PhysicsLAB Practice Problems
Centripetal Acceleration


Directions: On this worksheet ...

Question 1  A baseball player rounds second base in an arc with a radius of curvature of 6.11 m at a speed of 7 m/s. If he weighs 1002 N, what is the centripetal force that must be acting on him? (remember that weight is the product of mass times gravity)
Question 2  A small rock is being twirled along a circular path forming a conical pendulum. Which of the following statements is FALSE?

Question 3  Two identical cars are traveling at the same speed. Car #1 goes through a curve with radius, r, while car #2 goes through a curve having a radius of 4.55r. How do their accelerations compare?
Question 4  A 7-kg mass is tied to a rope which has a breaking strength of 2.6 kN. What is the maximum speed the mass can have if it is whirled around in a horizontal circle with a 1.2-m radius and the rope is not to break?
Question 5  Three rocking horses are placed on a rotating platform. If the horses stay in place when the platform comes up to speed, which of the following statement is FALSE?

Question 6  If an occupant in the passenger seat of Car #1 in Question 3 were to describe the forces acting on him while the car was traveling through the curve, which statement would be correct?


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