Final answer:
The crumpling or collapsing of car parts and the deployment of airbags increase the time of impact, thereby reducing the force on the passengers and protecting them from serious injuries during collisions.
Step-by-step explanation:
The correct answer is option a. In a collision, the crumpling or collapsing of car parts is designed to protect the passengers by increasing the time of impact. By increasing the time over which the force of impact acts, the force on the passengers is reduced. This helps minimize serious injuries during collisions.
Airbags are another safety feature that aim to protect vehicle occupants. When deployed upon impact, airbags increase the time over which the net force on the occupants acts. This also reduces the force of impact on the passengers, minimizing the risk of serious injuries.
Overall, safety features such as crumple zones, padded dashboards, and airbags are designed to increase the time of impact, thereby reducing the force on the occupants and protecting them from severe injuries during collisions.
The correct answer is option a. It reduces injury to the passengers by increasing the time of impact. When a car crumples during a collision, it essentially absorbs some of the impact energy and increases the duration of the collision.
This longer duration allows the force to be spread out over more time, which reduces the peak force experienced by the occupants.
The impulse experienced is the product of the force and the time over which the force acts. By increasing the time, one can decrease the force for the same change in momentum, thus reducing the likelihood of serious injuries or fatalities.
This principle is the reason why modern vehicles incorporate crumple zones as a key safety feature. Airbags complement this safety mechanism by providing a cushion that further increases the time of impact, substantially reducing the forces on the vehicle occupants.
Both crumple zones and airbags showcase the importance of automotive safety design in protecting lives during accidents.