Question

A student is pushing a desk across the floor of the classroom. Even though there is friction, the desk still accelerates to the right. Answer the following questions concerning the desk. The student took 90 seconds to move the desk 15 feet across the room? What was the desk's velocity? What was the desks rate of acceleration? What is the net force used by the student to move the desk?

Answer 1

The velocity of the desk is 0.167 feet/second. The rate of acceleration is 0.0019 feet/second^2. The net force used by the student to move the desk cannot be calculated without knowing its mass.

Step-by-step explanation:

The velocity of an object is the rate at which it changes its position. It is calculated by dividing the displacement (change in position) by the time taken. In this case, the desk was moved 15 feet in 90 seconds. So, the velocity is 15 feet / 90 seconds = 0.167 feet/second.

The rate of acceleration is the change in velocity over time. Since the desk started from rest and accelerated to a velocity of 0.167 feet/second in 90 seconds, the rate of acceleration can be calculated using the formula a = (v - u) / t, where a is the acceleration, v is the final velocity, u is the initial velocity (in this case, 0), and t is the time taken. So, the rate of acceleration is a = (0.167 - 0) / 90 = 0.0019 feet/second^2.

The net force used by the student to move the desk can be calculated using Newton's second law of motion which states that force equals mass times acceleration (F = ma). However, without knowing the mass of the desk, we cannot calculate the net force.

We can calculate the desk's velocity by dividing the total distance by the time taken, but without additional information on the change in velocity or the desk's mass, we cannot accurately calculate the rate of acceleration or the net force used to move the desk.

When calculating the desk's velocity, we need to consider the total distance traveled over the time taken. The desk moved 15 feet in 90 seconds, so the velocity (v) can be calculated using the formula v = d/t, where d is the distance and t is the time. To determine the acceleration (a), we would need more information, such as the desk's change in velocity over the time period. Without this data, we cannot calculate acceleration accurately. Similarly, to find the net force exerted by the student, we would apply Newton's second law, F = ma, which requires knowing the mass of the desk (m) and its acceleration (a). Again, without acceleration or mass, we cannot determine the net force.