Question

Two identical objects, A and B, are sitting on a table. If the net force on object A is 5 N and the net force on object B is 10 N, which of the following statements is true?
A. Neither object will accelerate.
B. Object A will accelerate more quickly than object B.
C. Object B will accelerate more quickly than object A.
D. The acceleration of each object will depend on other forces than the net force.

Answer 1

If the net force on object A is 5 N and the net force on object B is 10 N, then object B will accelerate more quickly than object A provided the mass of both objects are same.

Answer: Option C

Explanation:

According to Newton’s second law of motion, any external force applied on an object is directly proportional to the mass and acceleration of the object. In order to state this law in terms of acceleration, it is stated that acceleration exhibited by any object is directly proportional to the net force applied on the object and inversely proportional to the mass of the object as shown below:

                      $\text {Acceleration of the object } \propto \frac{\text {Net force on the object}}{\text {Mass of the object}}$

So if two objects A and B are identical which means they have same mass, then the acceleration attained by the object will be directly proportionate to the net forces exerted on the objects only.

Thus if the force applied is more for one object, then the object will be exhibiting more acceleration compared to the other one. So as object B is experiencing a net force of 10 N which is greater than the net force experiences by object A, then the object B will be accelerating more quickly compared to the object A's acceleration.