Solution to Practice from Module 3:
1. A stone is thrown horizontally at a speed of 5.0 m/s from the top of a cliff 78.4 m high. a)
How long does it take the stone to reach the bottom of the cliff? b) How far from the base
of the cliff does the stone strike the ground? c) What are the horizontal and vertical
components of the velocity of the stone as it hits the ground? d) What is the final speed of
the stone as it hits the ground?
Known:
horizontal:
vx = 5.0 m/s
ax = 0
vertical:
viy = 0 m/s
ay = g = -9.81 m/s2
yf = -78.4 m
Solution a:
t=?
y = vi t + 21 at 2
-78.4m = (0)t + 21 (-9.81m / s2 )t 2
-78.4m = (-4.905m / s2 )t 2
-78.4m
t2 =
-4.905m / s2
t 2 = 15.9837s2
t = 15.9837s2
t = 4.0s
The stone will reach the bottom of the cliff after 4.0 seconds.
Solution b:
x=?
x = vxt
x = (5.0m / s)(4.0s)
x = 20.m
The stone will hit 20. meters from the base of the cliff.
Solution c:
vfx = vix = 5.0 m/s
vfy = ?
v fy = viy + at
v fy = 0 + (-9.81m / s2 )(4.0s)
v fy = -39.24m / s
The horizontal component of velocity is +5.0 m/s and the vertical component of
velocity is 39 m/s.
Solution d:
vf = ?
2
v f = v fx + v fy
v f = (5.0m / s)2 + (-39.24m / s)2
2
v f = 25m2 / s2 + 1539.7776m2 / s2
2
v f = 1564.7776m2 / s2
v f = 1564.7776m2 / s2
v f = 39.56m / s
The final speed of the stone is 40 m/s.
2. How would the answers to a), b) and c) of question 1 change if a) the stone were thrown
with twice the horizontal speed, or b) the stone were thrown with the same speed but the
cliff were twice as high?
Solution a:
a) The time of fall would not change since it is determined by the vertical
motion only.
b) The stone would strike 40 m from the base of the cliff because the horizontal
velocity has been doubled while the time of flight remains the same.
c) vx would double since it is always equal to the initial horizontal velocity. vy
would not change since the vertical motion does not change.
Solution b:
a) The time of fall would increase by the factor 2 = 1.41 since this time varies
directly with the square root of the cliff height.
b) The stone would strike 2 times as far from the cliff since x = v x t and t has
increased by a factor of 2 .
c) vx would not change since it always equals the initial horizontal velocity. vy
increase by a factor
of 2 .
3. A steel ball rolls with constant velocity on a tabletop 0.950 m high. It rolls off and hits the
ground +0.352 m from the edge of the table. How fast was the ball rolling?
Known:
horizontal:
x = 0.352 m
ax = 0
Solution:
vx = ?
vertical:
viy = 0 m/s
ay = g = -9.81 m/s2
yf = -0.950 m
First lets determine how long it took the ball to hit the ground:
y = viy t + 21 at 2
-0.950m = (0)t + 21 (-9.81m / s2 )t 2
-0.950m = (-4.905m / s2 )t 2
-0.950m
t2 =
-4.905m / s2
t 2 = 0.1937s2
t = 0.1937s2
t = 0.4400s
It took the ball 0.44 seconds to hit the ground.
Now we can solve for the initial horizontal velocity. Remember, time is the only
variable you can use in both the horizontal and vertical directions.
x = vxt
0.352m = v x (0.44s)
0.352m
0.44s
v x = 0.8m / s
vx =
The ball was rolling at a speed of 0.80 m/s when it was launched from the table.
4. Abeach ball, moving with a speed of +1.27 m/s, rolls off a pier and hits the water 0.75 m
from the end of the pier. How high is the pier above the water?
Known:
horizontal:
vx = 1.27 m/s
ax = 0
x = 0.75 m
Solution:
Again, first solve for time.
vertical:
viy = 0 m/s
ay = g = -9.81 m/s2
x = vxt
0.75m = (1.27m / s)t
0.75m
t=
1.27m / s
t = 0.5906s
The beach ball traveled for 0.59 seconds.
Now solve for the vertical distance traveled.
y = viy t + 21 at 2
y = (0)t + 21 (-9.81m / s2 )(0.5906s)2
y = -1.7109m
The beach ball traveled 1.71 meters down. The pier is 1.7 meters high.