| Step | Derivation/Formula | Reasoning |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | \( F = ma \) | Newton’s Second Law of Motion states that the net force acting on an object is equal to the product of its mass and its acceleration. Here, \( F \) is the constant pulling force, \( m \) is the mass of the box, and \( a \) is the acceleration. |
| 2 | \( a = \frac{F}{m} \) | Rearrange the formula from step 1 to express acceleration in terms of force and mass. |
| 3 | \( m’ = 2m \) | According to the problem, the mass of the box is doubled. Thus, the new mass, \( m’ \), is equal to \( 2m \). |
| 4 | \( a’ = \frac{F}{m’} \) | Using the substituted mass, express the new acceleration, \( a’ \), when the mass is doubled, while the force remains unchanged. |
| 5 | \( a’ = \frac{F}{2m} \) | Substitute \( m’ = 2m \) into the expression for the new acceleration. |
| 6 | \( a’ = \frac{1}{2} \left(\frac{F}{m}\right) = \frac{1}{2}a \) | Recognize that the new acceleration \( a’ \) is half of the original acceleration \( a \). |
| 7 | Acceleration is halved. (Option a) | The new acceleration is half the original acceleration, meaning when the mass of the box doubles, the acceleration due to the unchanged force is halved. |
Explanation of Incorrect Options:
– (b) Acceleration remains unchanged: Incorrect because with a doubled mass and constant force, the acceleration must decrease.
– (c) Acceleration quadruples: Incorrect because the relationship shown in step 6 is not compatible with quadrupling.
– (d) Acceleration doubles: Incorrect as increasing mass actually decreases acceleration, given a constant force.
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A \( 240 \) \( \text{kg} \) block is dropped from \( 3.0 \) meters onto a spring, compresses the spring and comes to rest.
A truck is traveling at \(35 \, \text{m/s}\) when the driver realizes the truck has no brakes. He sees a ramp off the road, inclined at \(20^\circ\), and decides to go up it to help the truck come to a stop. How far does the truck travel before coming to a stop (assume no friction)?
A car is going through a dip in the road whose curvature approximates a circle of radius \( 200 \) \( \text{m} \). At what velocity will the occupants of the car appear to weigh \( 20\% \) more than their normal weight \( (1.2\,W) \)?
If you stand on a bathroom scale in a moving elevator, does its reading change?
Two objects attract each other gravitationally with a force of \( 2.5 \times 10^{-10} \) \( \text{N} \) when they are \( 0.25 \) \( \text{m} \) apart. Their total mass is \( 4.00 \) \( \text{kg} \). Find their individual masses.

A \( 0.20 \) \( \text{kg} \) object moves along a straight line. The net force acting on the object varies with the object’s displacement as shown in the graph above. The object starts from rest at displacement \( x = 0 \) and time \( t = 0 \) and is displaced a distance of \( 20 \) \( \text{m} \). Determine each of the following.
A block of weight \( W \) is pulled along a horizontal surface at constant speed by a force \( F \), which acts at an angle of \( \theta \) with the horizontal. The normal force exerted on the block by the surface has magnitude:
Two closed containers look the same, but one is packed with lead and the other with a few feathers. How could you determine which has more mass if you and the containers were orbiting in a weightless condition in outer space?
An object of unknown mass is acted upon by multiple forces:
The coefficients of friction are \(\mu_s = 0.6\) and \(\mu_k = 0.2\). Starting from rest, the object travels \(10 \, \text{m}\) in \(4.5 \, \text{s}\). What is the mass of the unknown object?
A brick slides on a horizontal surface. Which of the following will increase the magnitude of the frictional force on it?
