Question

Calculate the final speed of a 110-kg rugby player who is initially running at 8.00 m/s but collides head-on with a padded goalpost and experiences a backward force of 1.76×104 n for 5.50×10–2 s .

Answer 1

The answer is -0.8 m/s. We know acceleration is the average of final minus initial velocity over time (a = (vf-v0)/t). We also know that Force is equal to Mass times Acceleration (F = ma). Using our force equation, we know that the acceleration we get is negative 8.8 (-8.8). The force is acting in the opposite direction of the rugby player, hence the negative sign. From there, plug in that number for a in the velocity equation, and solve for vf, as v0 and t are known. We get 0.8 m/s in the opposite direction that the player was running.