Why does Kara's cart speed up more than John's cart when they push with the same force?

Question:

Kara and John are pushing their grocery carts along a flat surface in a store. Kara's cart is empty, and John's cart is full. Kara and John each push their cart with the same force. Why does Kara's cart speed up more than John's cart when they push with the same force?

A. because no gravity is acting on her cart

B. because her cart has less mass

C. because her cart needs no force to push it

D. because her cart has more friction acting on it

Answer:

Final answer: Kara's cart speeds up more than John's because it has less mass. According to Newton's Second Law of Motion, an object with less mass will experience greater acceleration when acted on by the same force.

Explanation:

The reason why Kara's cart speeds up more than John's, even though they both push their carts with the same force, is because Kara's cart has less mass. This can be understood using Newton's Second Law of Motion, which states that the acceleration of an object is directly proportional to the net force acting on it and inversely proportional to its mass. In other words, if two objects are acted on by the same force, the object with less mass will experience greater acceleration.

In this scenario, since Kara's cart is empty, it has less mass compared to John's full cart. When the same force is applied to both carts, the cart with less mass (Kara's cart) will accelerate, or speed up, more than the one with more mass (John's cart).

← Understanding force and acceleration in sports What type of gloves protect your hands from heat and flames →