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Kerry Klutz drops her physics book off her aunt’s high rise balcony. It hits the ground below 1.5 s later. How high is the balcony (ignore air drag).

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Final answer:

To determine the height of the balcony, the free fall equation
h = 1/2 * g * t^2 is used. With a fall time of 1.5 seconds and g = 9.81
m/s^2, the balcony height is calculated to be approximately 11.04 meters.

Step-by-step explanation:

The question involves a physics concept known as free fall, which is part of the study of kinematics. To calculate the height of the balcony from which Kerry Klutz drops her physics book, we can use the equation of motion under constant acceleration due to gravity (g≈9.81 m/s2). The specific equation we use is
h = 1/2 * g * t^2, since initial velocity (u) is zero and g is the acceleration due to gravity. Plugging in the values:

h =
1/2 * 9.81 m/s^2 * (1.5 s)^2
h = 1/2 * 9.81 * 2.25
h = 11.03625 m

Therefore, the balcony height from which the physics book was dropped is approximately 11.04 meters.

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