Academic Integrity: tutoring, explanations, and feedback — we don’t complete graded work or submit on a student’s behalf.

You and some friends are waiting in line for \"The Mixer\", a new carnival ride.

ID: 2123202 • Letter: Y

Question

You and some friends are waiting in line for "The Mixer", a new carnival ride. The ride begins with the car and rider (150 kg combined) at the top of a curved track. At the bottom of the track is a 50 kg block of cushion materials which is attached to a horizontal spring whose other end is fixed concrete. The car slides down the track ending up moving horizonally when it crashes into the cushion block, sticks to it, and ocsillates at 3 repetitions in 10 seconds. Your friends estimate that the car starts from a height of around 10ft. You decide to use your physics knowledge to see if they are right. After the collision, you notice that the spring compresses about 15ft from equilibrium.

Explanation / Answer

w-angular frequency =2*pi*f=2*pi*(3/10)=0.6*pi

w=sqrt(k/m)

m=150+50=200kg

k-spring constant

k=710.61N/m

15ft=4.572m

energy = 0.5*710.61*4.572^2=150*9.8*h

h=5.05m=16.57ft