Question

Two puppies (one golden doodle and one lab) are playing tug of war with a piece of rope. The goldendoodle, on the right, is pulling on the rope with an effort of 250 N. If the rope is moving at a constant velocity, how hard and in which direction is the lab pulling?

Answer 1

The lab is pulling the rope with a force of 250 N in the direction opposite to the goldendoodle's pull. This allows the rope to move at a constant velocity, indicating equilibrium and adherence to Newton's first and third laws.

Step-by-step explanation:

If the goldendoodle is pulling on the rope with an effort of 250 N and the rope is moving at a constant velocity, the lab must also be pulling with a force of 250 N in the opposite direction. In physics, this is due to Newton's third law which states that for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. Additionally, the fact that the rope is not accelerating indicates that the net force on it is zero, which means the forces acting on both ends of the rope are in equilibrium.

Since the goldendoodle is positioned on the right, we would say the lab, placed opposite, is pulling to the left. To maintain a constant velocity, the pulling forces must be equal in magnitude but opposite in direction. This is also an application of Newton's first law, which states that an object in motion will stay in motion at a constant velocity unless acted upon by an unbalanced force, which in this case does not exist.