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| Kinematics | Forces |
|---|---|
| \(\Delta x = v_i t + \frac{1}{2} at^2\) | \(F = ma\) |
| \(v = v_i + at\) | \(F_g = \frac{G m_1 m_2}{r^2}\) |
| \(v^2 = v_i^2 + 2a \Delta x\) | \(f = \mu N\) |
| \(\Delta x = \frac{v_i + v}{2} t\) | \(F_s =-kx\) |
| \(v^2 = v_f^2 \,-\, 2a \Delta x\) |
| Circular Motion | Energy |
|---|---|
| \(F_c = \frac{mv^2}{r}\) | \(KE = \frac{1}{2} mv^2\) |
| \(a_c = \frac{v^2}{r}\) | \(PE = mgh\) |
| \(T = 2\pi \sqrt{\frac{r}{g}}\) | \(KE_i + PE_i = KE_f + PE_f\) |
| \(W = Fd \cos\theta\) |
| Momentum | Torque and Rotations |
|---|---|
| \(p = mv\) | \(\tau = r \cdot F \cdot \sin(\theta)\) |
| \(J = \Delta p\) | \(I = \sum mr^2\) |
| \(p_i = p_f\) | \(L = I \cdot \omega\) |
| Simple Harmonic Motion | Fluids |
|---|---|
| \(F = -kx\) | \(P = \frac{F}{A}\) |
| \(T = 2\pi \sqrt{\frac{l}{g}}\) | \(P_{\text{total}} = P_{\text{atm}} + \rho gh\) |
| \(T = 2\pi \sqrt{\frac{m}{k}}\) | \(Q = Av\) |
| \(x(t) = A \cos(\omega t + \phi)\) | \(F_b = \rho V g\) |
| \(a = -\omega^2 x\) | \(A_1v_1 = A_2v_2\) |
| Constant | Description |
|---|---|
| [katex]g[/katex] | Acceleration due to gravity, typically [katex]9.8 , \text{m/s}^2[/katex] on Earth’s surface |
| [katex]G[/katex] | Universal Gravitational Constant, [katex]6.674 \times 10^{-11} , \text{N} \cdot \text{m}^2/\text{kg}^2[/katex] |
| [katex]\mu_k[/katex] and [katex]\mu_s[/katex] | Coefficients of kinetic ([katex]\mu_k[/katex]) and static ([katex]\mu_s[/katex]) friction, dimensionless. Static friction ([katex]\mu_s[/katex]) is usually greater than kinetic friction ([katex]\mu_k[/katex]) as it resists the start of motion. |
| [katex]k[/katex] | Spring constant, in [katex]\text{N/m}[/katex] |
| [katex] M_E = 5.972 \times 10^{24} , \text{kg} [/katex] | Mass of the Earth |
| [katex] M_M = 7.348 \times 10^{22} , \text{kg} [/katex] | Mass of the Moon |
| [katex] M_M = 1.989 \times 10^{30} , \text{kg} [/katex] | Mass of the Sun |
| Variable | SI Unit |
|---|---|
| [katex]s[/katex] (Displacement) | [katex]\text{meters (m)}[/katex] |
| [katex]v[/katex] (Velocity) | [katex]\text{meters per second (m/s)}[/katex] |
| [katex]a[/katex] (Acceleration) | [katex]\text{meters per second squared (m/s}^2\text{)}[/katex] |
| [katex]t[/katex] (Time) | [katex]\text{seconds (s)}[/katex] |
| [katex]m[/katex] (Mass) | [katex]\text{kilograms (kg)}[/katex] |
| Variable | Derived SI Unit |
|---|---|
| [katex]F[/katex] (Force) | [katex]\text{newtons (N)}[/katex] |
| [katex]E[/katex], [katex]PE[/katex], [katex]KE[/katex] (Energy, Potential Energy, Kinetic Energy) | [katex]\text{joules (J)}[/katex] |
| [katex]P[/katex] (Power) | [katex]\text{watts (W)}[/katex] |
| [katex]p[/katex] (Momentum) | [katex]\text{kilogram meters per second (kgm/s)}[/katex] |
| [katex]\omega[/katex] (Angular Velocity) | [katex]\text{radians per second (rad/s)}[/katex] |
| [katex]\tau[/katex] (Torque) | [katex]\text{newton meters (Nm)}[/katex] |
| [katex]I[/katex] (Moment of Inertia) | [katex]\text{kilogram meter squared (kgm}^2\text{)}[/katex] |
| [katex]f[/katex] (Frequency) | [katex]\text{hertz (Hz)}[/katex] |
Metric Prefixes
Example of using unit analysis: Convert 5 kilometers to millimeters.
Start with the given measurement: [katex]\text{5 km}[/katex]
Use the conversion factors for kilometers to meters and meters to millimeters: [katex]\text{5 km} \times \frac{10^3 \, \text{m}}{1 \, \text{km}} \times \frac{10^3 \, \text{mm}}{1 \, \text{m}}[/katex]
Perform the multiplication: [katex]\text{5 km} \times \frac{10^3 \, \text{m}}{1 \, \text{km}} \times \frac{10^3 \, \text{mm}}{1 \, \text{m}} = 5 \times 10^3 \times 10^3 \, \text{mm}[/katex]
Simplify to get the final answer: [katex]\boxed{5 \times 10^6 \, \text{mm}}[/katex]
Prefix | Symbol | Power of Ten | Equivalent |
|---|---|---|---|
Pico- | p | [katex]10^{-12}[/katex] | 0.000000000001 |
Nano- | n | [katex]10^{-9}[/katex] | 0.000000001 |
Micro- | µ | [katex]10^{-6}[/katex] | 0.000001 |
Milli- | m | [katex]10^{-3}[/katex] | 0.001 |
Centi- | c | [katex]10^{-2}[/katex] | 0.01 |
Deci- | d | [katex]10^{-1}[/katex] | 0.1 |
(Base unit) | – | [katex]10^{0}[/katex] | 1 |
Deca- or Deka- | da | [katex]10^{1}[/katex] | 10 |
Hecto- | h | [katex]10^{2}[/katex] | 100 |
Kilo- | k | [katex]10^{3}[/katex] | 1,000 |
Mega- | M | [katex]10^{6}[/katex] | 1,000,000 |
Giga- | G | [katex]10^{9}[/katex] | 1,000,000,000 |
Tera- | T | [katex]10^{12}[/katex] | 1,000,000,000,000 |
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