1. Practice Quiz

2. 1
A car possesses units of momentum. What would be the car's new momentum if the velocity was doubled?

3. 2
For years, space travel was believed to be impossible because there was nothing that rockets could push off of in space in order to provide the propulsion necessary to accelerate. This inability of a rocket to provide propulsion in space is because a. space is void of air so the rockets have nothing to push off of. b. gravity is absent in space. c. space is void of air and so there is no air resistance in space. d. ... nonsense! Rockets do accelerate in space and have been able to do so for a long time.

4. 3
Many people are familiar with the fact that a rifle recoils when fired. This recoil is the result of action- reaction force pairs. A gunpowder explosion creates hot gases that expand outward allowing the rifle to push forward on the bullet. Consistent with Newton's third law of motion, the bullet pushes backwards upon the rifle. The acceleration of the recoiling rifle is ... a. greater than the acceleration of the bullet. b. smaller than the acceleration of the bullet. c. the same size as the acceleration of the bullet.

5. 4
John Doe, who is taking Physics for the third year in a row (and not because he likes it), has rowed his boat within three feet of the dock. John decides to jump onto the dock and turn around and dock his boat. Explain to John why this docking strategy is not a good strategy.

6. 5
A clown is on the ice rink with a large medicine ball. If the clown throws the ball forward, then he is set into backwards motion with the same momentum as the ball's forward momentum. What would happen to the clown if he goes through the motion of throwing the ball without actually letting go of it? Explain.

7. 6
When fighting fires, a firefighter must use great caution to hold a hose that emits large amounts of water at high speeds. Why would such a task be difficult?

8. 7
Mike and Ben are riding in a bus at highway speed on a nice summer day when an unlucky bug splatters onto the windshield. Mike and Ben begin discussing the physics of the situation. Mike suggests that the momentum change of the bug is much greater than that of the bus. After all, argues Mike, there was no noticeable change in the speed of the bus compared to the obvious change in the speed of the bug. Ben disagrees entirely, arguing that that both bug and bus encounter the same force, momentum change, and impulse. Who do you agree with? Support your answer.

9. 8
If a ball is projected upward from the ground with ten units of momentum, what is the momentum of recoil of the Earth? ____________ Do we feel this? Explain.

10. 9
In an effort to exact the most severe capital punishment upon a rather unpopular prisoner, the execution team at the Dark Ages Penitentiary search for a bullet that is ten times as massive as the rifle itself. What type of individual would want to fire a rifle that holds a bullet that is ten times more massive than the rifle? Explain.

11. 10
Two pop cans are at rest on a stand. A firecracker is placed between the cans and lit. The firecracker explodes and exerts equal and opposite forces on the two cans. Assuming the system of two cans to be isolated, the post-explosion momentum of the system ____.
a. is dependent upon the mass and velocities of the two cans
b. is dependent upon the velocities of the two cans (but not their mass)
c. is typically a very large value
d. can be a positive, negative or zero value
e. is definitely zero