- #1
dlacombe13
- 100
- 3
Homework Statement
There are three slides, slides A, B, and C. There is no friction. The heights are all the same. The masses of each person (initial location at the top of the slide, h) are ranked: mA < mB < mC. Compare each of the following quantities of the sliders using <, >, or =.
a) Initial potential energy
b) Final kinetic energy
c) Final speeds
d) Magnitudes of final acceleration
e) total distance traveled
f) Total time to reach the bottom
Homework Equations
mgy = (0.5)mv2
P.E=mgy
K.E=(0.5)mv2
The Attempt at a Solution
I believe so far that:
a) A<B<C
b) A<B<C
c) A=B=C
e) I have to ask if he means displacement along x-axis or literally along the path
So for d and f, I am a little stuck. I think that it might involve the equation ∑F = Δp / Δt. I am pretty sure the only forces acting on the riders are their weight (mg) and the normal force (n). I get the equation:
n-mg = (mV - 0) / t . When I try test values for V (same for all scenarios) and m, I end up with two unknowns, n and t, so I can't seem to reach any conclusions. Any help?