Physics 61 Week 5 Exercises

Answer the marked (*) questions using complete solutions.

1.* A woman is skiing on a winter day, initially with a speed of 2 m/s then eventually slowing down. How
much distance did she travel as she stops if the friction coefficient of the surface is 0.1?
2.* You decide to play on a trampoline of force constant equal to 1.59 × 104 kg/s2 , stretching it initially at 0.4
m. What is the maximum height you can reach after launch?
3. How much energy is needed to jump at a height of 0.6m if the person has a mass of 70 kg?

Solution: For simplicity, assume the person to be a point particle. At start, the person’s potential energy
is zero. When it jumps, the energy input becomes all potential energy at the maximum height. Therefore,

𝐸 = 𝑚𝑔ℎ.

Plugging in the values, we get 𝐸 = (70 kg)(9.8𝑚∕𝑠2 )(0.6𝑚) = 411.6𝐽 .

4. Suppose the person has a muscular efficiency of 20%. How much input energy is needed for the jump?

Solution: When the muscular efficiency is 20%, the energy needed is 411.6𝐽 ∕0.2 = 2, 058𝐽 .
5.* A hunter has a slingshot with spring constant equal to 25.3 kg/s2 . How much time will it take for a launched
rock to reach a bird from 12 m afar if the slingshot is stretched at 0.3 m?
6. A child is playing on a swing, then starts at an initial speed of 3m/s. What is the maximum height that can
be reached with this speed?

Solution: We assume the rest height of the swing to be at ground level. The child initially has kinetic
energy, which then transforms into potential energy at the maximum height. Using conservation of en-
ergy, we have
1 2
𝑚𝑣 = 𝑚𝑔ℎ
2
Solving for ℎ, we have
1
ℎ = 𝑣2 ∕𝑔.
2
Plugging in the values, we get ℎ = 0.46 m. If at rest the swing is at an initial height above the ground, this
will be added at the value of ℎ.
6.* A snowboarder is initially at a height of 8 m, then slides into a half-U shaped obstacle. This then causes
him to be thrown as a projectile, with an inclination angle of 30𝑜 starting from the ground. What is the
maximum height the snowboarder can reach? Assume the obstacle surface to be frictionless.

7.* (Continuation) What is the maximum horizontal range the snowboarder can reach?
8.* (Continuation) When the snowboarder lands on the ground, he slides on a rough surface with a kinetic
friction coefficient of 0.03 causing him to slow down. What is the total distance (start from landing)
travelled by the snowboarder as he completely stops?
9. A rollercoaster (assumed to be a point particle) is encountering a circular track of radius 𝑅, shown in the
figure. What is the minimum speed of the rollercoaster required for it to reach the top of the obstacle?
Assume the track to be frictionless.

Solution: Recall that for a uniform circular motion, the centripetal force is pointing toward the center.

1
 Notice that when the rollercoaster reaches the top of the obstacle, the acceleration will only be due to
gravity, pointing downward directly to the center. We have

𝑣2
= 𝑔.
𝑅
√
Therefore, 𝑣 = 𝑔𝑅 is the minimum speed that will make the rollercoaster reach the top of the obstacle.
To make sure it continues running, the initial speed should be greater than 𝑣.

10.* Solve problem 9 using conservation of energy. Make sure to get the same result.