S4 Physics 1

Holy Family Canossian College

Mid-year Examination 2014-2015
S4 Physics
1
Time allowed: 1 hours
2

Instructions:

1. This paper consists of TWO sections, A and B. Answer ALL questions in BOTH sections.

2. Section A carries 36 marks and section B carries 54 marks.

3. All the answer in section A should be marked on the MC Answer Sheet and all the answers in
Section B should be written in the Question-Answer Sheet.

4. M.C. Answer Sheet and Question-Answer Sheet must be handed in separately at the end of the
examination.

5. Unless otherwise specified, numerical answers should be either exact or correct to 3 significant
figures.

6. Take g = 9.81 m s-2.

Useful Formulae in Physics

Relationships among initial velocity u, uniform acceleration a, final velocity v and
displacement travelled s after time t:
v = u + at
1
s = ut + at 2
2

v 2 = u 2 + 2as
S4 Physics 2
Section A: MC

1. A hawk is initially flying at 30 m s−1 along a straight line in the sky. Its acceleration-time graph is
shown below.

a / m s−2

0 50 100
t/s

−0.3

What is the displacement of the hawk after 100 s?

A. 15 m
B. 1125 m
C. 2625 m
D. 3375 m

2. A bullet is fired with a velocity of 500 ms-1 towards a wooden block. The bullet penetrates the
wooden block and comes out with a velocity of 400 ms-1. How many identical wooden blocks
should be used in order to stop the bullet?

A. 1
B. 2
C. 3
D. 4

3. A pendulum bob of mass 0.1 kg is hung on fixed point A and it is released from rest horizontally.
There is a peg 0.1 m directly below point A as shown in the figure. Assume the air resistance is
negligible. Calculate the speed of the pendulum bob at point B.

A. 1.40 m s−1
B. 1.52 m s−1
C. 1.63 m s−1
D. 2.02 m s−1
S4 Physics 3
4. A ball rolls down an inclined runway and then travels on a smooth table. Which of the following
velocity-time graphs correctly describes the motion of the ball?
A. B.

C. D.

5. Balls A and B are thrown vertically upwards and downwards respectively.

B thrown downwards

A thrown upwards

If their initial speeds are the same, which of the following statements is/are correct when they meet?
(1) Their displacements should be the same.
(2) Their speeds should be the same.
(3) Their accelerations should be the same.

A. (1) only
B. (3) only
C. (1) and (2) only
D. (1) and (3) only
S4 Physics 4
6. Which of the following free body diagram represents the point particle is in equilibrium?

(1) (2) (3)

A. (1) only
B. (2) only
C. (3) only
D. (1), (2) and (3)

7. Which of the following graphs show(s) that a constant resultant force (with non-zero magnitude) is
acting on the object?

(1) s (2) v

t t
a
(3)

A. (1) and (2) only

B. (1) and (3) only
C. (2) and (3) only
D. (1), (2) and (3)
S4 Physics 5
8. If forces of 20 N and 30 N act at the same point, what are the greatest and the least resultant force
that they can produce?

Greatest Least
A. 36 N 20 N
B. 50 N 30 N
C. 50 N 10 N
D. 70 N 5N

9. A light rope is fixed at points A and B at the same level. A weight is hung at the midpoint C of the
rope. The rope depresses such the ∠ACB = 150°.
A B
C

If the mass of the weight is of 200 g, what is the tension in the rope?

A. 0.9 N
B. 1.9 N
C. 3.8 N
D. 7.7 N

10. A 10 kg block is placed on the ground and forces of 5 N, 7.5 N and 10 N are applied on the block
as shown in the following figure. Initially, the block is at rest. How much work will be done by the
10 N force on the block after 5 s?

7.5 N

10 N

45°
5N 10 kg

A. 10.4 J
B. 18.3 J
C. 35.4 J
D. 88.4 J
S4 Physics 6
11. A man uses a pulley system to slow down the falling of a box. Find the acceleration of the box.
Given that the mass of the box is 7 kg and the weight is 5 kg and the string is inextensible.

A. 2.87 ms-2 downwards

B. 1.50 ms-2 upwards
C. 1.64 ms-2 downwards
D. 2.02 ms-2 upwards

12. In the following figure, calculate the value of force exerted on the 1.5 kg block by the 2.5 kg block.
Given that all surfaces are frictionless.

A. 24.5 N
B. 28.2 N
C. 27.6 N
D. 19.4 N

13. In the figure below, a block of mass x kg is suspended by a string and a horizontal force.

θ T

x kg

If the tension in the string is T, which of the following statements is incorrect?

