- #1
Nikkolas
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Homework Statement
You are on a cart going at a constant velocity on a frictionless surface. You toss something off the cart in a direction that is perpendicular to your motion, thus lowering the mass of the cart/you system. Does the speed in the horizontal direction change?
Person 1 says: No, because you exerted a force in the perpendicular direction, thus it doesn't affect the car's horizontal motion.
Person 2 says: Yes, because the total momentum of the system is conserved due to the lack of a net external force, thus the horizontal component of momentum is also conserved, thus the change in mass of the cart automatically increases its speed in the horizontal direction.
Who's right?