.2feet.Hisplanistoparkthecarinthemiddleoftheplatformwiththefronttire2.4feetfromthefrontoftheplatformoverthe
midpointoftheplatform.Inthatway,thetwofrontropeshavetheequaltensionsandthetwobackropeswillalsohaveequaltensions.The
ropesarecertifiedtoholdaloadof5000Neach.Beforeheuseshisdevice,hehasaskedyouradviceonitssafety.
22. Torques,Forces:Youhavebeenaskedtodesignamachinetomovealargecablespoolupafactoryrampin30seconds.Thespoolismadeof
two6.0ftdiameterdisksofwoodwithironrimsconnectedtogetherattheircentersbyasolidcylinder1.0ftwideand3.0ftlong.Sometime
laterinthemanufacturingprocess,cablewillbewoundaroundthecylinder.Fornowthecylinderisbarebutthespoolstillweighs200lbs.
Yourplanistoattachathinringaroundthecylinderandpullthespooluptherampwitharopeattachedtothetopofthisring.Thespoolwill
thenrollwithoutslippinguptheramponitstwooutsidedisksataconstantspeed.Tofinishthedesignyouneedtocalculatehowstrongthe
ropemustbetopullthespoolwhenitismovinguptherampataconstantspeed.Theramphasanangleof27ofromthehorizontalandthe
ropewillbeparalleltotheramp.Asetoflightweightbearingsminimizesthefrictionbetweentheringandthecylinderandfixesthe
orientationoftheringsothattheropealwayspullsfromitstop.Thediameteroftheringisessentiallythesameasthatofthecylinder.
23. Torques,Forces:Youhavebeenchosentobepartofateaminvestigatinganexplosioninavirologylaboratory.Whenyouenterthelab,you
seethatalargeutilityconduit,whichwasoriginallysuspendedhorizontallyoverhead,hasfallenontopofachemicalworkbench.Youdecide
todetermineifamechanicalfailuremadetheconduitbreak,crashingintothechemicalsandcausingtheexplosionorifthechemicalexplosion
causedtheconduittofall.Theheavyconduit,essentiallyabarwithanonuniformmassdistribution,washeldupintheairbytwolightweight
cablesattachedtotheceilingatdifferentangles.Onecablewasattachedateachendoftheconduit.Tocheckoutthepossibilityofa
mechanicalfailure,youfirstdecidetocalculatethepositionofthecenterofmassfromoneendoftheconduitbasedontheknownweightof
theconduit,thelengthoftheconduit,andtheanglesofthecableswiththeceiling.
24. Torques,Forces:Youhaveasummerjobworkingdowntownwashingwindowsonskyscrapers(thepayisgreatandsoarethemedical
benefits).Theplatformyouandyourpartnerareusingtogettothewindowsisameterwideandfourmeterslong.Youknowfromhaulingthe
platformoutofyourtruckcountlesstimesthatithasamassof70kg.Itissupportedbytwocables,oneateachend,mountedoncenterto
preventtheplatformfromtippingoverasitispulledupthesideofthebuildingataconstantspeed.Ifyou(massof55kg)arestandingonthe
platform1meterfromonecablewhileyourpartner(massof87kg)is1.3metersfromtheothercableandbothofyouarehalfameterfromthe
side,whatisthetensionineachcable?Assumetheplatformhasauniformmassdistributionandisofnegligiblethickness.
AngularMomentum
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25. AngularMomentum:Youarepartofateaminanengineeringcontesttryingtodesignamechanical"cat"which,whendroppedmotionless,
upsidedownfrom2.5m,canrightitselfbeforeithitsthegroundbyrotatingits"tail."Thebodyofthe"cat,"aptlynamedKatt,isasolid
cylinder1footinlengthand6inchesindiameter,withamassof5.44kg.AttachedtothecenterofoneendofthebodyisKatt's"tail,"a1foot
longrodwhichextendsoutperpendiculartoKatt'sbodyandhasonly1%themassofthebody.Yourtaskistodeterminetheenergydemand
putonthesmallelectricmotorinthebodywhichrotatesthe"tail."Basedonyourwork,haveyouanydesignimprovementstosuggesttothe
restoftheteam?Remember:asolidcylinderrotatedaboutit'scentralaxishasamomentofinertia1/2thatofacylinderwithallit'smassonit's
circumferencearodrotatedaboutoneendhasamomentofinertia1/3ofthatifmasswereconcentratedattheoppositeend.
26. AngularMomentum:Youhavebeenaskedtohelpevaluateaproposaltobuildadevicetodeterminethespeedofhockeypucksshotalongthe
ice.Thedeviceconsistsofarodwhichrestsontheiceandisfastenedtotheiceatoneendsothatitisfreetorotatehorizontally.Thefreeend
oftherodhasasmall,lightbasketwhichwillcatchthehockeypuck.Thepuckslidesacrosstheiceperpendiculartotherodandiscaughtin
thebasketwhichisinitiallyatrest.Therodthenrotates.Thedesignersclaimthatknowingthelengthoftherod,themassoftherod,themass
ofthepuck,andthefrequencyoftherotationoftherodandpuck,youcandeterminethespeedofthepuckasitmovedacrosstheice.
27. AngularMomentum,Energy:Youareamemberofagroupdesigninganairfiltrationsystemforallergysuffers.Tooptimizeitsoperationyou
needtomeasurethemassofthecommonpollenintheairwherethefilterwillbeused.Tomeasurethepollen'smass,youhavedesigneda
smallrectangularboxwithaholeinonesidetoallowthepollentoenter.Onceinsidethepollenisgivenapositiveelectricchargeand
acceleratedbyanelectrostaticforcetoaspeedof1.4m/s.Thepollenthenhitstheendofaverysmall,uniformbarwhichishangingstraight
downfromapivotatitstop.Sincethebarhasanegativechargeatitstip,thepollenstickstoitasthebarswingsup.Measuringtheanglethat
thebarswingsupwouldgivetheparticle'smass.Aftertheangleismeasured,thechargeofthebarisreversed,releasingthatparticle.It'sa
cooldesignbutyourfriendinsistsitwillneverwork.Toproveitsheasksyoutocalculatethelengthofthebarwhichwouldgiveyoua
reasonableangleofabout10foratypicalpollenparticleof4x109grams.Yourplancallsforabarof7x104gramswithamomentof
inertial1/12asmuchasifallofitsmasswereconcentratedatitsend.Issheright?
28. AngularMomentum,Energy:Youhavebeenaskedtodesignanewstuntfortheopeningofaniceshow.Asmall50kgskaterglidesdowna
rampandalongashortlevelstretchofice.Whileglidingalongthelevelstretchshemakesherselfassmallaspossible.Keepingherselfas
smallaspossibleshethengrabsthebottomendofalarge180kgverticalrodwhichisfreetoturnverticallyaboutaaxisthroughitscenter.
Theplanisforhertoholdontothe20footlongrodwhileitswingshertothetop.Therodhasauniformmassdistribution.Youhavebeen
askedtogivetheminimumheightoftheramp.Doingaquickintegraltellsyouthatthemomentofinertiaofthisrodaboutitscenteris1/3of
whatitsmomentofinertiawouldbeifallofitsmasswereconcentratedatoneofitsends.
29. AngularMomentum,Energy:Yourgrouphasdecidedtorevisitthelabexperimentinwhichametalringwasdroppedontoarotatingplate.In
hopesofgettingbetterresults,younowhaveamotorwhichinitiallyspinsthediskandshaftat3.0rev.persecond.Youarealsousinga
mechanicaldevicetodropthering,sothatitlandsperfectlyinthegrooveoneverytrial.Unfortunatelythebearinginyourapparatusisgiving
out(afterweeksofheavyuse)soyoumustredoyouranalysis,takingintoaccountthefrictionalforcewhichthebearingappliestotheoutside
oftheshaft.Youassumethatthisforceisapproximatelyconstant,exceptperhapsduringthecollisioneventitself.Toavoidthelarge
uncertaintiesassociatedwithusingastopwatch,youdecidetocountrevolutionsyouletthediskrotatetwiceafterdisengagingthemotor,
thendropthering,thennotethattheentireapparatusgoesaround17moretimesbeforecomingtorest.Howlargeisthefrictionalforce?The
radiiofthedisk,shaft,andringare11cm,0.63cm,and6.5cm(5.5cm)outside(inside)respectively.Themomentsofinertia(aboutthe
appropriateaxis)forthedisk,shaft,andringare5.1x103kgm2,3.7x106kgm2,and8.9x103kgm2respectively.
