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At a popular rock-climbing site in Yosemite National Park, a randomly selected

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Final answer:

The boulder will be going approximately 69.7 m/s when it strikes the ground. A tourist at the bottom will have approximately 100.5 m to get out of the way after hearing the sound of the rock breaking loose.

Step-by-step explanation:

To calculate the speed at which the boulder will be going when it strikes the ground, we can use the equation for free fall:

vf = √(2gh)

where vf is the final velocity, g is the acceleration due to gravity (approximately 9.8 m/s^2), and h is the height of the cliff (250 m in this case).

Substituting the given values into the equation, we get:

vf = √(2 * 9.8 * 250) = ≈ 69.7 m/s

Therefore, the boulder will be going approximately 69.7 m/s when it strikes the ground.

To determine the time a tourist at the bottom will have to get out of the way after hearing the sound of the rock breaking loose, we can use the speed of sound:

d = v * t

where d is the distance, v is the speed of sound (335 m/s), and t is the time.

Assuming a reaction time of 0.300 s, we can calculate the distance:

d = 335 * 0.300 = ≈ 100.5 m

Therefore, a tourist at the bottom will have approximately 100.5 m to get out of the way after hearing the sound of the rock breaking loose.

User Justin Whitney
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