Problem involving a skier, friction and conservation of energy

AI Thread Summary
The discussion revolves around a physics problem involving a skier descending a slope and the effects of friction and energy conservation. The skier, with a mass of 63.0 kg and starting from a height of 62.0 m, faces frictional work of -10,000 J during her descent. The correct approach involves using the conservation of energy principle rather than calculating net forces directly. Participants point out that the initial calculations mistakenly used an incorrect value for the work done by friction and misapplied the energy equations. The conversation emphasizes the importance of correctly interpreting the problem and applying the right formulas to find the skier's speed at the bottom of the slope.
honeyspells
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::A skier of mass 63.0kg starts from rest at the top of a ski slope of height 62.0m .A skier of mass 63.0kg starts from rest at the top of a ski slope of height 62.0m .A) If frictional forces do −1.00×104J of work on her as she descends, how fast is she going at the bottom of the slope?
Take free fall acceleration to be g = 9.80m/s2 .

B) Now moving horizontally, the skier crosses a patch of soft snow, where the coefficient of friction is μk = 0.210. If the patch is of width 64.0m and the average force of air resistance on the skier is 180N , how fast is she going after crossing the patch?

C) After crossing the patch of soft snow, the skier hits a snowdrift and penetrates a distance 2.90m into it before coming to a stop. What is the average force exerted on her by the snowdrift as it stops her?

m=63.0kg
g= 9.8m/s2
H=62.0m

What I've done:
A)
U= mgH= (63.0kg)(9.8m/s2)(62.0m)= 38278.8 N-m

NET FORCE= 38278.8-1000= 37278.8

37278.8= (1/2)mv2
37278.8= (31.5)v2
so v= 34.401

Mastering physics says that is WRONG. I've checked my math over and over again. Where did I go wrong?

tips?
 
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Sorry but this is completely wrong, the formula you are using for potential energy gives you energy for an answer, not a force. The equation you want to use is the law of conservation of energy:
\frac{1}{2}m{v_1}^2 + mgy_1 = \frac{1}{2}m{v_2}^2 + mgy_2 + F_{fr}l
 
honeyspells said:
A) If frictional forces do −1.00×104J of work on her as she descends, how fast is she going at the bottom of the slope?

honeyspells said:
U= mgH= (63.0kg)(9.8m/s2)(62.0m)= 38278.8 N-m

NET FORCE= 38278.8-1000= 37278.8

You're calculating energy, not force. Note that from the question statement that the work done by friction has a magnitude of 1 x 104. That's 10,000 not 1000 Joules.
 
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