30. AngularMomentum,Energy,Kinematics:Youhavebeenhiredbyacompanywhichisdesigninganewwaterslideforanamusementpark.
Theconceptualdesignhasacustomergoingdownacurvedslideendingupmovinghorizontallyatthebottom.Attheendoftheoftheslide,
thecustomergrabstheendofa16.0mlongverticalbarthatisfreetopivotaboutitscenter.Aftergrabbingontothebar,thecustomerswings
outoverapoolofwater.Whenthebarswingsouttoitsmaximumdistance,thecustomercandropoffandfallstraightdownintothewater.
Yourtaskistodeterminetheheightoftheslidesothatthemaximumhorizontaldistancethatthebarswingsoutis5.0mfora60kgperson.
Thebarhasfivetimesthemassofa60kgperson.Fromanengineeringhandbook,youfindthatthemomentofinertiaofthebaris1/12of
whatitwouldbeifallofitsmasswereconcentratedatthebottom.
ConservationofEnergyandHeat
Problems
1. Totakeabreakfromstudyingphysics,yourentthevideoofthemovieversionofthebookFahrenheit451,whichstaredOscarWerner.The
setting(inEngland)isanOrwelliansocietywherebooksarebannedandallinformationisdisseminatedbyalargeTVscreenineachhome.
Firedepartmentsrespondnottoputoutfires,buttoburnbooks,whichcombustatatemperatureof451F(hencethenameofthefilm).Inthe
middleofthefilm,yourmindwanders.Youimaginethefiredepartmentusingtheburningbookstoheat600cm3ofwaterfortheirafternoon
tea.Youimaginethattheburnertransfers80%oftheheatfromtheburningbookstothewater,whichyourememberhasaheatcapacityof1.0
calorie/goC.Howmuchwillthewatertemperaturerisefromburningonecopyofthe500pagebookFahrenheit451iftheheatofcombustion
is1.0calorieperpage?
2. Youarehelpingafriendwhoisaveterinariantodosomeminorsurgeryonacow.Shehasaskedyoutosterilizeascalpelandahemostatby
boilingthemfor30minutes.Youboilthemasorderedandthenquicklytransfertheinstrumentstoawellinsulatedtraycontaining200grams
ofsterilizedwateratroomtemperature(23C)whichisjustenoughtocovertheinstruments.Afterafewminutestheinstrumentsandwater
willcometothesametemperature,butwilltheybesafetohandtoyourfriendwithoutbeingburned?Youarebothwearingsurgicalrubber
gloves,buttheyareverythin.Youknowthatboththe50gramscalpelandthe70gramhemostataremadefromsteelwhichhasaspecificheat
of450J/(kgC).Theywereboiledin2.0kgofwaterwithaspecificheatof4200J/(kgC).
3. Youhaveasummerjobwithacompanythatdesignscookware.Yourgroupisassignedthetaskofdesigningabetterpastapot.Youarevery
excitedbyanewstrong,lightalloythegrouphasjustproduced,butwillitmakeagoodpastapot?Ifittakesmorethan10minutestoboil
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waterinapastapot,itprobablywon'tsell.Soyourbossasksyoutocalculatehowlongitwouldtakewateratroomtemperature(23C)to
reachboilingtemperature(100C)inapotmadeofthenewalloy.Yourcolleaguestellyouthatatypicalpastapotholdsabout2liters(2.0kg)
ofwater.Theyestimatethatapotmadeofthealloywouldhaveamassof550grams,andaspecificheatcapacityof860J/(kgC).Youlook
inyourphysicsbookandfindthatwaterhasaspecificheatcapacityof4200J/(kgC)anditsheatofvaporizationis2.3x106J/kg.The
owner'smanualstatesthattheburnersonyourstovedeliver1000Joulesofheatpersecond.Youestimatethatonlyabout20%ofthisheatis
radiatedaway.
4. Youareplanningabirthdaypartyforyournieceandneedtomakeatleast4gallonsofKoolAid,whichyouwouldliketocooldownto32oF
(0C)beforethepartybegins.Unfortunately,yourrefrigeratorisalreadysofulloftreatsthatyouknowtherewillbenoroomfortheKool
Aid.So,withasuddenflashofinsight,youdecidetostartwith4gallonsofthecoldesttapwateryoucanget,whichyoudetermineis50F(10
C),andthencoolitdownwitha1quartchunkoficeyoualreadyhaveinyourfreezer.Theowner'smanualforyourrefrigeratorstatesthat
whenthefreezersettingisonhigh,thetemperatureis20C.Willyourplanwork?YouassumethatthedensityoftheKoolAidisaboutthe
sameasthedensityofwater.Youlookinyourphysicsbookandfindthatthedensityofwateris1.0g/cm3,thedensityoficeis0.9g/cm3,the
heatcapacityofwateris4200J/(kgC),theheatcapacityoficeis2100J/(kgC),theheatoffusionofwateris3.4x105J/kg,anditsheat
ofvaporizationis2.3x106J/kg.
5. Youarethinkingaheadtospringwhenoneofyourfriendsishavinganoutdoorwedding.Yourplanistodesigntheperfectlemonadeforthe
event.Theproblemwithlemonadeisthatyoumakeitatroomtemperatureandthenaddicetocoolittoapleasant10C.Usually,theice
meltsdilutingthelemonadetoomuch.Tohelpyousolvethisproblem,youlookupthespecificheatcapacityofwater(1.0cal/(gmC)),the
specificheatcapacityofice(0.50cal/(gmC)),andthelatentheatoffusionofwater(80cal/gm).Youassumethatthespecificheatcapacityof
thelemonadeisthesameaswater.SinceyouwillcoolyourlemonadeinaThermosjug,assumenoheatisaddedtothelemonadefromthe
environment.Usingthatinformation,youcalculatehowmuchwateryougetfromalltheicemeltingifyoumake6quarts(5.6kg)oflemonade
atroomtemperature(23C)andaddicewhichcomesstraightfromthefreezerat5.0C.
6. Whileworkingforagrainloadingcompanyoverthesummer,yourbossasksyoutodeterminetheefficiencyofanewtypeofpneumatic
elevator.Theelevatorissupportedinacylindricalshaftbyacolumnofair,whichyouassumetobeanidealgaswithaspecificheatof12.5
J/molC.Theairpressureinthecolumnis1.2x105Pawhentheelevatorcarriesnoload.Thebottomofthecylindricalshaftopensoutsothat
thereisareservoirofairatroomtemperature(25C)belowtheelevatorwhenitbeginsloading.Sealsaroundtheelevatorassurethatnoair
escapesastheelevatormovesupanddown.Theelevatorhasacrosssectionalareaof10m2.Acycleofelevatorusebeginswiththeunloaded
elevator.Theelevatoristhenloadedwith20,000kgofgrainwhiletheairtemperaturestaysat25Ccausingtheelevatortosink.Theairinthe
systemisthenheatedto75Candtheelevatorrises.Theelevatoristhenunloaded,whiletheairremainsat75C.Finally,theairinthe
systemiscooledtoroomtemperatureagain,returningtheelevatortoitsstartinglevel.Whiletheelevatorismovingupanddown,youassume
thatitmovesataconstantvelocitysothatthepressureinthegasisconstant.
