- #1
aznwei
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Homework Statement
For a ball thrown up in the air show that the stationary value of the action is always a global minimum
Homework Equations
euler lagrange equation and action equation(sorry i don't know syntax here)
The Attempt at a Solution
well basically here i used the euler lagrange equation where L=T-V and by using the principle of stationary action figured out that a=g...by solving the differential equation i found a equaiton of motion for y(t). Thus i sub this into the action equation of S=integral(L)dt and integrate it getting the answer mg^2t^3/6+g^2T^3/2 . and this is where I'm stuck ...i don't know how to show whether this is a global minimum or nor not and also if even my initial steps are correct. If someone could please point me in the right direction it would be great. Thanks.