Question

A child tosses a ball straight up. She says the ball is moving away from her hand because the ball feels an upward "force of the throw" as well as the gravitational force.

(a) Can the "force of the throw" exceed the gravitational force?
Yes or No?
How would the ball move if it did?
(b) Can the "force of the throw" be equal in magnitude to the gravitational force?
Yes or No?
Explain.?
(c) What strength can accurately be attributed to the force of the throw?
... N???
Explain your answer. ?
(d) Why does the ball move away from the child's hand? Explain

Answer 1

Yes, the force of the throw can exceed the gravitational force causing the ball to move upward. No, the force of the throw cannot be equal to gravity at the time of release as it causes acceleration. The force attributed to the throw varies and is determined by the mass and acceleration of the ball.

Step-by-step explanation:

To address the question posed by the student:

1. Can the "force of the throw" exceed the gravitational force? Yes, it can. When this occurs, the ball will move upwards until the force of gravity decelerates it to a stop before it begins to fall back to Earth.
2. Can the "force of the throw" be equal in magnitude to the gravitational force? No, if they were equal at the moment of release, the ball would remain stationary; however, the throw imparts kinetic energy to the ball, causing it to move upwards.
3. What magnitude of force can be attributed to the throw? The force can vary based on the throw intensity and is calculated by F = ma (force equals mass times acceleration).
4. Why does the ball move away from the child's hand? The ball moves due to the initial applied force overcoming the force of gravity, giving the ball its upward velocity.

The phenomenon in question can be understood through Newton's Third Law of Motion and the concept of inertia as described by Newton's First Law.