PHYS1413 Physics in a Nutshell Problem set 1 Due Date: 5:00 p.m.

, March 10, 2008

Answer all questions in this problem set. Please take g = 9.8 m/s2 in all numerical problems except Q17 and Q18. 1. A ship B is steaming on a straight course south-east at a uniform speed of 15 km/h. Another ship A, is a distance of 10 km due north of B and steams at a speed of 12 km/h. Find the course that A must steer in order to get as close to B as possible, and their minimum distance apart.

2.

A projectile is fired with speed

4gh / 3 from the top of a cliff of height h, and strikes the sea at a

horizontal distance 2h from the gun. Find the two possible angles of elevation of the gun.

3.

A wedge of mass m lies on a smooth horizontal plane and a particle of mass m is in contact with a smooth inclined face of the wedge. The inclination of this face to the horizontal is 30o. The system is released from rest with the particle at a vertical height h above the horizontal plane. Find

(a) (b)

the acceleration of the wedge, the time taken by the particle to reach the horizontal plane. m

h m 30o

4.

With what force F must a man pull on a rope in order to support the platform on which he stands, if the weight of the man is W1 and that of the platform is W2? What is the maximum weight of platform that the man can support? Assume that all pulleys are massless and frictionless.

5.

Two particles A, and B, of equal mass are at rest on a smooth horizontal table, joined by a string which is just taut. A is projected with velocity u at 45o to AB. Find the velocities of A and B immediately the string becomes taut again.

A
u 45
o

6.

Spheres A and B are moving with initial velocities uA and uB respectively (see figure). If B is brought to rest after impact, and the kinetic energy of A is unchanged. Find the coefficient of restitution e.

uB 2m B

uA m

7.

Two particles each of mass m are connected by a light inextensible string and a particle of mass M is attached to the midpoint of the string. The system is at rest on a smooth horizontal table with the string just taut and in a straight line. The particle M is given a velocity V along the table perpendicular to the string. Prove that, when the two end particles are about to collide,

(a)

the velocity of M is

VM , M + 2m
V {2 M ( M + m)} . M + 2m
1 2

(b)

the speed of each of m is

8.

A light inelastic string passes round small smooth pulleys A, B in the same horizontal line at a distance 2a apart, and carries masses m1 at each end and a mass m2 (< 2m1) at its middle point. The system is released from rest with m2 at the middle point of AB. By applying the principle of the conservation of energy, show that the system comes to instantaneous rest when m2 has fallen a distance a A m2 g a B

4am1 m2 . 2 4m12 m2

m1

m1

9.

An elastic string of natural length a is found to extend e when a small weight is attached to one end, the other end being fixed. The weight is now made to describe a horizontal circle with angular velocity rad/s; find the extension of the string and the inclination of the string to the vertical. Show that 2 must be less than g/e and greater than g/(a+e).

Angular velocity =

10.

A circular hoop rotates with uniform angular velocity about a vertical diameter AOB, O being the center. A smooth ring P of mass m can slide on the hoop. If be the angle of inclination of the radius OP to the vertical when the ring is in equilibrium with respect to the hoop, prove that cos = g/ 2a, where a is the radius of the hoop. Obtain also the reaction between the ring and the hoop.

a m P

11.

Find the center of mass of a hollow hemisphere of inner radius b and outer radius a (without base and the curved surfaces are concentric). Your answer must be measured from the concentric center. Given that the center of mass of a uniform hemisphere is located at

3 r from its plane surface, where r is the 8

radius of the hemisphere. Hence, show that a thin hollow hemisphere (without base) of radius r is located at

r from the center of the curved surface. 2

12.

A uniform solid consist of a hemisphere of radius r and a right circular cone of base radius r fixed together so that their planes are coincident. If the solid can rest in equilibrium with any point of the curved surface of the hemisphere in contact with a horizontal plane, find the height of the cone in terms of r. [Hint: The center of mass of the cone is 1/4 its height from the plane face, and the center of mass of the hemisphere is 3/8 its radius from the plane face.]

The solid can rest in equilibrium with

any point of the curved surface of the hemisphere in contact with a

horizontal plane.

13.

A uniform rod of mass 1.5 kg is 2.0 m long. The rod can pivot about a horizontal, frictionless pin through one end. It is released from rest at an angle of 40o above the horizontal.

g 40o Pin (a) (b) What is the angular acceleration of the rod at the instant it is released? Use the principle of conservation of energy to determine the angular speed of the rod as it passes through the horizontal position.

14.

Two identical blocks, each of mass M, are connected by a massless string over a pulley of radius R and rotational inertia I. The string does not slip on the pulley; it is not known whether there is friction between the table and the sliding block; the pulleys axis is frictionless. When the system is released, it is found that the pulley turns through an angle in time t and the acceleration of the blocks is constant.

R, M, I
T2 M T1 M

(a) (b) (c)

What is the angular acceleration of the pulley? What is the acceleration of the two blocks? What are the tensions in the upper and lower sections of the string? Express the answers in terms of M, I, R, , g, and t.

15.

Two blocks (m = 1.0 kg and M = 10 kg) and a spring (k = 200 N/m) are arranged on a horizontal, frictionless surface as shown in figure. The coefficient of static friction between the two blocks is 0.40. What is the maximum possible amplitude of simple harmonic motion of the spring-blocks system if no slippage is to occur between the blocks.

m k M Frictionless

16.

Two identical springs are attached to a block of mass m and to fixed supports as shown in figure.

k m

(a)

Show that the frequency of oscillation on the frictionless surface is

f =
(b)

1 2

2k . m

Suppose that the two springs in the figure have different spring constants k1 and k2. Show that the frequency f of oscillation of the block is then given by

f 2 = f 12 + f 22 ,
where f1 and f2 are the frequencies at which the block oscillate if connected only to spring 1 or only to spring 2.

Useful data for question 17 and 18. Gravitational constant: 6.67 1011 m3/kgs2 The mass of Earth: 5.98 1024 kg The radius of Earth: 6.37 106 m

17.

An astronaut whose height is 1.70 m floats feet down in an orbiting space shuttle at a distance r = 6.77 106 m from the center of Earth.

(a) (b)

What is the difference in the gravitational acceleration at her feet and at her head? If the Earth is now replaced by a black hole of mass Mh = 1.99 1031 kg, and the astronaut is now feet down at the same orbital about the black hole, please repeat part (a).

18. (a) (b)

A bowling ball of mass m = 7.20 kg is placed on the surface of Earth at equator. What is its total mechanical energy? If the bowling ball is released into a circular orbit about Earth at an altitude h of 350 km, what is the mechanical energy E of the ball in its orbit? What is the change E in the balls mechanical energy?

(c)

End of Problem Set 1