I'm thinking of it in terms of a force acting on the entire system and changing its momentum. The force is along the x-axis so the velocity should also be along that axis.
If I needed to calculate the total KE then I would need to consider the y-component of the masses' motion but if I...
Homework Statement
Two equal 1 kg masses are connected by a light 1.6 m string on a flat frictionless surface. A 2 N force is applied to the midpoint of the string which causes the system to accelerate in the positive x-direction.
After 1.5 seconds, the rope makes an angle of 55° with the...