7. Note:Thisproblemrequiresbothmechanicalenergyandheatenergyforasolution.Intheclassdemonstration,a2.0gramleadbulletwasshot
intoa2.0kgblockofwood.Theblockofwoodwiththebulletstuckinitwashungfromastringandrosetoaheight0.50cmaboveitsinitial
position.Fromthatinformationwecalculatedthattheinitialspeedofthebulletwasabout300m/s(closetothespeedofsound).Whatwasthe
bulletlikewhenitstopped?Usingconservationofenergyandconservationofmomentum,wedecidedthattheinternalenergyofthebullet,
blocksystemhadincreasedsubstantially.Ifthechangeofinternalenergyofthebulletwashalfthatofthesystem,wouldthischangebe
enoughtomeltthebullet?Assumethatthebullethadatemperatureof50Cwhenitleftthegun.Themeltingtemperatureofleadis330C.It
hasaspecificheatcapacityof130J/(kgC)andalatentheatoffusionof25J/g.Thespecificheatcapacityofwoodis1700J/(kgC).
OscillationsandWaves
Problems
1. Oscillation:YouhavebeenaskedtoevaluatethedesignforasimpledevicetomeasurethemassofsmallrocksontheMoon.Therockis
attachedtothefreeendofalightweightspringwhichhorizontal.Thesurfaceonwhichtherockslidesisalmostfrictionless.Youareworried
thatthekineticenergyoftherockmaymakethisdevicedangerousinsomesituations.Thedevicespecificationsstatethata150gramrockwill
executeharmonicmotion,withafrequencyof0.32Hz,describedbyx(t)=Asin(bt35)whentherockhasaninitialspeedof1.2cm/s.
2. Oscillations:Youandsomefriendsarewaitinginlinefor"TheMixer",anewcarnivalride.Theridebeginswiththecarandrider(150kg
combined)atthetopofacurvedtrack.Atthebottomofthetrackisa50kgblockofcushionedmaterialwhichisattachedtoahorizontal
springwhoseotherendisfixedinconcrete.Thecarslidesdownthetrackendingupmovinghorizontallywhenitcrashesintothecushioned
block,stickstoit,andoscillatesat3repetitionsinabout10seconds.Yourfriendsestimatethatthecarstartsfromaheightofaround10feet.
Youdecidetouseyourphysicsknowledgetoseeiftheyareright.Afterthecollision,younoticethatthespringcompressesabout15ftfrom
equilibrium.
3. TravelingWaves:You'vebeenhiredasatechnicalconsultanttotheMinneapolispolicedepartmenttodesignaradardetectorproofdevicethat
measuresthespeedofvehicles.(i.e.onethatdoesnotrelyonsendingoutaradarsignalthatthecarcandetect.)Youdecidetoemploythefact
thatamovingcaremitsavarietyofcharacteristicsounds.Yourideaistomakeaverysmallandlowdevicetobeplacedinthecenterofthe
roadthatwillpickoutaspecificfrequencyemittedbythecarasitapproachesandthenmeasurethechangeinthatfrequencyasthecarmoves
offintheotherdirection.Thedevicewillthensendtheinitialandfinalfrequenciestoitsmicroprocessor,andthenusethisdatatocomputethe
speedofthevehicle.Youarecurrentlyintheprocessofwritingaprogramforthechipinyournewdevice.Tocompletetheprogram,youneed
aformulathatdeterminesthespeedofthecarusingthedatareceivedbythemicroprocessor.Youmayalsoincludeinyourformulaany
physicalconstantsthatyoumightneed.Becauseyourreputationasadesignerisontheline,yourealizethatyou'llneedfindwaystocheckthe
validityofyourformula,eventhoughitcontainsnonumbers.
4. TravelingWaves:YouhavetheperfectsummerjobwithateamofmarinebiologistsstudyingdolphincommunicationoffthecoastofHawaii.
Massivebouldersontheoceanfloorcaninterruptthereceptionofunderwatersoundwavesfromthedolphins.Toreducethesedisruptions,
yourteamhasdecidedtoputseveral"transceivers"(adevicethatreceivesasignal,amplifiesthesignal,andthentransmitsit)atstrategic
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locationsontheoceanfloor.Atransceiverwillreceivesoundwavesfromadolphinandthenretransmitthemtotheresearchersontheship.
Theship'sreceiverisonalongcablesothatitisatapproximatelythesamedepthasthedolphins.Becauseofyourphysicsbackground,you
worrythatthefrequencyreceivedatthemovingshipwillbedifferentthanthatemittedbythedolphin.Todeterminethesizeofthiseffect,you
assumethattheshipismovingat35km/hawayfromthestationarytransceiver.Meanwhile,thedolphinismovingat60km/htowardsthe
transceiverandatanangleof63totheship'spathwhenitemitsasoundfrequencyof660Hz.
5. WaveEquation:Afriendofyours,aguitarist,knowsyouaretakingphysicsthissemesterandasksforassistanceinsolvingaproblem.Your
friendexplainsthathekeepsbreakingrepeatedlythelowEstring(640Hz)onhisGibson"LesPaul"whenhetunesupbeforeagig.Thecost
ofbuyingnewstringsisgettingoutofhand,soyourfriendisdesperatetoresolvehisDelia.YourfriendtellsyouthattheEstringheisnow
usingismadeofcopperandhasadiameterof0.063inches.Youdosomequickcalculationsand,giventhelengthoftheneckofyourfriends
guitar,estimatethatthewavespeedontheEstringis1900ft/s.Whilereadingaboutstringedinstrumentsinthelibrary,youdiscoverthatmost
musicalinstrumentstringswillbreakiftheyaresubjectedtoastraingreaterthanabout2%.Howdoyousuggestyourfriendsolvehis
problem?
6. StandingWaves:Yourfriend,anartist,hasbeenthinkingaboutaninterestingwaytodisplayanewwindsculptureshehasjustcreated.In
ordertocreateanauralaswellasvisualeffect,shewouldliketousethewiresneededtohangthesculptureasasortofastringinstrument.She
decidesthatwiththreewiresandsomeluck,thestringswillsoundaCmajordyad(C262Hz,G392Hz)whenthewindblows(note:A
dyadispartofachord.).Herbasicdesigninvolvesattachingapieceofwirefromtwoeyehooksontheceilingthatareapproximatelyafoot
andahalfapartandthenhangingthe50poundsculpturefromanotherwireattachedtothefirstwireforminga"yshaped"arrangement.Your
friendtellsyouthatshehasbeensuccessfulinhangingthesculpturebutnotin"tuning"thesound.Desperateforsuccess,sheknowsyouare
takingphysicsandasksforyourhelp.Beforeyoutackletheanalysis,youuseyourknowledgeofwavestogathersomemoreinformation.You
takeasampleofthewirebacktoyourlabandmeasureitslinearmassdensitytobe5.0g/m.Youalsodeterminethatwireissomesortofiron
orsteelfromitscolor.Whatisyouradvice?
7. StandingWaves:Youhaveasummerjobinabiomedicalengineeringlaboratorystudyingthetechnologytoenhancehearing.Youhave
learnedthatthehumanearcanalisessentiallyanairfilledtubeapproximately2.7cmlongwhichisopenononeendandclosedontheother.
Youwonderifthereisaconnectionbetweenhearingsensitivityandstandingwavessoyoucalculatethelowestthreefrequenciesofthe
standingwavesthatcanexistintheearcanal.FromyourtrustyPhysicstextbook,youfindthatthespeedofsoundinairis343m/s.
8. StandingWaves:YouhavejoinedateamdesigninganewskywaythatistolinkthePhysicsBuildingtotheMechanicalEngineeringBuilding.
Tomakesureitwillbestableingustsofwind,youneedtofindthelowestfrequencythatsetsupastandingwaveintheskywaystructure.
Yourgrouphasdecidedtomakeascalemodeloftheskywayandputitintoawindtunneltodeterminethefrequency.Unfortunatelythewind
tunnelcannotbepulsedataverylowfrequency.Whilethemodelisinthewindtunnelyoupulsethewinduntilyoufindafrequencywhich
setsupastandingwaveinthemodel.Youthenslowlyincreasethefrequencyuntilyougetthenextstandingwavepattern.Usingthetwo
frequenciesyouhavemeasuredtogetherwiththelengthoftheskywaymodelyouthencalculatethelowestfrequencywhichwillsetupa
standingwave.
