Question

A father and his young daughter are on very clean ice, so there is very little friction (the father has more mass than the daughter). The father pushes his daughter forward, and she slides away at a speed of 3 m/s. The father's velocity is:

a) 3 m/s
b) Greater than 3 m/s
c) Less than 3 m/s
d) Zero m/s

Answer 1

The father's velocity is less than 3 m/s.

Step-by-step explanation:

When the father pushes his daughter forward on very clean ice with very little friction, the daughter slides away with a speed of 3 m/s. Since there is little to no friction, the force exerted by the father on the daughter is the only force acting on the system. According to Newton's second law, the force exerted by the father is equal to the product of the father's mass and acceleration. Since the daughter's mass is smaller than the father's, and they are both experiencing the same force, the daughter will experience a larger acceleration than the father. Therefore, the father's velocity is less than 3 m/s.