Momentum and energy questions

In summary, when the man walks to the other end of the car, the car does not move. When he comes to a stop, the car does stop.
  • #1
Farside
7
0
Should be fairly simple, but I'm not so great with physics. Here's a few I'm having trouble with...



1. Under what circumstances (if any) is no work done on a moving object even though a net force acts upon it?

2. What happens to the momentum of a car when it stops?

3. When the kinetic energy of an object is doubled, what happens to its momentum?

4. A railway car is at rest on a frictionless track. A man at one end of the car walks to the other end. (a) Does the car move while he is walking? ( If so, in which direction? © What happens when the man comes to a stop?
 
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  • #2
Farside said:
Should be fairly simple, but I'm not so great with physics. Here's a few I'm having trouble with...



1. Under what circumstances (if any) is no work done on a moving object even though a net force acts upon it?

2. What happens to the momentum of a car when it stops?

3. When the kinetic energy of an object is doubled, what happens to its momentum?

4. A railway car is at rest on a frictionless track. A man at one end of the car walks to the other end. (a) Does the car move while he is walking? ( If so, in which direction? © What happens when the man comes to a stop?

Ok, think of the formula for work. W=Fdcos(theta), right? For what value of theta does cos(theta) equal zero.

For the second question, again, think of the formula for momentum.
Momentum = mv. No velocity, no momentum.

For the third one, think of the formula for kinetic energy. What is the relationship between Ek and velocity? When the kinetic energy is doubled, what happens to the velocity? Once you know this relationship, you the the relationship between kinetic energy and momentum, since momentum is directly related to velocity.
For the fourth question, use the conservation of momentum concept.
 
  • #3
Okay, I still don't quite get the first one. The material wasn't presented in that way. Are there no circumstances?
 
  • #4
1:
its simple.
work done =F.s cos(theta)
so when theta=90 then cos(theta)=0.i.e.when the force is applied perpendicular to the direction of motion of a body,no work will be done.

2.momentum =mv
therefore as soon as the car stops(v=0) the momentum changes to 0.

3.Momentum=root(2k.e.*m)
so when k.e. is doubled momentum is increased by a factor of root(2).

4.This question is a bit tricky.one thing has to be clarified.if there is no friction between the man and the railroad car then he cannot move on it.

Sriram
 

1. What is the difference between momentum and energy?

Momentum is a measure of an object's mass and velocity, while energy is a measure of an object's ability to do work. Momentum is a vector quantity while energy is a scalar quantity.

2. How are momentum and energy related?

Momentum and energy are related because they are both conserved quantities. This means that they cannot be created or destroyed, only transferred or transformed from one form to another.

3. How does momentum affect an object's motion?

Momentum is directly proportional to an object's velocity, meaning that an object with a greater momentum will move faster and be harder to stop. This is why larger objects, such as trucks or trains, are more difficult to stop than smaller objects, such as bicycles or cars.

4. Can momentum and energy be transferred between objects?

Yes, momentum and energy can be transferred between objects through collisions or other interactions. During a collision, the total momentum and energy of the system will remain constant, but they may be redistributed among the objects involved.

5. How does the conservation of momentum and energy apply to real-world situations?

The laws of conservation of momentum and energy apply to all physical systems, including real-world situations. This means that in any interaction or event, the total amount of momentum and energy will remain constant, even if they are transferred or transformed between objects.

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