---
title: "A student of mass \\(50\\text{ kg}\\) stands on a force platform inside an elevator cab that moves along a vertical track. The platform measures the vertical normal force exerted on the student. The acceleration \\(a\\) of the elevator as a function of time \\(t\\) is shown in the graph, where the upward direction is defined as positive. What is the average normal force exerted on the student by the force platform over the time interval from \\(t = 0\\text{ s}\\) to \\(t = 5.0\\text{ s}\\)?"
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url: "https://nerd-notes.com/ubq/120609/"
date_modified: "2026-08-23T04:41:58+00:00"
---

# A student of mass \(50\text{ kg}\) stands on a force platform inside an elevator cab that moves along a vertical track. The platform measures the vertical normal force exerted on the student. The acceleration \(a\) of the elevator as a function of time \(t\) is shown in the graph, where the upward direction is defined as positive. What is the average normal force exerted on the student by the force platform over the time interval from \(t = 0\text{ s}\) to \(t = 5.0\text{ s}\)?

A student of mass \(50\text{ kg}\) stands on a force platform inside an elevator cab that moves along a vertical track. The platform measures the vertical normal force exerted on the student. The acceleration \(a\) of the elevator as a function of time \(t\) is shown in the graph, where the upward direction is defined as positive. What is the average normal force exerted on the student by the force platform over the time interval from \(t = 0\text{ s}\) to \(t = 5.0\text{ s}\)?

![A 2D Cartesian graph with a horizontal axis labeled t (s) from 0 to 6 with tick marks and gridlines at every 1 unit, and a vertical axis labeled a (m/s^2) from -2 to 3 with tick marks and gridlines at every 1 unit. A thick solid black line represents the function a(t). The line begins at coordinate (0, 2.0) and extends horizontally to (2.0, 2.0). From (2.0, 2.0), the line slopes downward linearly to (4.0, -1.0), crossing the horizontal axis at t = 3.33 s. From (4.0, -1.0), the line continues horizontally to (5.0, -1.0). The graph contains light gray gridlines aligned with each integer tick mark. No other labels, lines, text, or axes appear.](https://nerd-notes.com/wp-content/uploads/ubq-frq-generated/stem-fig-1-1787460117-pBN1nf.jpg)

- **A.** \(530\text{ N}\)
- **B.** \(550\text{ N}\)
- **C.** \(590\text{ N}\)
- **D.** \(690\text{ N}\)

*The answer key and step-by-step explanation are available to logged-in users at https://nerd-notes.com/ubq/120609/*