A Student Driving Her Car: Forces at Play
What best describes the forces when an insect strikes a windshield while a student is driving her car?
Which of the following statements accurately describes the forces involved in this situation?
A. The insect strikes the windshield with the same force as the windshield strikes the insect.
B. The insect strikes the windshield with a force, and the windshield exerts no force on the insect.
C. The insects exerts no force on the windshield, and the windshield strikes the insect with a large force.
D. The insect strikes the windshield with a small force, and the windshield stikes the insect with a large force.
Answer:
The statement that best describes the forces in this situation is "The insect strikes the windshield with a force, and the windshield exerts no force on the insect." Option B is correct.
When a student is driving her car, and an insect strikes her windshield, the forces in this situation can be described as follows. The insect strikes the windshield with a force, and the windshield exerts no force on the insect. When an object strikes another object, the force that the first object exerts on the second is equal and opposite to the force that the second object exerts on the first. This is known as Newton's third law of motion.
Therefore, the insect strikes the windshield with the same force as the windshield strikes the insect is an incorrect statement. The other two options are also incorrect because they do not accurately describe the nature of the forces involved in this situation.
Therefore, Option B is correct.