Question

Two blocks are connected by a rope, as shown below. The masses of the blocks are 5 kg for the upper block and 10 kg for the lower block. An upward applied force of magnitude F acts on the upper block. If F = 300 N, which of the following predictions about the acceleration of the blocks is correct?

a) The acceleration is downward with a magnitude of g.
b) The acceleration is downward with a magnitude of 2g.
c) The acceleration is upward with a magnitude of 2g.
d) The acceleration is upward with a magnitude of g.

Answer 1

The acceleration of both connected blocks, given an upward force of 300 N, is upward with a magnitude less than g, as determined by Newton's second law of motion. The exact acceleration can be calculated as 20 m/s². None of the provided options match the correct calculation.

Step-by-step explanation:

The question asks to predict the acceleration of two connected blocks where an upward applied force F equals 300 N is acting on the upper block with a mass of 5 kg and the lower block has a mass of 10 kg. Since the total mass of the system is 15 kg, we can calculate the acceleration using Newton's second law F = ma, where F is the force applied, m is the mass, and a is the acceleration.

To find the acceleration, we rearrange the formula to a = F/m. Substituting the given values, we get a = 300 N / 15 kg, which equals 20 m/s². This acceleration is upward since the applied force of 300 N exceeds the gravitational force on the system (which would be 15 kg * 9.8 m/s² or 147 N). Therefore, the correct answer is that the acceleration is upward with a magnitude less than g.

The choices provided in the question do not match the proper calculation but if we were to choose the closest correct option, we would select that the acceleration is upward but with a magnitude less than g, which is not explicitly stated among the options. Thus, none of the predictions perfectly match the calculated outcome.