Answers to End-of-chapter questions

for Chapter 14, More about Forces

1. a) In order to walk forwards you must push backwards on the ground, so that the ground
exerts a forward force on you. See page 86. If the ice is wet, the water acts as a lubricant
and so it is very slippery. As you push backwards to try to walk, the ground does not exert a
forward force on you, so you can’t make progress.

b) To light a match you need to move it over a rough surface that has enough friction to heat
the match-head so that it bursts into flame. If the surface is smooth there isn’t enough
friction to heat the match.

c) When you are pulling a boat you have to overcome the frictional forces between the boat
and its surroundings. In the sea, there is a small frictional force between the sides of the
boat and the water; on the beach, there is a larger frictional force between the bottom of
the boat and the ground.

d) The water acts as a lubricant, and reduces the frictional forces. But, for walking or driving a
car you need frictional forces. If the surface is slippery it is hard to move forward (see part
a) or to change direction. You are likely to skid.

e) To move a car forward, or to change direction, there needs to be large frictional forces
between the tyres and the ground. The pieces of gravel behave like marbles or ball-
bearings and the frictional force is much less.

f) If you rub two sticks together fiercely, the friction may cause enough heating to set the
sticks alight.

g) When a spaceship re-enters the Earth’s atmosphere there is friction between the sides of
the spaceship and the air. Because of the high speed of the spaceship, there may be a lot of
thermal energy (as when a meteorite glows red-hot).

h) The friction between the rough rope and your skin causes heating, which may damage your
skin.
 i) Every moving boat is slowed by friction between the boat and the water, and is affected by
the shape of the boat. A speedboat must move fast, so it needs streamlining with a pointed
bow; a barge moves more slowly, so there is less friction and the shape is less important.

j) Cyclists can move faster if they are streamlined by reducing friction with the air. Loose and
flapping clothes would cause more friction.

2. See the examples at the bottom of page 85, and any more that you can think of.

3. a) Ensure both axes are labelled with units, that the points occupy at

least half the graph area and are joined by a curved line of best fit.

b) From the graph the speed would be 4.7 m/s.

c) When she crouches lower there is less air resistance (less friction), so the resultant force is
greater and she travels faster.

4. Contact force of Professor’s body on the boat = contact force of the boat on him.
Weight of his body downwards = pull upwards on the Earth.
Contact force of his hand on the oar = contact force of the oar on his hand.
Contact force of the water on the boat (we call this upthrust) = contact force of the boat on the
water.

5. a) the push (south) of the football on the boot

b) the push (east) of the wall on the crashing car

c) the push (forwards) of the water on the swimmer

d) the pull of gravity of the apple on the Earth (moving upwards slightly).

6. a) When the gunpowder explodes it exerts a force forwards on the bullet, with an equal force
backwards on the gun.
 b) When the water gushes out of the hose forwards, there is a reaction force backwards, so
the fire-fighters have to hold the hose firmly.

c) If you jump downwards from a chair, you move downwards while the Earth moves upwards
(slightly). See page 87.

d) By spraying the liquid from an aerosol in one direction, there is a reaction force in the
opposite direction that can move the astronaut.

7. a) B, the forwards force (thrust) exerted by the burning fuel

E, the frictional force cause by air resistance (drag)
D, the pull of gravity (the weight of the rocket).

d) At the moment of take-off, B and D would exist but E (the drag) would not exist.

e) When the fuel has been burnt, the pull of gravity (its weight) brings it back down.