Stepping off a canoe onto a dock

[msimard8]

First of all sorry for the non descriptive thread title. I don't know where to start by answering this question.

Q. You are a passenger in a canoe. You attempt to step off the canoe onto a small dock without holding on to anything. Explain why you may end up in water instead.

A. I think it is something related to the canoe being on water. When you attempt to walk off the canoe you push the canoe away from you since water moves.

I don't know
What laws are involved in this. Does this have anything to do with Newton

 

[tony873004]

Yes, Newton's 3rd law. It is not because water moves, but because a boat in water is considered to be in a frictionless environment for these types of physics problems.