9. Energy,Frequency:YouhaveanexcitingsummerjobworkingonanoiltankerinthewatersofAlaska.YourCaptainknowsthattheshipis
nearanunderwateroutcroppingoflandandwishestoavoidrunningintoit.Heestimatesthatitisabout6kmstraightaheadoftheshipand
asksyoutousethesonartocheckhowfasttheshipisapproachingit.Theship'sinstrumentstellyoutheshipismovingthroughstillwaterata
speedof31km/hrbutthecaptaincannottakeanychances.Asonarsignalissentoutwithafrequencyof980Hz,bouncesofftheunderwater
obstacle,andisdetectedontheship.Iftheship'sspeedindicatoriscorrect,whatfrequencyshouldyoudetect?YouuseyourtrustyPhysicstext
tofindthespeedofsoundinseawateris1522m/s.
10. Rotations:Youarehelpingafriendbuildanexperimenttotestbehaviormodificationtechniquesonrats.Sheneedstobuildanobstaclethat
swingsacrossapathevery1.0second.Tokeeptheexperimentasinexpensiveaspossible,shewantstouseameterstickastheswinging
obstacle.Sheasksyoutodeterminewheretodrillaholeinthemetersticksothat,whenitishungbyanailthroughthathole,itwilldothejob
forsmallswings.
11. Rotations:Yourfriendistryingtoconstructaclockforacraftshowandasksyouforsomeadvice.Shehasdecidedtoconstructtheclockwith
apendulum.Thependulumwillbeaverythin,verylightwoodenbarwithathin,butheavy,brassringfastenedtooneend.Thelengthofthe
rodis80cmandthediameteroftheringis10cm.Sheisplanningtodrillaholeinthebartoplacetheaxisofrotation15cmfromoneend.
Shewantsyoutotellhertheperiodofthispendulum.
12. Rotations:Thechildofafriendhasaskedyoutohelpwithaschoolproject.Shewantstobuildaclockfromcommonmaterials.Shehasfound
ameterstickwhichhasamassof300gandasksyoutodeterminewheretodrillaholeinitsothatwhenitishungbyanailthroughthatholeit
willbeapendulumwithaperiodof2.0secondsforsmalloscillations.Aquickcalculationtellsyouthatthemomentofinertiaofthemeter
stickaboutitscenterofmassis1/12ofitsmasstimesthesquareofitslength.
13. Rotations:Youhaveaparttimejobatasoftwarecompanythatiscurrentlyundercontracttoproduceaprogramsimulatingaccidentsinthe
moderncommuterrailroadstationbeingplannedfordowntown.Yourtaskistodeterminetheresponseofasafetysystemtopreventarailroad
carfromcrashingintothestation.Inthesimulation,acouplingfailscausingapassengercartobreakawayfromatrainandrollintothestation.
Furthermore,thebrakesonthepassengercarhavefailed.Itcannotstoponitsownsoitkeepsonrolling.Thesafetysystemattheendofthe
trackisalargehorizontalspringwithahookthatwillgrabontothecarwhenithitspreventingthecarfromcrashingintothestationplatform.
Afterthecarhitsthespring,yourprogrammustcalculatethefrequencyandamplitudeofthecar'soscillationbasedonthespecificationsofthe
passengercar,thespecificationsofthespring,andthespeedofthepassengercar.Inyoursimulation,thewheelsofthecararediskswitha
significantmassandamomentofinertiahalfthatofaringofthesamemassandradius.Atthisstageofyoursimulation,youignoreany
energydissipationinthecar'saxleorintheflexingofthespring,andthemassofthespring.
14. Rotations:Youhavebeenaskedtohelpdesignanautomatedsystemforapplyingaresistivepainttoplasticsheetinginordertomassproduce
containerstoprotectsensitiveelectroniccomponentsfromstaticelectriccharges.Theobjectusedtoapplythepaintisasolidcylindricalroller.
Therollerispushedbackandforthovertheplasticsheetingbyahorizontalspringattachedtoayoke,whichinturnisattachedtoanaxle
throughthecenteroftheroller.Theotherendofthespringisattachedtoafixedpost.Toapplythepaintevenly,therollermustrollwithout
slippingoverthesurfaceoftheplastic.Themachinesimultaneouslypaintstwonarrowstripsofplasticthatlaysidebysideparalleltotheaxle
oftheroller.Whiletherollerisincontactwithonestrip,afeedmechanismpullstheotherstripforwardtoexposeunpaintedsurface.Inorder
todeterminehowfasttheprocesscanproceed,youhavebeenassignedtocalculatehowtheoscillationfrequencyoftherollerdependsonits
mass,radiusandthestiffnessofthespring.Youknowthatthemomentofinertiaofasolidcylinderwithrespecttoanaxisthroughitscenteris
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1/2thatofaring.
Electromagnetismproblems:
ElectricFieldandElectricForce
Thespecificprinciplesrequiredareindicatedinitalicsatthebeginningofeachproblem.
1. ElectricForce:Youandafriendaredoingthelaundrywhenyouunloadthedryerandthediscussioncomesaroundtostaticelectricity.Your
friendwantstogetsomeideaoftheamountofchargethatcausesstaticcling.Youimmediatelytaketwoemptysodacans,whicheachhavea
massof120grams,fromtherecyclingbin.Youtiethecanstothetwoendsofastring(onetoeachend)andhangthecenterofthestringover
anailstickingoutofthewall.Eachcannowhangsstraightdown30cmfromthenail.Youtakeyourflannelshirtfromthedryerandtouchit
tothecans,whicharetouchingeachother.Thecansmoveapartuntiltheyhangstationaryatanangleof10fromthevertical.Assumingthat
thereareequalamountsofchargeoneachcan,younowcalculatetheamountofchargetransferredfromyourshirt.
2. ElectricForce:Youarepartofadesignteamassignedthetaskofmakinganelectronicoscillatorthatwillbethetimingmechanismofa
micromachine.Youstartbytryingtounderstandasimplemodelwhichisanelectronmovingalonganaxisthroughthecenterand
perpendiculartotheplaneofathinpositivelychargedring.Youneedtodeterminehowtheoscillationfrequencyoftheelectrondependsonthe
sizeandchargeoftheringfordisplacementsoftheelectronfromthecenteroftheringwhicharesmallcomparedtothesizeofthering.A
teammembersuggeststhatyoufirstdeterminetheaccelerationoftheelectronalongtheaxisasafunctionofthesizeandchargeofthering
andthenusethatexpressiontodeterminetheoscillationfrequencyoftheelectronforsmalloscillations.
3. ElectricForce:Youarespendingthesummerworkingforachemicalcompany.Yourbosshasaskedyoutodeterminewhereachlorineionof
effectivechargeewouldsituateitselfnearacarbondioxideion.Thecarbondioxideioniscomposedof2oxygenionseachwithaneffective
charge2eandacarbonionwithaneffectivecharge+3e.Theseionsarearrangedinalinewiththecarbonionsandwichedmidwaybetween
thetwooxygenions.Thedistancebetweeneachoxygenionandthecarbonionis3.0x1011m.Assumingthatthechlorineionisonaline
thatisperpendiculartotheaxisofthecarbondioxideionandthatthelinegoesthroughthecarbonion,whatistheequilibriumdistanceforthe
chlorineionrelativetothecarboniononthisline?Forsimplicity,youassumethatthecarbondioxideiondoesnotdeforminthepresenceof
thechlorineion.Lookinginyourtrustyphysicstextbook,youfindthechargeoftheelectronis1.60x1019C.
