Question

Carla holds a ball 1.5 m above the ground. Daniel, leaning out of a car window, also holds a ball 1.5 m above the ground. Daniel drives past Carla at 40 mph and, just as he passes her, both release their balls at the same instant. Whose ball hits the ground first? Explain.

Answer 1

Both Carla's and Daniel's balls will hit the ground at the same time because gravity accelerates them downward at the same rate, and the horizontal velocity does not affect the falling time.

Step-by-step explanation:

Gravity acts equally on both balls, causing them to accelerate downward at the same rate (9.8 m/s2 on Earth). Therefore, both Carla's and Daniel's balls will hit the ground at the same time, assuming there is no air resistance or other forces acting on the balls other than gravity. This is because the vertical component of the balls' velocities is zero for both (since they are simply released, not thrown), and only the vertical component affects the falling time.

Gravity acts equally on both balls, causing them to accelerate downward at the same rate (9.8 m/s2 on Earth). Therefore, both Carla's and Daniel's balls will hit the ground at the same time, assuming there is no air resistance or other forces acting on the balls other than gravity. This is because the vertical component of the balls' velocities is zero for both (since they are simply released, not thrown), and only the vertical component affects the falling time.

Carla and Daniel both release their balls 1.5 m above the ground. According to the principles of physics, specifically the laws of motion and gravity, the horizontal velocity of Daniel's ball does not influence the time it takes to hit the ground. Gravity acts equally on both balls, causing them to accelerate downward at the same rate (9.8 m/s2 on Earth). Therefore, both Carla's and Daniel's balls will hit the ground at the same time, assuming there is no air resistance or other forces acting on the balls other than gravity. This is because the vertical component of the balls' velocities is zero for both (since they are simply released, not thrown), and only the vertical component affects the falling time.

Answer 2

Carla

Step-by-step explanation:

Thinking process:

First, we neglect the air resistance.

Carla is not moving. It means that the present energy of the ball is potential energy relative to its height from the ground. There is only a single velocity component on Carla's ball - the vertical component. Therefore, Carla's ball hits the ground first.

Daniel's case is different. The ball travels with two components of velocity - the horizontal velocity and the vertical component. Therefore, the ball's total velocity is a resolution of the two velocities.

Thus, the horizontal component of Daniel's ball follows a projector path and does not fall horizontally. It will touch the ground at some distance after being dropped to the ground.