Question

Mr. Sarver is standing at the top of a wishing well with a penny in his hand. As he tosses his penny into the well, he wishes that all his physics students studied for the test he is about to give them. Neglecting air resistance, the penny took 3.28 sec to hit the water. How deep do you think the well was from the moment the penny left Mr. Sarver's hand to the moment it hit the water?

Answer 1

The depth of the wishing well is approximately 52.72 meters, calculated using the formula for the distance an object travels under gravity, given that the penny took 3.28 seconds to reach the water.

Step-by-step explanation:

Mr. Sarver dropped a penny into a wishing well, and it took 3.28 seconds to hit the water, neglecting air resistance. To calculate the depth of the well, we can use the formula for the distance object travels under the influence of gravity, which is d = 0.5 * g * t^2, where d is the distance, g is the acceleration due to gravity (9.8 m/s^2 on Earth), and t is the time in seconds. Plugging in the numbers: d = 0.5 * 9.8 m/s^2 * (3.28 s)^2, we can find the depth of the well.

Here's the calculation:
d = 0.5 * 9.8 * 3.28 * 3.28
d = 0.5 * 9.8 * 10.7584
d = 4.9 * 10.7584
d ≈ 52.72 meters

So, the depth of the well is approximately 52.72 meters from the point where the penny was dropped to the moment it hit the water.