Solving Friction Problems: Boy vs Girl Tug-of-War

  • Thread starter Thread starter SkiingAlta
  • Start date Start date
  • Tags Tags
    Friction
Click For Summary
SUMMARY

The discussion focuses on solving a tug-of-war problem involving a 65-kg boy and a 45-kg girl on a frictionless surface, with the girl's acceleration towards the boy being 3.0 m/s². The key to solving this problem lies in applying Newton's third law, which states that for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. The force exerted by the boy on the girl is equal in magnitude and opposite in direction to the force exerted by the girl on the boy, allowing for the calculation of the boy's acceleration.

PREREQUISITES
  • Understanding of Newton's laws of motion
  • Basic knowledge of mass and acceleration
  • Familiarity with force balancing concepts
  • Ability to perform calculations involving mass and acceleration
NEXT STEPS
  • Study Newton's third law in detail
  • Learn about force calculations in frictionless environments
  • Explore problems involving mass and acceleration in physics
  • Review concepts of force balancing in dynamic systems
USEFUL FOR

This discussion is beneficial for physics students, educators, and anyone interested in understanding dynamics and force interactions in frictionless scenarios.

SkiingAlta
Messages
19
Reaction score
0
Hi,
I am a bit confused with all this friction stuff... How would I begin to solve this problem and by using what formulas? Thanks.

Suppose a 65-kg boy and a 45-kg girl use a massless rope in a tug-of-war on an icy, resistance-free surface. If the accelleration of the girl toward the boy is 3.0 m/s2, find the magnitude of the acceleration of the boy toward the girl.
 
Physics news on Phys.org
This is happening on a resistance free surface. There is no friction.

Also, you at least need to attempt the problem on your own. Your hint though is to think about force balancing, and that you only need one formula.
 
In this problem there is no friction. You can solve this problem by using Newton's third law.
From the given data, find the force acting on the girl by boy. The girl must react with same force on boy.
 

Similar threads

Tug-of-War Forces: Solving the Rope Problem
  • · Replies 3 ·
Replies
3
Views
2K
How Do Forces Affect Motion in Different Scenarios?
  • · Replies 1 ·
Replies
1
Views
5K
Tug of War Acceleration: 60kg and 40kg Girls on Icy Surface
  • · Replies 1 ·
Replies
1
Views
6K
Icy slope, toboggan, find coefficient of friction
  • · Replies 19 ·
Replies
19
Views
4K
Intuition on the direction of friction in a rotational dynamics problem
  • · Replies 13 ·
Replies
13
Views
2K
How Do You Calculate the Forces in a Tug of War?
  • · Replies 1 ·
Replies
1
Views
2K
How Does Newton's Third Law Apply Here?
  • · Replies 2 ·
Replies
2
Views
3K
Solving the Tug of War: Jackie vs. Sue
  • · Replies 1 ·
Replies
1
Views
6K
2 boxes ontop of each other on a ramp with friction and Force of pull
  • · Replies 5 ·
Replies
5
Views
17K
Finding the acceleration of two masses on a pulley system
  • · Replies 66 ·
3
Replies
66
Views
8K