Calculating the Motion of a Rolling Cart Down an Incline

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Homework Help Overview

The discussion revolves around a physics problem involving the motion of a rolling cart down an incline, specifically focusing on the effects of friction and external forces. The original poster presents a scenario with a sled and a cart, providing details about their masses, speeds, and the incline's characteristics.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory, Assumption checking, Problem interpretation

Approaches and Questions Raised

  • The original poster attempts to calculate various parameters such as the angle of the incline, the length of the incline, the acceleration of the cart, and its speed at the bottom. They seek validation of their calculations and further assistance in determining how far the cart travels into the hay bale before stopping.

Discussion Status

The discussion has introduced a mix of responses, including a warning about the nature of the problem being part of a take-home exam. Some participants express skepticism about the identity of a user claiming to be a teacher, while others reference energy principles related to the problem. There is no explicit consensus on how to proceed with the calculations.

Contextual Notes

Participants note that the problem is part of a take-home exam, where collaboration is discouraged. This context raises questions about the appropriateness of seeking help in this scenario.

delta_mu
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ok I have another problem here. Please help me. Thank you in advance.

A 1.50 kg sled scrapes down a grassy incline where the coefficient of friction is 0.678. The sled moves at a constant speed f 4.50 m/s and it takes 12.5 seconds to travel the entire length of the hill to the bottom.

After the sled passes, a 5.00kg rolling cart (with an effective coefficient of friction of .456) goes down the same hill. At the bottom. the cart crashes into a very massive bale of hay (which does not move so this is not a collision problem). The ha bale exerts an average force of 98.0N on the cart. Calculate how far into the hay bale the cart goes before stopping.

[Hints: find angle of incline; length of incline; acceleration of cart; speed at bottom of incline]

I received for the angle: 34 degrees
the length of the incline: 2.78m
acceleration of cart: 1.78m/s squared
speed at bottom: 3.15 m/s

Please inform me if I am wrong on any of those, and please help me to calculate the distance the cart travels in the hay before it stops.
 
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Delta Mu:

This is a take-home EXAM. Help from others was specifically forbidden. THis includes people you do not know.

Hello, I am your teacher.
 
Last edited:
Hah! This is funny. Good thing you didn't use your real name... :wink:

Well, not knowing if you really are his teacher (afer all, what are the odds?) I will just say that:
[tex]F_{ext}x = \Delta E_m = \Delta E_k[/tex]
 
Chen said:
Hah! This is funny. Good thing you didn't use your real name... :wink:

Well, not knowing if you really are his teacher (afer all, what are the odds?) I will just say that:
[tex]F_{ext}x = \Delta E_m = \Delta E_k[/tex]

The odds are good. I tell all my students about this forum and encourage them to seek help with homework. HTis is a question from a test, however, and I would request that no one answer it further.
 
Fair enough. I do appreciate the trust you have in your students, and what I posted can be found in every textbook anyway. :smile:
 

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