A. T sin θ = F
B. In order to keep the block stationary, when θ increases, F should increase.
C. T cos θ = x
D. F = 9.81x × tan θ
S4 Physics 7
14. In the figure below, a block of mass m1 and a weight of mass m2 are connected by an inextensible
string.

smooth
plane

If both of them are at rest when the system is released, which of the following statements is/are
correct?
(1) m1g sin θ = m2g
(2) If θ decreases, the block will move up with uniform acceleration.
(3) If θ increases, the normal reaction force that the plane acts on the block will decrease.

A. (1) and (2) only

B. (1) and (3) only
C. (2) and (3) only
D. (1), (2) and (3)

15. Two objects are connected by a spring balance and hung to the ceiling as shown below. The string
is then cut at the point that the arrow indicates.

2 kg

1 kg

Which of the following combinations describing the change of the balance’s reading is correct?

Before After
A. 9.81 N 9.81 N
B. 9.81 N 0N
C. 29.4 N 9.81 N
D. 29.4 N 0N
S4 Physics 8

16. Two balls X and Y, of the same mass, are released from rest simultaneously at A. X falls vertically
downwards while Y runs downwards along the smooth plane AC as shown in the figure.
Which of the following statements is / are correct?

(1) X reaches B before Y reaches C.

(2) The velocity of X at B is the same as that of Y at C.
(3) The kinetic energy possessed by X at B is the same as
that of Y at C.

A. (1) only
B. (2) only
C. (1) and (3) only
D. (2) and (3) only

17.

A company intends to produce a kind of weighing device as shown above. The device is held at
point X. The position of the counter-weight is adjusted until the rod AB becomes horizontal. The
weight of the object can be read form the scale calibrated on AB. Which of the following changes
can increases the maximum weight that can be measured by the device ?

(1) moving the string at X towards A

(2) increasing the mass of the counter-weight
(3) increasing the length of the string from which the counter-weight hangs

A. (1) only
B. (3) only
C. (1) and (2) only
D. (2) and (3) only
S4 Physics 9

18.

A uniform plank of weight 450 N rests on two trestles X and Y and a worker of weight 675 N
stands at one end of the plank as shown above. The worker holds a light basket which contains
several packets of goods each of weight 6 N. What is the maximum number of packets he can
hold without tilting the plank ? (Assume the weight of the plank acts through its centre.)

A. 11
B. 12
C. 13
D. 18

19. Two identical blocks A and B are pushed by forces of the same size F. Block A is pushed up the
inclined plane while block B is pushed horizontally.

A
30°

What is the ratio of the work done on A to that on B by the forces?

A. 1:2
B. 3:2
C. 2:1
D. 2: 3
S4 Physics 10

20. A car of mass 1500 kg travels with constant velocity 40 km h−1. If the friction and air resistance are
negligible, what is the work done by the engine to accelerate the car to 60 km h−1?

A. 95 kJ
B. 103 kJ
C. 108 kJ
D. 116 kJ

21. In the following figure, ball A of mass 2m and ball B of mass 3m fall from a height of h and 3h
respectively. What is the ratio of the maximum velocity of A to that of B?

A. 1 : 3
B. 2 : 3

C. 1 : 3

D. 2 : 3

22. The graph below shows how the force applied on the object changes with its displacement. What is
the work done on the object if the displacement of the object points in the same direction as the
applied force?

F / 10 3 N

s/m
10 20 30 40

A. 140 kJ
B. 120 kJ
C. 100 kJ
D. 20 kJ
S4 Physics 11
23. A toy car decelerates uniformly to rest on a rough table. Which of the following graphs best
represents how its kinetic energy E varies with time t?

A. E B. E

0 t 0 t

C. E D. E

0 t 0 t

24. As shown in the figure, Tarzan travels from one place to another by swinging in the forest. Assume
that the rope is just long enough to swing from point A to point B, what is his initial minimum
speed in order for him to reach point B?

A. 5.69 m s−1
B. 10.0 m s−1
C. 8.5 m s−1
D. 7.67 m s−1

End of section A
S4 Physics 12
Holy Family Canossian College
Mid-year Examination 2014-2015
S4 Physics
Question Answer Sheet

Name: ( )
Section B: Structured Questions (54 marks)

1. A car of mass 1500 kg stops on a rough road due to the engine problem. The driver applies a force
of 800 N on the car to push the car so that the speed of the car changes to 0.6 m s–1 in 3 s.

Figure 1
(a) Find the acceleration of the car. (2 marks)

(b) Find the frictional force acting on the car. (2 marks)

2. The experimental set-up in Figure 2 is used to investigate the value of the gravitational
acceleration. The timer-scalar is used to measure the time t for the iron ball to fall down from the
height H. When the upper switch is opened, no current will flow through the electromagnet and
the iron ball will be released. The timer will start timing. When the ball reaches the lower switch
and open it, the timer will stop timing.