4. ElectricForce:Youhavebeenaskedtoreviewanewapparatus,whichisproposedforuseatanewsemiconductorionimplantationfacility.
OnepartoftheapparatusisusedtoslowdownHeionswhicharepositiveandhaveachargetwicethatofanelectron(He++).Thispart
consistsofacircularwirethatischargednegativelysothatitbecomesacircleofcharge.Theionhasavelocityof200m/swhenitpasses
throughthecenterofthecircleofchargeonatrajectoryperpendiculartotheplaneofthecircle.Thecirclehasachargeof8.0Candradius
of3.0cm.Thesamplewithwhichtheionistocollidewillbeplaced2.5mmfromthechargedcircle.Tocheckifthisdevicewillwork,you
decidetocalculatethedistancefromthecirclethattheiongoesbeforeitstops.Todothiscalculation,youassumethatthecircleisverymuch
largerthanthedistancetheiongoesandthatthesampleisnotinplace.Willtheionreachthesample?Youlookupthechargeofanelectron
andmassoftheheliuminyourtrustyPhysicstexttobe1.6x1019Cand6.7x1027Kg.
5. ElectricForce:You'vebeenhiredtodesignthehardwareforaninkjetprinter.Youknowthattheseprintersuseadeflectingelectrodetocause
chargedinkdropstoformlettersonapage.Thebasicmechanismisthatuniforminkdropsofabout30micronsradiusarechargedtovarying
amountsafterbeingsprayedouttowardsthepageataspeedofabout20m/s.Alongthewaytothepage,theypassintoaregionbetweentwo
deflectingplatesthatare1.6cmlong.Thedeflectingplatesare1.0mmapartandchargedto1500volts.Youmeasurethedistancefromthe
edgeoftheplatestothepaperandfindthatitisonehalfinch.Assuminganunchargeddropletformsthebottomoftheletter,howmuchcharge
isneededonthedroplettoformthetopofaletter3mmhigh(11pt.type)?
6. ElectricForce:WhileworkinginaUniversityresearchlaboratoryyourgroupisgiventhejoboftestinganelectrostaticscale,whichisusedto
preciselymeasuretheweightofsmallobjects.Thedeviceconsistsoftwoverylightbutstrongstringsattachedtoasupportsothattheyhang
straightdown.Anobjectisattachedtotheotherendofeachstring.Oneoftheobjectshasaveryaccuratelyknownweightwhiletheother
objectistheunknown.Apowersupplyisslowlyturnedontogiveeachobjectanelectriccharge.Thiscausestheobjectstoslowlymoveaway
fromeachother.Whenthepowersupplyiskeptatitsoperatingvalue,theobjectscometorestatthesamehorizontallevel.Atthattime,each
ofthestringssupportingthemmakesadifferentanglewiththeverticalandthatangleismeasured.Totestyourunderstandingofthedevice,
youfirstcalculatetheweightofanunknownspherefromthemeasuredanglesandtheweightofaknownsphere.Yourknownisastandard
spherewithaweightof2.000Nsupportedbyastringthatmakesanangleof10.00withthevertical.Theunknownsphere'sstringmakesan
angleof20.00withthevertical.Asasecondstepinyourprocessofunderstandingthisdevice,estimatethenetchargeonaspherenecessary
fortheobserveddeflectionifastringwere10cmlong.Makesuretogivetheassumptionsyouusedforthisestimate.
7. ElectricForce:YouandafriendhavebeengiventhetaskofdesigningadisplayforthePhysicsbuildingthatwilldemonstratethestrengthof
theelectricforce.Yourfriendcomesupwithanideathatsoundsneattheoretically,butyou'renotsureitispractical.Shesuggestsyouusean
electricforcetoholdamarbleinplaceonaslopedplywoodramp.Shewouldgettheelectricforcebyattachingauniformlycharged
semicircularwirenearthebottomoftheramp,layingthewireflatontherampwitheachofitsendspointingstraightuptheramp.Sheclaims
thatifthechargesonthemarbleandringandtheslopeoftheramparechosenproperly,themarblewouldbebalancedmidwaybetweenthe
endsofthewire.Totestthisidea,youdecidetocalculatethenecessaryamountofchargeonthemarbleforareasonablerampangleof15
degreesandasemicircleofradius10cmwithachargeof800microcoulombs.Themarblewouldrollinaslotcutlengthwiseintothecenter
oftheramp.Themassofthelightestmarbleyoucanfindis25grams.
8. ElectricForce,Gauss'sLaw:Youhaveagreatsummerjobinaresearchlaboratorywithagroupinvestigatingthepossibilityofproducing
powerfromfusion.Thedevicebeingdesignedconfinesahotgasofpositivelychargedions,calledplasma,inaverylongcylinderwitha
radiusof2.0cm.Thechargedensityoftheplasmainthecylinderis6.0x105C/m3.PositivelychargedTritiumionsaretobeinjectedinto
theplasmaperpendiculartotheaxisofthecylinderinadirectiontowardthecenterofthecylinder.Yourjobistodeterminethespeedthata
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Tritiumionshouldhavewhenitenterstheplasmacylindersothatitsvelocityiszerowhenitreachestheaxisofthecylinder.Tritiumisan
isotopeofHydrogenwithoneprotonandtwoneutrons.YoulookupthechargeofaprotonandmassofthetritiuminyourtrustyPhysicstext
tobe1.6x1019Cand5.0x1027Kg.
9. ElectricandGravitationalForce:Youandafriendarereadinganewspaperarticleaboutnuclearfusionenergygenerationinstars.Thearticle
describestheheliumnucleus,madeupoftwoprotonsandtwoneutrons,asverystablesoitdoesn'tdecay.Youimmediatelyrealizethatyou
don'tunderstandwhytheheliumnucleusisstable.Youknowthattheprotonhasthesamechargeastheelectronexceptthattheprotoncharge
ispositive.Neutronsyouknowareneutral.Why,youaskyourfriend,don'ttheprotonssimplyrepeleachothercausingtheheliumnucleusto
flyapart?Yourfriendsayssheknowswhytheheliumnucleusdoesnotjustflyapart.Thegravitationalforcekeepsittogether,shesays.Her
modelisthatthetwoneutronssitinthecenterofthenucleusandgravitationallyattractthetwoprotons.Sincetheprotonshavethesame
charge,theyarealwaysasfarapartaspossibleonoppositesidesoftheneutrons.Whatmasswouldtheneutronhaveifthismodelofthe
heliumnucleusworks?Isthatareasonablemass?Lookinginyourphysicsbook,youfindthatthemassofaneutronisaboutthesameasthe
massofaprotonandthatthediameterofaheliumnucleusis3.0x1013cm.
10. ElectricField:YouarehelpingtodesignanewelectronmicroscopetoinvestigatethestructureoftheHIVvirus.Anewdevicetopositionthe
electronbeamconsistsofachargedcircleofconductor.Thiscircleisdividedintotwohalfcirclesseparatedbyathininsulatorsothathalfof
thecirclecanbechargedpositivelyandhalfcanbechargednegatively.Theelectronbeamwillgothroughthecenterofthecircle.Tocomplete
thedesignyourjobistocalculatetheelectricfieldinthecenterofthecircleasafunctionoftheamountofpositivechargeonthehalfcircle,
theamountofnegativechargeonthehalfcircle,andtheradiusofthecircle.
11. ElectricField:Youhaveasummerjobwiththetelephonecompanyworkinginagroupinvestigatingthevulnerabilityofunderground
telephonelinestonaturaldisasters.Yourtaskistowriteacomputerprogramwhichwillbeuseddeterminethepossibleharmtoatelephone
wirefromthehighelectricfieldscausedbylightning.Theundergroundtelephonewireissupportedinthecenterofalong,straightsteelpipe
thatprotectsit.Whenlighteninghitsthegrounditchargesthesteelpipe.Youareconcernedthattheresultingelectricfieldmightharmthe
telephonewire.Sinceyouknowthatthelargestfieldonthewirewillbewhereitleavestheendofthepipe,youcalculatetheelectricfieldat
thatpointasafunctionofthelengthofthepipe,theradiusofthepipe,andthechargeonthepipe.
ElectricPotentialEnergy
Thespecificprinciplesrequiredareindicatedinitalicsatthebeginningofeachproblem.
