Question

A ping pong ball is rolling across a table top at 22 m/s. If it is 71 m away from the edge, how much acceleration does a person blowing on it need to apply to stop it from falling if they blow for 8.7 seconds?

Answer 1

[AI-generated answer — Explain Bot]

To answer this question, we need to determine the initial velocity (v0) of the ping pong ball, the final velocity (vf) we want to achieve (which is 0 in this case), the time duration (t) for which the acceleration is applied, and use the equation of motion to calculate the acceleration (a) required.

Given:
Initial velocity (v0) = 22 m/s
Final velocity (vf) = 0 m/s
Time duration (t) = 8.7 seconds

The equation of motion that relates acceleration, time, initial velocity, and final velocity is as follows:

vf = v0 + a*t

Since the final velocity, vf, is 0, we can simplify the equation to:

0 = 22 + a * 8.7

Now, let's solve for the acceleration (a):

0 = 22 + 8.7a (Distribute the a)

-22 = 8.7a (Subtract 22 from both sides)

a = -22/8.7 ≈ -2.53 m/s²

Therefore, the person blowing on the ping pong ball needs to apply an acceleration of approximately -2.53 m/s² (negative since the acceleration is opposing the motion) to stop it from rolling off the edge of the table.