The lead female character in the movie Diamonds Are Forever is standing at the e

Question

The lead female character in the movie Diamonds Are Forever is standing at the edge of an offshore oil rig. As she fires a gun, she is driven back over the edge and into the sea. Suppose the mass of a bullet is 0.016 kg and its velocity is +654 m/s. Her mass (including the gun) is 51 kg. (a) What recoil velocity does she acquire in response to a single shot from a stationary position, assuming that no external force keeps her in place? (b) Under the same assumption, what would be her recoil velocity if, instead, she shoots a blank cartridge that ejects a mass of 5.0 times 10^-4 kg at a velocity of +654 m/s? (a) _______ (b) _________

Explanation / Answer

part a:

let her recoil velocity is v.
using conservation of momentum principle:

momentum before firing the gun=momentum after firing the gun

==>0=51*v+0.016*654

==>v=-0.2052 m/s

so her velcoity of recoil is -0.2052 m/s.

part b:

using the same principle;

0=51*v+5*10^(-4)*654
==>v=-6.41176*10^(-3) m/s

Related Questions

Navigate

• Browse (All)
• Browse T
• Subjects

---

---

Integrity-first tutoring: explanations and feedback only — we do not complete graded work. Learn more.