Final answer:
The rubber ball receives a greater impulse from the wall because it bounces back, changing its momentum twice, while the clay ball, which sticks to the wall, only stops its momentum.
Step-by-step explanation:
When considering the effects of a collision, the concept of impulse is important. Impulse is defined as the change in momentum of an object and can be given by the product of the average force and the time during which the force acts. In physics, momentum is determined by the product of an object's mass and its velocity. When a ball bounces off of a wall, it changes direction and hence its velocity changes. This change in velocity means there's a change in momentum. However, when a ball sticks to the wall, it has a final velocity of zero in the direction it was moving before the collision, leading to a different change in momentum.
For two balls with equal mass and equal speeds before the collision, if one ball bounces back and the other sticks, the rubber ball that bounces back receives a greater impulse. This is because the rubber ball experiences a change in velocity in two directions—coming into the collision and then leaving in the opposite direction. The clay ball, on the other hand, only experiences the change in velocity in one direction since it sticks and comes to a stop.
Therefore, the rubber ball receives a greater impulse (B) from the wall compared to the clay ball because it experiences a change in momentum when it strikes and then again when it bounces back, having effectively reversed its momentum while the clay ball has simply brought its momentum to zero by sticking.