Physics of Elevator: Will Inertia Allow a Person to Touch the Roof?

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    Elevator Physics
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SUMMARY

In a free-falling elevator, a person will not touch the roof due to inertia. When the elevator's cable snaps, both the elevator and the person inside experience free fall, resulting in a sensation of weightlessness. The individual may have a slight upward velocity at the moment the cable breaks due to the force exerted against the floor, but this is insufficient to propel them to the ceiling. Practical factors like emergency brakes are not considered in this scenario.

PREREQUISITES
  • Understanding of Newton's laws of motion
  • Basic knowledge of free fall and gravitational forces
  • Familiarity with concepts of inertia and weightlessness
  • Awareness of elevator mechanics and safety features
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  • Research Newton's laws of motion in detail
  • Study the physics of free fall and its effects on objects
  • Explore the concept of inertia and its applications in real-world scenarios
  • Investigate elevator safety mechanisms and their functions
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Physics students, engineers, safety professionals, and anyone interested in understanding the dynamics of free fall and inertia in confined spaces like elevators.

frankenkash
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This, in my opinion, is a no-brainer. But i decided to post this as a confirmatory proof to a friend who refuses to see reason!

The argument: In an elevator whose cable has snapped, irrelevant of whether it's stationary or going up/down, the person inside will travel upwards in the falling lift to hit the roof. Now i hope i have not changed the context of this question or changed how it was stated, but I would like to ask- WILL A PERSON IN A FALLING ELEVATOR EVER TOUCH THE ROOF (without jumping/external force) DUE TO INERTIA OR ANY OTHER SUCH FORCE? Or would he just feel weightless from the second the cable snaps to the time the thing touches bottom... (lets not bring in practical forces such as wind resistance etc etc)
 
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If you're in an elevator and the cable snaps so that you and the elevator are in free fall, then you'll feel weightless. You won't magically fly up to the ceiling. (Of course real elevators have emergency brakes.)
 
You were pushing against the floor with your legs, before the cable snapped, and you will get some upwards velocity (relative to te elevator), since you can't stop pushing immediately.
Of course you'll lose contact with the floor very quickly, so you won't get a lot of velocity.
 

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