1. ElectricPotentialEnergy:Whilesittinginarestaurantwithsomefriends,younoticethatsome"neon"signsaredifferentincolorthanothers.
Youknowthatthesesignsareessentiallyjustgassealedinaglasstube.Thegas,whenheatedelectrically,givesofflight.Oneofyourfriends,
whoisanartmajor,andmakessuchsignsassculpture,tellsyouthatthecolorofthelightdependsonwhichgasisinthetube.All"neon"signs
arenotmadeusingneongas.Youknowthatthecoloroflighttellsyouitsenergy.Redlightisalowerenergythanbluelight.Sincethelightis
givenoffbytheatoms,whichmakeupthegas,thedifferentcolorsmustdependonthestructureofthedifferentatomsofdifferentgases.
SupposethatatomicstructureisasgivenbytheBohrtheorywhichstatesthatelectronsareinuniformcircularmotionaroundaheavy,
motionlessnucleusinthecenteroftheatom.Thistheoryalsostatesthattheelectronsareonlyallowedtohavecertainorbits.Whenanatom
changesfromoneallowedorbittoanotherallowedorbit,itradiateslightasrequiredbytheconservationofenergy.Sinceonlycertainorbits
areallowed,sothetheorygoes,onlylightofcertainenergies(colors)canbeemitted.Thisseemstoagreewiththeobservationsofyourartist
friend.Youdecidetotestthetheorybycalculatingtheenergyoflightemittedbyasimpleatomwhenanelectronmakesatransitionfromone
allowedorbittoanother.Youdecidetoconsiderhydrogensinceyouknowitisthesimplestatomwithoneelectronandanucleusconsistingof
oneproton.Yourememberthattheprotonhasamass2000timesthatofanelectron.Whenyougethomeyoulookinyourtextbookandfind
theelectronmassis9x1031kganditschargeis1.6x1019C.Theradiusofthesmallestallowedelectronorbitforhydrogenis0.5x1010
meters,whichdeterminesthenormalsizeoftheatom.Thenextallowedorbithasaradius4timesaslargeasthesmallestorbit.
2. ElectricPotentialEnergy:Youhaveagreatsummerjobworkinginacancerresearchlaboratory.Yourteamistryingtoconstructagaslaser
thatwillgiveofflightofanenergythatwillpassthroughtheskinbutbeabsorbedbycancertissue.Youknowthatanatomemitsaphoton
(light)whenanelectrongoesfromahigherenergyorbittoalowerenergyorbit.Onlycertainorbitsareallowedinaparticularatom.Tobegin
theprocess,youcalculatetheenergyofphotonsemittedbyaHeliumioninwhichtheelectronchangesfromanorbitwitharadiusof0.30
nanometerstoanotherorbitwitharadiusof0.20nanometers.Ananometeris109m.Theheliumnucleusconsistsoftwoprotonsandtwo
neutrons.
3. ElectricPotentialEnergy:Yourjobistoevaluateanelectrongundesignedtoinitiateanelectronbeam.Theelectronshavea20cmpathfrom
theheatingelement,whichemitsthemtotheendofthegun.Thispathisthroughaverygoodvacuum.Formostapplications,theelectrons
mustreachtheendofthegunwithaspeedofatleast107m/s.Afterleavingtheheatingelement,theelectronspassthrougha5.0mmdiameter
holeinthecenterofa3.0cmdiameterchargedcirculardisk.Thedisk'schargedensityiskeptat3.0C/m2.Theheatingelementisa
sphericalelectrode0.10mmindiameterthatiskeptataveryhighchargeof0.10C.Thereis1.0cmbetweentheheatingelementandthehole
inthedisk.Yourfirststepistodetermineiftheelectronsaregoingfastenough.Yourbosshaspointedthattheholeinthediskistoolargeto
ignoreinyourcalculations.Usingyourphysicstextyoufindthatthemassoftheelectronis9.11x1031kg.
4. ElectricPotentialEnergyGauss'sLaw:YouhavelandedasummerjobworkingwithanAstrophysicsgroupinvestigatingtheoriginofhigh
energyparticlesinthegalaxy.Thegroupyouarejoininghasjustdiscoveredalargesphericalnebulawitharadius1.2millionkm.Thenebula
consistsofabout5x1010hydrogennuclei(protons)whichappeartobeuniformlydistributedintheshapeofasphere.Atthecenterofthis
sphereofpositivechargeisaverysmallneutronstar.Yourgrouphaddetectedelectronsemergingfromthenebula.Afriendofyourshasa
theorythattheelectronsarecomingfromtheneutronstar.Totestthattheory,sheasksyoutocalculatetheminimumspeedthatanelectron
wouldneedtostartfromtheneutronstarandjustmakeittooutsidethenebula.Fromtheinsidecoverofyourtrustyphysicstextyoufindthat
thechargeofaproton(andanelectron)is1.6x1019C,themassoftheprotonis1.7x1027kg,andthemassoftheelectronis9.1x1031
kg.
5. ElectricPotentialEnergy,Gauss'sLaw:YouareworkingincooperationwiththePublicHealthdepartmenttodesignanelectrostatictrapfor
particlesfromautoemissions.Theaverageparticleentersthedeviceandisexposedtoultravioletradiationthatknocksoffelectronssothatit
hasachargeof+3.0x108C.Thisaverageparticleisthenmovingataspeedof900m/sandis15cmfromaverylongnegativelycharged
wirewithalinearchargedensityof8.0x106C/m.Thedetectorfortheparticleislocated7.0cmfromthewire.Inordertodesigntheproper
kindofdetector,yourcolleaguesneedtoknowthespeedthatanaverageemissionparticlewillhaveifithitsthedetector.Theytellyouthatan
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averageemissionparticlehasamassof6.0x109kg.
6. ElectricPotentialEnergy,HeatEnergy(HeatCapacity,LatentHeat):YouarereadinganewspaperreportofalightningstrikeinJackson,
Wyoming.Twomenweresittingatatableoutsideasmallcafeonabeautiful30oCdaywhenathunderstormapproached.Suddenly,aboltof
lightningstruckalargeaspentreeneartheirtable.Needlesstosay,themenwereverystartled.Oneofthemenremarked,"Itjustaboutscared
theespressooutofme."Theyreportedthatwhenthebolthitthetreeandtherewasaloudhissandareleaseofmuchsteamfromthetree.The
lightninghadboiledawaysomeofthetree'ssap.Youarecurious,andwonderhowmuchwatercouldbeevaporatedinthismanner.Soyou
studyyourphysicsbookandmakeafewestimatesandassumptions.Youestimatethattheelectricpotentialdifferencebetweenthetreeandthe
thunderheadcloudwasabout108volts,andtheamountofchargereleasedbytheboltwasabout50Coulombs.Youalsoassumethatabout1%
oftheelectricalenergywasactuallytransferredintothesap,whichisessentiallywater.Thespecificheatcapacityofwateris4200J/(kgoC)
anditsheatofvaporizationis2.3x106J/kg.
7. ElectricPotentialEnergy,GravitationalForce:NASAhasaskedyourteamofrocketscientistsaboutthefeasibilityofanewsatellitelauncher
thatwillsaverocketfuel.NASA'sideaisbasicallyanelectricslingshotthatconsistsof4electrodesarrangedinahorizontalsquarewithsides
oflengthdataheighthabovetheground.Thesatelliteisthenplacedonthegroundalignedwiththecenterofthesquare.Apowersupplywill
provideeachofthefourelectrodeswithachargeof+Q/4andthesatellitewithachargeQ.Whenthesatelliteisreleasedfromrest,itmoves
upandpassesthroughthecenterofthesquare.Attheinstantitreachesthesquare'scenter,thepowersupplyisturnedoffandtheelectrodesare
grounded,givingthemazeroelectriccharge.Totestthisidea,youdecidetouseenergyconsiderationstocalculatehowbigQwillhavetobe
togeta100kgsatellitetoasufficientorbitheight.Assumethatthesatellitestartsfrom15metersbelowthesquareofelectrodesandthatthe
sidesofthesquareareeach5meters.InyourphysicstextyoufindthemassoftheEarthtobe6.0x1024kg.
