Question

Compared to falling on a stone floor, a wine glass may not break when it falls on a carpeted floor because the A) carpeted floor provides a smaller impulse. B) stone floor provides a smaller impulse. C) stopping time is shorter on the carpet. D) stopping time is longer on the carpet.

Answer 1

Answer: The correct option is D ( stopping time is longer on the carpet).

Explanation:

When an object is involved in a collision, for a given amount of TIME, it experiences a FORCE that will result in its MASS undergoing a change in VELOCITY. The relationship between the fours physical quantities in the sentence above are found in impulse and momentum.

Momentum is defined as the product of the mass of the body and it's velocity while impulse is the product of force and time. The impulse experienced by an object is always equal to the change in its momentum. This is known as IMPULSE-MOMENTUM CHANGE THEOREM and it can be represented in the equation below :

Impulse= Force× time(t)

Change in Momentum = Mass(M) × velocity change ( v - u).

Therefore: F×t = M ( v - u).

In the application of impulse-momentum change in real life situations, force exerted on an object is affected by the collision time because force is inversely proportional to time. That is, the greater the time over which a collision occurs, the smaller the force acting upon the object. Thus, to minimize the effect of force on an object involved in a collision, the time must be increased.

From the example given, the wine glass may not break when it falls on a carpeted floor because the carpet minimize the effect of force on the glass by increasing its stopping time.