What is the acceleration of a girl on a skateboard throwing a bowling ball?

In summary: The girl is applying a force of 75 newtons to the bowling ball. The bowling ball applies an opposing force of -75 newtons to the girl. The sum of the two forces is 125 newtons. The girl's acceleration is therefore 125/2=62.5 newtons/second.
  • #1
MoreZitiPlease
107
0

Homework Statement


A girl weighing 30kg is standing motionless on a 2-kg skateboard holding a 7-kg bowling ball. She throws the ball with an avg force of 75N

a.) what is the magnitude of her acceleration?
b.) what is the magnitude of the acceleration of the bowling ball?



Homework Equations





The Attempt at a Solution


a.)0
b.) 75/2
 
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  • #2
MoreZitiPlease said:

Homework Statement


A girl weighing 30kg is standing motionless on a 2-kg skateboard holding a 7-kg bowling ball. She throws the ball with an avg force of 75N

a.) what is the magnitude of her acceleration?
b.) what is the magnitude of the acceleration of the bowling ball?

The choice of the skateboard that she is standing on is to assure that the motion to follow will take place (essentially) frictionlessly. This is a problem applying Newton's Third Law. If she is applying 75N to the ball when she throws it away, what force does the ball apply to her? Then answer the questions in that light. Keep in mind that during the throw, she and the skateboard will move together.
 
  • #3
My book doesn't even explain how to do the problem. There arent any equaitons for the 3rd law ( in my book). Do yo know how to do it
 
  • #4
Newtons Third Law:
[tex] \vec{F_{A on B}}=\vec{-F_{B on A}}[/tex]
 
  • #5
MoreZitiPlease said:
My book doesn't even explain how to do the problem. There arent any equaitons for the 3rd law ( in my book). Do yo know how to do it

The applied force of the girl against the ball equals the force of the ball against the girl's hands. (This is what the equation Winzer posted says.) So the force acting on her is...?
 
  • #6
I have never seen that equation before in my life.

Could you tell me what to plug in ? Maybe I can take it from there
 
  • #7
Don't think of it as just an equation, think of it as common sense as well.
Suppose: you are facing a wall. You chose to push on the wall applying a Force(your feet are firmly planted); however this wall exerts an opposing Force->-F, no? If not, then your hand would go stright through the wall.

Now consider the case you have listed above.
This person exerts a force on the bowling ball. Then this ball would have to provide an opposing force or the girl's hand would go through the ball. However the girl is on a skateboard and that forced gets translated through the motion of the skateboard .
 
  • #8
I am lost.. maybe it is because it is late

I don't know

I'm about to go to bed. Could you just tell me the answer and I'll come back on (tomorrow afternoon) and you could explain it to me?
 
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  • #9
Ok, let's do this:
[tex] \vec{F_AonB}=\vec{-F_BonA}[/tex] right? Let A be the ball and B be the skateboard and girl.{The minus sign will depend on orientation}
By Newtons second law: F=ma
So.. [tex] m_b\vec{a_b}=-(m_g+m_s)\vec{a}[/tex] b=ball, g=girl, s=skateboard
therefore:
[tex] -\frac{a_b m_b}{m_g+m_s}=a[/tex] This is the acceleration of the girl+skateboard
Do you see it? Can you explain to me why this is?
 
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  • #10
No, we never learned that.
 

1. What are Newton's three laws of motion?

Newton's three laws of motion are: 1) an object at rest will stay at rest unless acted upon by an outside force, 2) the force applied to an object is equal to its mass times its acceleration (F = ma), and 3) for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction.

2. How do Newton's laws of motion apply to everyday life?

Newton's laws of motion are applicable to everyday life in many ways. For example, the first law can be seen when an object stays in place until someone or something moves it. The second law can be observed when a heavier object requires more force to move than a lighter object. The third law can be seen when a person pushes against a wall and feels the force of the wall pushing back.

3. What is the difference between inertia and acceleration?

Inertia is the tendency of an object to resist changes in its motion, while acceleration is the rate at which an object's velocity changes. In other words, inertia refers to an object's resistance to change, while acceleration refers to the change itself.

4. Can Newton's laws of motion be broken?

No, Newton's laws of motion cannot be broken. They are fundamental principles of physics that have been extensively tested and proven to be true in various experiments and real-world situations. However, they may not always seem to apply in extreme conditions, such as at the atomic or subatomic level.

5. How do Newton's laws of motion relate to other scientific concepts?

Newton's laws of motion are closely related to other scientific concepts, such as force, mass, and energy. They also form the basis for other principles in physics, such as conservation of momentum and the laws of thermodynamics.

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