Computer Intensive Physics
Day 5

Physics 211

Spring, 1998
January 27, 1998

Create a Word file with the file name MBL-5_{your team names}
Exploring Motion by Pushing a Cart:

Equipment:Motion detector, Low-friction cart, Low-friction track, blocks of wood.

Arrange the system as shown below, using blocks of wood to lift one end of the
track:

A Word of Caution!
The low-friction equipment you will be using in the following
experiments will operate well only if the grooves in the tracks are clean
and smooth. Use care when placing the carts on the tracks to be sure the
wheels are not damaged and that they are aligned with the grooves. If the
grooves are dirty, use a Kim wipe with a little of the provided cleaning
fluid to clean them.

1) ( 3 pts)(a) Draw a complete free body diagram of the cart and label all of the forces
acting on it.

(b) Draw a diagram of the forces acting on the cart perpendicular to the direction
in which it will move. What do you know about the sum of these forces?

(c) Draw a diagram of the forces acting on the cart in the direction in which it will
move.

Using Newton's Second Law to calculate the theoretical, symbolic value of these
forces if the angle of incline of the track isQdegrees.

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