Question

Mac and Tosh are arguing in the cafeteria. Mac says that if he throws his jello with a greater speed, it will have a greater inertia. Tosh argues that inertia does not depend upon speed but rather upon mass. With whom do you agree, and why?

a) Mac, because speed determines the inertia of an object.
b) Tosh, because inertia depends solely on an object's mass.
c) Both, as both speed and mass play a role in determining inertia.
d) Neither, as both speed and mass are irrelevant in determining inertia.

Answer 1

I agree with Tosh that inertia depends solely on an object's mass, not its speed. Inertia is primarily determined by the mass of the object, and it is a measure of an object's resistance to changes in its motion.

Step-by-step explanation:

Inertia, the property of a body to remain at rest or in motion with constant velocity, is a measure of an object's resistance to changes in its motion. Inertia is primarily determined by the mass of the object, not its speed. Therefore, I agree with Tosh that inertia depends solely on an object's mass, not its speed.

Mass is a measure of the amount of matter in an object, and it is proportional to the object's inertia. An object with greater mass will have greater inertia, regardless of its speed. For example, a truck with a larger mass has more inertia than a toy truck with a smaller mass.

Speed, on the other hand, is related to an object's momentum but not its inertia. Inertia and momentum are two different concepts. While momentum depends on both mass and velocity, inertia only depends on mass.