8. ElectricPotentialEnergy,MechanicalEnergy:YouhavebeenabletogetaparttimejobinaUniversitylaboratory.Thegroupisplanninga
setofexperimentstostudytheforcesbetweennucleiinordertounderstandtheenergyoutputoftheSun.Todothisexperiment,youshoot
alphaparticlesfromaVandeGraafacceleratoratasheetoflead.Thealphaparticleisthenucleusofaheliumatomandismadeof2protons
and2neutrons.Theleadnucleusismadeof82protonsand125neutrons.Themassoftheneutronisalmostthesameasthemassofaproton.
Toassurethatyouareactuallystudyingtheeffectsofthenuclearforce,analphaparticleshouldcomeintocontactwithaleadnucleus.Assume
thatboththealphaparticleandtheleadnucleushavetheshapeofasphere.Thealphaparticlehasaradiusof1.0x1013cmandthelead
nucleushasaradius4timeslarger.Yourbosswantsyoutomaketwocalculations:
(a)Whatistheminimumspeedofsuchanalphaparticleiftheleadnucleusisfixedatrest?
(b)WhatisthepotentialdifferencebetweenthetwoendsoftheVandeGraafacceleratorifthealphaparticlestartsfromrestatoneend(from
abottleofheliumgas)?
ElectricPower
1. It'sacoolday,about10oC,soyouplantomakeabout5.0kgofclearsoupusingyourslowcookingcrockpot.Todecidewhetherthesoupwill
bereadyfordinner,youestimatehowlongitwilltakebeforethesoupgetstoitsboilingpoint.Beforeaddingtheingredients,youturnthe
crockpotoverandreadthatitisa200ohmdevicethatoperatesat120volts.Sinceyoursoupismostlywater,youassumeithasthesame
thermalpropertiesaswater,soitsspecificheatcapacityis4200J/(kgoC)anditsheatofvaporizationis2.3x106J/kg.
2. Youareworkingwithacompanythathasthecontracttodesignanew,700foothigh,50storyofficebuildinginMinneapolis.Yourboss
suddenlyburstsintoyouroffice.Shehasbeentalkingwithanengineerwhotoldherthatwhentheelevatorisoperatingatmaximumspeed,it
wouldtakethe6500lbloadedelevatoroneminutetorise20stories.Shethinksthisistoolongatimeforthesebusyexecutivestospendinan
elevatorafterreturningfromlunchattheMinneapolisAthleticClub.Shewantsyoutobuyabiggerpowersupplyfortheelevator.Youlookup
thespecificationsforthenewsupplyandfindthatitisthesameastheoldoneexceptthatitoperatesattwicethevoltage.Yourboss'sassistant
arguesthattheoperatingexpensesofthenewpowersupplywillbemuchmorethantheoldone.Yourbosswantsyoutodetermineifthisis
correct.Youestimatethatwhiletheelevatorrunsatmaximumspeed,thewholesystem,includingthepowersupply,is60%efficient.Thecost
ofelectricityis$0.06perkilowatthour(commercialrate).
3. YouhavefinallygraduatedfromcollegeandfoundajobwiththeWashingtonStateAgriculturalConcernsGroup.Farmersandfishermenare
concernedthattheratethatwaterflowsintheColumbiariver,whichiscontrolledbydams,willnotbeadequateforbothirrigationneedsand
salmonspawning.Thedamscontroltheriver'sflowratetoproducemostoftheelectricalpowerforcitiesalongtheWestCoast.Yourgroup
leaderassignsyouthetaskofcalculatingthevolumeofwaterpersecond(flowrate)whichnormallywouldflowthroughtheGrandCoulee
Dam,thelargestontheColumbiaRiver.Shetellsyouthatthisdamtypicallygenerates2000megawatts(MW)ofpowerandis50%efficientin
convertingthewater'senergytoelectricalenergy.Thedamis170metershigh,andthewateriskeptinalake10metersbelowthetopofthe
dam.TheColumbiaRiveris170meterswideatthedam.Thedensityofwateris1.00g/cm3.
Circuits
1. Ohm'sLaw:Becauseofyourphysicsbackground,youlandedasummerjobasanassistanttechnicianforatelephonecompanyinCalifornia.
Duringarecentearthquake,a1.0milelongundergroundtelephonelineiscrushedatsomepoint.Thistelephonelineismadeupoftwoparallel
copperwiresofthesamediameterandsamelength,whicharenormallynotconnected.Attheplacewherethelineiscrushed,thetwowires
makecontact.Yourbosswantsyoutofindthisplacesothatthewirecanbedugupandfixed.Youdisconnectthelinefromthetelephone
systembydisconnectingbothwiresofthelineatbothends.Youthengotooneendofthelineandconnectoneterminalofa6.0Vbatteryto
onewire,andtheotherterminalofthebatterytooneterminalofanammeter(whichhasessentiallyzeroresistance).Whentheotherterminal
oftheammeterisconnectedtotheotherwire,theammetershowsthatthecurrentthroughthewireis1A.Youthendisconnecteverythingand
traveltotheotherendofthetelephoneline,whereyourepeattheprocessandfindacurrentof1/3A.
2. Ohm'sLaw:YouhaveasummerjobintheUniversityecologylab.Yoursupervisorasksyoutoduplicateanelectromagnetthatshehas
borrowed.Shetellsyouthatthiselectromagnetismadebywrappingawiremanytimesaroundapieceofironandprovidesyouwithallthe
parts,thesametypeofwireofthesamediameterandanidenticalironcore.Whatyouneedtoknowishowmuchwiretowraparoundtheiron.
Unfortunately,youcannotsimplyunwrapthewirefromtheborrowedmagnetbecausethatwilldestroyit.Onthesideoftheelectromagnet,it
tellsyouthatwhenapotentialdifferenceof12Visputacrosstheendsofitswire,thereisacurrentof0.06Athroughthewire.Withabrilliant
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flashofinsight,yourealizethatthecrosssectionalareaandtheconductivityisthesameforboththemagnet'swireandthewireyouhave,so
youcanfindthelengthwithasimpleexperiment.Youcutoffa100footpieceofidenticalwirefromyoursupply,attachittoa1.5Vflashlight
batteryandmeasureacurrentof0.10Athroughthatwire.Eureka!youcannowfindthelengthofthemagnet'swire.
3. ElectricPower:Youandafriendarestudyingforanexamandthesessiongoesuntiltheearlymorning.Atabout4amyoudecidetocook
somebreakfast.Despitebeingsleepyyou'vegotthecoffeeperking.Nowyouwanttomakesomewafflesbutyourealizetheremightbea
problem.The1000wattwaffleironandthe600wattcoffeemakerarepluggedintothe110Vkitchenelectricaloutlets.Ifyoupluginyour
700wattblender,willyouoverloadthe20Acircuitbreaker?Thecircuitbreakerprotectsthosekitchencircuitwiresthathavethemostcurrent
fromcarryingtoomuchcurrent.Youaretryingtofigureouthowtheelectricaloutletsareconnectedtogetherinacircuitwhenyourfriend
remindsyouthatwhenyoudisconnectthecoffeepot,thewaffleironstayson.Noweverythingisclear.
4. ElectricPower:Youandafriendarestudyingforafinalandthesessiongoesuntiltheearlymorning.About4AMyoudecidetocooksome
breakfast.Despitebeingsleepy,thingsaregoingwell.Thewafflesarecookingandthecoffeeisperking.Shouldyoumakesometoastnow?
The1000wattwaffleironandthe600wattcoffeemakerarepluggedintokitchenwallelectricaloutlets.Youwillalsouseakitchenwall
outletforthetoaster.Thekitchenwalloutletsareallpartofthesame110Vcircuitwhichhasa20Acircuitbreaker(withnegligible
resistance)toprotectthewirecarryingthelargestcurrentfromgettingtoohot.(Somehomeshavefusestodothesamejob).Youknowthatif
youplugintoomanyappliancesyouwilloverloadthecircuitbreaker.Thetoasterlabelsaysthatitspoweroutputis700watts.
