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irishbob
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Homework Statement
An American football game has been canceled because of bad weather in Cleveland, and two retired players are sliding like children on a frictionless ice-covered parking lot. William 'Refrigerator' Perry, mass 162 kg, is gliding to the right at 7.41 m/s, and Doug Flutie, mass 81.0 kg, is gliding to the left at 11.0 m/s along the same line. When they meet, they grab each other and hang on.
(a) What is their velocity immediately thereafter?
1.273 m/s
(b) What fraction of their original kinetic energy is still mechanical energy after their collision?
Homework Equations
KE_i=KE_f*c? This is kind of my issue.
KE_i is initial kinetic energy, KE_f is final kinetic energy, and c is a constant.
The Attempt at a Solution
Well I'm trying for the fraction of the energy:
Sum(KE_i)=0.5*162kg(7.41m/s)^2 + 0.5(81kg)(-11m/s)^2
=9348.0561=.5(162+81)kg(1.273m/s)^2c=KE_f*c
So I solved for c and got 6.890. Problem is, I have no idea what to do with it. Am I approaching this the right way?