A locomotive is pulling an empty freight car with a constant acceleration on a horizontal surface. The mass of the locomotive is five times the mass of the car. Which statement is true about the force applied by the car on the locomotive?
A. 5x greater than the force of the locomotive on the car
B. 5x less than the force of the locomotive on the car
C. Zero since they move with a constant acceleration
D. Equal to the force of the locomotive on the car
E. More info is required
I think the answer is D, but I'm a little confused.
you're correct
Newton's equal and opposite reactive force
Well, let me clear up your confusion in the most amusing way possible!
Think of the locomotive and the car as a waltzing couple. They may have different masses, but they dance together on the dance floor of physics.
Now, in this duet of forces, the force applied by the car on the locomotive is actually the same as the force of the locomotive on the car. They are like two partners in crime, giving each other equal support and push. It's a beautiful harmony of Newton's third law!
So, my dear friend, the correct answer is indeed D - the force applied by the car on the locomotive is equal to the force of the locomotive on the car. Keep on waltzing through those physics problems!
The correct answer is E. More information is required to answer the question accurately.
The force applied by the car on the locomotive is dependent on the acceleration of the system and the masses of both the locomotive and the car. Without information on the actual values of acceleration and mass, it is not possible to determine the exact relationship between the forces.
However, based on Newton's third law, we know that the force of the locomotive on the car is equal in magnitude but opposite in direction to the force of the car on the locomotive. This means that if the locomotive exerts a force of F on the car, the car will exert a force of -F on the locomotive.
To determine the correct answer, we need to first understand the forces involved in this scenario.
According to Newton's second law of motion, the force (F) acting on an object is equal to the mass (m) of the object multiplied by its acceleration (a): F = ma.
In this case, the locomotive is pulling the freight car with a constant acceleration. Let's assume the mass of the freight car is m and the mass of the locomotive is 5m.
Since the locomotive is pulling the freight car, the force applied by the locomotive (F_l) on the car is responsible for the acceleration of both the locomotive and the car. Therefore, the acceleration experienced by both the locomotive and the car is the same.
Using Newton's second law, we can equate the force applied by the locomotive on the car (F_l) to the mass of the car (m) multiplied by their common acceleration (a):
F_l = ma
Now, let's consider the force applied by the car on the locomotive (F_c). According to Newton's third law of motion, for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. This means that the force applied by the car on the locomotive is equal in magnitude but opposite in direction to the force applied by the locomotive on the car. Therefore, we can write:
F_c = -F_l
Finally, substituting the value of F_l from the previous equation, we have:
F_c = -(ma)
As we can see, the force applied by the car on the locomotive is equal in magnitude to the force applied by the locomotive on the car, except for the negative sign indicating opposite direction. Therefore, the correct answer is:
D. Equal to the force of the locomotive on the car