Question

At a playground, two young children are on identical swings. One child appears to be about twice as heavy as the other. Part A If you pull them back together the same distance and release them to start them swinging, what will you notice about the oscillations of the two children

Answer 1

The motion of the lighter child would look faster than that of the heavier child, but both have the same period of oscillation.

Step-by-step explanation:

Oscillation is a type of simple harmonic motion which involves the to and fro movement of an object. The oscillation takes place at a required time called the period of oscillation.

Since the swings are similar, the period of oscillation of the two children are the same and they would complete one oscillation in the same time. Though the oscillation of the lighter child seems faster than that of the heavy child, their masses does not affect the period of oscillation.

When a heavy object oscillates, its mass increases the drag or damping force, but not the period of oscillation. Thus, it oscillate slowly.