Figure 2
S4 Physics 13
The experiment is repeated with the iron ball falling from different heights. Figure 3 shows the
relationship between H and t2.

H/ m
3.5

2.5

1.5

Figure 3 1

0.5

0 t2 / s 2
0 0.1 0.2 0.3 0.4 0.5 0.6 0.7 0.8

(a) Find the slope of the graph. Hence, find the acceleration due to gravity. (4 marks)

(b) Give two reasons why an iron ball is used instead of a ping-pong ball. (2 marks)

(c) If the experiment is repeated on the Moon, draw the expected result in the graph. (Figure 3)
(2 marks)
S4 Physics 14
3. Two blocks P and Q of masses 1 kg and 1.5 kg respectively are connected by a light string
passing over a smooth pulley. The incline is frictionless. The system is released when P is 1 m
above the ground.

Figure 4
Q
P

1m
30°

(a) A student suggests that the potential energy lost by block P is converted into the kinetic energy
of both blocks P and Q. Is he correct? Explain briefly. (2 marks)

(b) Find the speed of blocks P and Q just before block P touches the ground. (4 marks)
S4 Physics 15
4. A mass of 50kg is placed at the top of an inclined plane which has a frictionless upper part PQ
and a rough lower part QR. A boy stops the mass from sliding by applying a force of 100N as
shown in Figure 5.

Figure 5

The boy then lets the mass go.

(a) What is the magnitude of the net force acting on the mass immediately after it is
released? (1 mark)

(b) Find the angle of inclination θ. (2 marks)

(c) Find the initial acceleration of the mass. (2 marks)

(d) If the mass reaches Q in four seconds, calculate its speed at Q. (2 marks)

(e) When the mass moves on the rough surface, it moves with the acceleration of 1 ms-2, find
the frictional force on the rough surface? (2 marks)
S4 Physics 16
(f) Describe the energy change of the mass when it moves from P to R. (3 marks)

5. Figure 6 below shows a nail being removed from a piece of wood by a hammer. The nail begins to
move when the force of 150 N is applied to the end of the handle.

Figure 6

(a) What is the frictional resistance exerted on the nail by the wood?(assume that the weight of
the nail is negligible) (2 marks)

(b) Find the total reaction (including the direction) acting on the hammer by the wood at the
pivot? You can neglect the weight of the hammer. (3 marks)
S4 Physics 17
6. A pendulum bob is hung on the ceiling by a string. The length of the string is 0.5 m and the mass
of the pendulum bob is 0.15 kg. It is pull aside at an angle of 60° and starts to swing from rest.

Figure 7

(a) Find the initial height h at point A (measured from the lowest position of the bob). (2 marks)

(b) Calculate the corresponding potential energy at point A. (2 marks)

(c) Find the speed of the bob at the lowest position. (2 marks)

(d) Can the bob calculate the speed of the bob at its lowest position using equations of motion?
Explain briefly. (3 marks)
S4 Physics 18
7. Read the following descriptions about ejection seats and answer the questions that follow.

Figure 8 Figure 9

Ejection seats (see Figure 8) are important safety devices in military planes. The pilot, together with
the seat, is ejected out of the plane in an emergency. Figure 9 shows a test of the ejection process. A
dummy pilot sitting on the ejection seat is initially placed on the ground. The ejection process can
be divided into two phases:

Phase 1 : At time t = 0, a rocket installed under the seat is ignited. From t = 0 to 0.5 s, the
seat accelerates upwards.
Phase 2: At t = 0.5s, the rocket exhausts its fuel. After a while, the seat reaches its
maximum height. The seat is then detached from the dummy and a parachute carried
by the dummy is opened. The dummy eventually reaches the ground.

Figure 10 shows the velocity-time graph of the dummy during the ejection process. Assume
that the motion of the dummy is vertical throughout the process, and the effect of air resistance is
negligible before the parachute is open.

Figure 10

(a) In Figure 10, label the point on the graph which corresponds to the instant when the dummy
reaches the maximum height. (Note : Use P to denote the point.) (1 mark)
S4 Physics 19
(b) Find the maximum height above the ground reached by the dummy. (2 marks)

(c) The mass of the dummy is 80 kg. Find the force exerted by the ejection seat on the dummy
in Phase 1. (3 marks)

(d) By considering the forces acting on the dummy, explain the following motion of the dummy
in Phase 2:

After the parachute has been opened, the dummy accelerates downwards at first and
then falls with a uniform velocity (see Figure 12).

It is known that the force exerted by the parachute on the dummy increases with its speed.
(4 marks)

End of paper