Final answer:
It can take about 178 feet to react to something you see and bring your vehicle to a stop at 50 mph.
Step-by-step explanation:
In order to determine the distance it takes to react and bring your vehicle to a stop at 50 mph, we need to consider both the reaction time and the braking distance.
1. Reaction time: The average reaction time for a human driver is about 0.75 seconds. However, for this question, let's assume a reaction time of 1 second.
2. Braking distance: The braking distance depends on the coefficient of friction between the tires and the road.
Let's assume a typical value of 0.7 for a dry road surface.
Using the formula: Stopping distance = Reaction distance + Braking distance
The reaction distance can be calculated as the distance traveled during the reaction time with the initial velocity of 50 mph:
Reaction distance = (50 mph) x (1 hr / 3600 s) x (1 s)
Next, the braking distance can be calculated using the formula: Braking distance = (Initial velocity)^2 / (2 x acceleration x friction coefficient).
Plugging in the values, we get:
distance = (50 mph)^2 / (2 x 32.2 ft/s^2 x 0.7)
So, it can take about 178 feet to react to something you see and bring your vehicle to a stop at 50 mph.