Question

An amusement park game requires you to knock down a wood post by throwing a ball at it. You can choose between a tennis ball and a sticky clay ball of equal mass.Assume you can trow either balls with the same speed and accuracy. Which one would you choose:a.It will be all the same.b.The tennis ball.c.The clay ball.

Answer 1

We know that the impulse is defined by the change in momentum, that is:

`Impulse=\Delta\vec{p}`

Now, we know that we can throw the balls with the same speed and accuracy which means that both balls have the same initial momentum. Now, since the tennis ball will bounce from the wood and the clay ball will stick on it this means that the final momentum of the tennis ball is greater; this means that the change in momentum of the tennis ball will be greater and hence the impulse it exerts on the wood is greater.

Therefore, you should choose the tennis ball.