Electro Statics What am I missing?

[tallbus1]

Electro Statics...What am I missing!?

Homework Statement

A balloon rubbed against denim gains a charge of 8.0microcoulumbs (I can't do the sign ). What is the electric force between the denim and balloon when the two are separated by a distance of 5.0 cm?

Homework Equations

Coulumb's law: Fe = Kc q1q2/r^2

The Attempt at a Solution

Ok, so I was given q1: 8mc I know Kc: 8.99*10^9 and I know R: 5 cm This leaves q2, how am I to know what the charge of q2 is? Could it be the standard 1.60219 * 10^-19? Or is the charge transferred?

 

[jhae2.718]

I would assume that both the balloon and denim were originally neutral. Then you can use the Law of Conservation of Charge (charge cannot be created or destroyed; i.e. Q_initial=Q_final) to find the other charge.

 

[tallbus1]

So then we assume that the charge of the balloon has a charge of -8mc? We have only touched the Conservation of Charge conceptually...

 

[tallbus1]

Oh, alright! Thanks