!thatnormal1.png|width=500!
Imagine that you have an indestructible boxcar sitting on frictionless railroad track. The boxcar has length *L*, height *H*, and width *W*. It has *N* cannonballs of radius *R* and mass *M* stacked up against one end. If I move the cannonballs in any fashion -- slowly carrying them, rolling them, firing them out of a cannon -- what is the furthest I can move the boxcar along the rails? Which method should I use to move the boxcar the furthest? Assume that the inside walls are perfectly absorbing, so that collisions are perfectly inelastic.
h2. Part A
h4. Solution One
{toggle-cloak:id=sysa} *System:* {cloak:id=sysa}Boxcar and cannonballs as [point particles|point particle].{cloak}
{toggle-cloak:id=inta} *Interactions:* {cloak:id=inta)Not Important in this part.{cloak}
{toggle-cloak:id=moda} *Model:* {cloak:id=moda}[Point Particle Dynamics].{cloak}
{toggle-cloak:id=appa} *Approach:*
{cloak:id=appa}
{toggle-cloak:id=diaga} {color:red} *Diagrammatic Representation* {color}
{cloak:id=diaga}
!thatfbd1.jpg!
the system consists of the Boxcar on rails and the Cannonballs, plus whatever devices we use for propulsion inside.There are this no external influences
{cloak:diaga}
{toggle-cloak:id=matha} {color:red} *Mathematical Representation* {color}
{cloak:id=matha}
Since there are no external influences, which includes forces, the [Center of Mass] of the system is not affected, and by the Law of [Conservation of Momentum] must remain fixed. .
{latex}\begin{large}\[\sum F_{x} = F_{A} - N = ma_{x}\]
\[ \sum F_{y} = - mg = ma_{y}\]\end{large}{latex}
Because the box is held against the wall, it has no movement (and no acceleration) in the _x_ direction (_a_~x~ = 0). Setting _a_~x~ = 0 in the _x_ direction equation gives:
{latex}\begin{large}\[ N = F_{A} = \mbox{300 N} \]\end{large}{latex}
{cloak:matha}
{cloak:appa}
|