A boy of mass 24.5 kg is sitting on one side of a seesaw while his older sister,

Question

A boy of mass 24.5 kg is sitting on one side of a seesaw while his older sister, who has a mass of 38.0 kg, is sitting on the other side. Each child is 2.00 m from the center of the seesaw. (Assume that the positive direction is from the center towards the sister.)

Where is the center of mass of the two children relative to the center of the seesaw? (Indicate the direction with the sign of your answer.)

The older sister moves so that the center of mass of the two children is directly above the center of the seesaw. How far did she move and in which direction? Did she move closer to or further from the center? (Indicate the direction with the sign of your answer.)

Explanation / Answer

a)

d = ((-24.5)*(2.00)+(38)*(2.00))/(24.5+38) = 0.432 m

in the same direction with the sister

b)

d = 0 = ((-24.5)*(2.00)+(38)*(x))/(24.5+38)

==> x = 1.29 m

the displacement:

2 - 1.29 = 0.711 m

to the center of the seasaw

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