Question

Construct Your Own Problem Consider two people pushing a toboggan with four children on it up a snow-covered slope. Construct a problem in which you calculate the acceleration of the toboggan and its load. Include a free-body diagram of the appropriate system of interest as the basis for your analysis. Show vector forces and their components and explain the choice of coordinates. Among the things to be considered are the forces exerted by those pushing, the angle of the slope, and the masses of the toboggan and children.(a) Acceleration Analysis: What factor primarily determines the acceleration of the toboggan and its load?

a) Mass of the toboggan
b) Force exerted by those pushing
c) Angle of the slope
d) Frictional force between the toboggan and snow

Answer 1

The primary factor that determines the acceleration of the toboggan and its load is the net force applied to the system, which depends on the force exerted by those pushing, the slope angle, and the frictional force. By applying Newton's second law to the forces along the slope, the acceleration of the toboggan can be calculated.

Step-by-step explanation:

To calculate the acceleration of the toboggan and its load, we need to consider the forces acting on the system. The primary factor that determines the acceleration is the net force applied to the system. In this case, the net force will depend on the force exerted by those pushing the toboggan, the angle of the slope, and the frictional force between the toboggan and the snow.

Let's break down the forces:

• The force exerted by those pushing the toboggan acts in the direction of motion, along the slope.
• The weight of the toboggan and children acts vertically downwards.
• The normal force, which equals the weight, acts perpendicular to the slope.
• The frictional force acts parallel to the slope, opposing the motion.

By using Newton's second law (F = ma) and considering the forces along the slope, we can calculate the acceleration of the toboggan. The equation will be:

Force pushing - Frictional force = Total mass * Acceleration

Since the forces are given, we can substitute the values and solve for acceleration.