5. ElectricPower:Asamemberofthesafetygroupforthespaceshuttlescientificprogram,youhavebeenaskedtoevaluateanelectronics
designchange.Inordertoimprovethereliabilityofacircuittobeusedinthenextshuttleflight,theexperimentaldesignteamhassuggested
addingasecond12Vbatterytothecircuit.Theequivalentresistancesoftheproposeddesignareshownbelow.Youareworriedabouttheheat
generatedbythedevicewiththe20ohmresistancesinceitwillbelocatednexttoasensitivelowtemperatureexperimentsoyoudothe
appropriatecalculation.
6. ElectricPower:Aspartofyoursummerjobasadesignengineeratanelectronicscompany,youhavebeenaskedtoinspectthecircuitshown
below.Theresistorsareratedat0.5Watts,whichmeanstheyburnupifmorethan0.5Wattsofpowerpassesthroughthem.Willthe100W
resistorinthecircuitburnup?
7. ElectricPower:Whiletryingtofindthepowerratingsofyourappliancesyoufindtheircircuitdiagrams.Lookingthemover,yourfriend
believestheremustbeatypointhecircuitdiagramofyourtoaster.Theheatingelementthattoaststhebreadislistedashavingaresistanceof
5ohms.Avariableresistor,whichischangedbyaknobonfrontofthetoaster,hasarangeoffrom2to20ohms.Yourfriendfeelsthatan
elementwiththisresistancewillnottoastbreadproperly.Basedonthecircuitdiagram,givenbelow,youdecidetocalculatethemaximum
poweroutputbytheheatingelement.
MagneticFieldandMagneticForce
1. MagneticForce:Youareworkingonaprojecttomakeamoreefficientengine.Yourteamisinvestigatingthepossibilityofmaking
electricallycontrolledvalvesthatopenandclosetheinputandexhaustopeningsforaninternalcombustionengine.Yourassignmentisto
determinethestabilityofthevalvebycalculatingtheforceoneachofitssidesandthenetforceonthevalve.Thevalveismadeofathinbut
strongrectangularpieceofnonmagneticmaterialthathasaloopofcurrentcarryingwirealongitsedges.Therectangleis0.35cmx1.83cm.
Thevalveisplacedinauniformmagneticfieldof0.15Tsuchthatthefieldliesintheplaneofthevalveandisparalleltotheshortsidesofthe
rectangle.Theregionwiththemagneticfieldisslightlylargerthanthevalve.Whenaswitchisclosed,a1.7Acurrententerstheshortsideof
therectangleononesideofthevalveandleavesontheoppositeside.Togivedifferentcurrentsthroughthewiresalongthelongsidesofthe
valve,aresistorisinsertedintothewireoneachofthesesides.Thevalueoftheresistorononesideistwicethatontheotherside.
2. MagneticForce:Youhavelandedagreatsummerjobinthemedicalschoolassistinginaresearchgroupinvestigatingshortlivedradioactive
isotopeswhichmightbeusefulinfightingcancer.Yourgroupisworkingonawayoftransportingalphaparticles(Heliumnuclei)fromwhere
theyaremadetoanotherroomwheretheywillcollidewithothermaterialtoformtheisotopes.Sincetheradioactiveisotopesarenotexpected
toliveverylong,itisimportanttoknowpreciselyhowmuchtimeitwilltaketotransportthealphaparticles.Yourjobistodesignthatpartof
thetransportsystemwhichwilldeflectthebeamofalphaparticles(m=6.64x1027kg,q=3.2x1019C)throughanangleof90obyusinga
magneticfield.Thebeamwillbetravelinghorizontallyinanevacuatedtube.Attheplacethetubeistomakea90oturnyoudecidetoputa
dipolemagnetwhichprovidesauniformverticalmagneticfieldof0.030T.Yourdesignhasatubeoftheappropriateshapebetweenthepoles
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ofthemagnet.Beforeyousubmityourdesignforconsideration,youmustdeterminehowlongthealphaparticleswillspendintheuniform
magneticfieldinordertomakethe90oturn.
3. MagneticForce:You'vejustlearnedabouttheearth'smagneticfieldandhowacompassworksandyouarerelaxinginfrontoftheTV.Tired
ofyourshow,youthinkabouthowthepicturetubeworksinrelationtowhatyouhavelearned.InatypicalcolorpicturetubeforaTV,the
electronsareboiledoffofacathodeatthebackofthetubeandareacceleratedthroughabout20,000voltstowardsthepicturetubescreen.On
thescreenisagridof``colordots''about1/100inchapart.Whentheelectronshitthem,thedotsscintillatetheirappropriatecolorsproducing
thecolorpicture.Withouttakingaparttheset,youdeterminewhetherthemanufacturerneededtoshieldthecolorpicturetubefromtheearth's
magneticfield?
4. MagneticField(BiotSavertLaw):YouarecontinuallyhavingtroubleswiththeCRTscreenofyourcomputerandwonderifitisdueto
magneticfieldsfromthepowerlinesrunninginyourbuilding.Ablueprintofthebuildingshowsthatthenearestpowerlineisasshownbelow.
YourCRTscreenislocatedatpointP.CalculatethemagneticfieldatPasafunctionofthecurrentIandthedistancesaandb.SegmentsBC
andADarearcsofconcentriccircles.SegmentsABandDCarestraightlinesegments.
5. MagneticFieldAmphere'sLaw:Whilestudyingintenselyforyourphysicsfinalyoudecidetotakeabreakandlistentoyourstereo.Asyou
unwind,yourthoughtsdrifttonewspaperstoriesaboutthedangersofhouseholdmagneticfieldsonthebody.Youexamineyourstereowires
andfindthatmostofthemarecoaxialcable,athinconductingwireatthecentersurroundedbyaninsulator,whichisinturnsurroundedbya
conductingshell.Theinnerwireandtheconductingshellarebothpartofthecircuitwiththesamecurrent(I)passingthroughboth,butin
oppositedirections.Asawaytopracticeforyourphysicsfinalyoudecidetocalculatethemagneticfieldintheinsulator,andoutsidethe
coaxialcableasafunctionofthecurrentandthedistancefromthecenterofthecable.Asanadditionalchallengetoyourself,youcalculate
whatthemagneticfieldwouldbe(asafunctionofthecurrentandthedistancefromthecenterofthecable)insidetheouterconductingshellof
thecoaxialcable.ForthisyouassumethattheinnerradiusoftheconductingshellisR1andtheouterradiusisR2.
6. MagneticForceFaraday'sLaw:Youhaveasummerjobworkingatacompanydevelopingsystemstosafelylowerlargeloadsdownramps.
Yourteamisinvestigatingamagneticsystembymodelingitinthelaboratory.Thesafetysystemisaconductingbarthatslidesontwoparallel
conductingrailsthatrundowntheramp.Thebarisperpendiculartotherailsandisincontactwiththem.Atthebottomoftheramp,thetwo
railsareconnectedtogether.Thebarslidesdowntherailsthroughaverticaluniformmagneticfield.Themagneticfieldissupposedtocause
thebartoslidedowntherampataconstantvelocityevenwhenfrictionbetweenthebarandtherailsisnegligible.Beforesettingupthe
laboratorymodel,yourtaskistocalculatetheconstantvelocityofthebarslidingdowntheramponrailsinaverticalmagneticfieldasa
functionofthemassofthebar,thestrengthofthemagneticfield,theangleoftherampfromthehorizontal,thelengthofthebarwhichisthe
sameasthedistancebetweenthetracks,andtheresistanceofthebar.Assumethatalloftheotherconductorsinthesystemhaveamuch
smallerresistancethanthebar.
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2011UniversityofMinnesota&SupportedbyNSF
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TheUniversityofMinnesotaisanequalopportunityeducatorandemployer.
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