Question

A book is pushed with an initial horizontal velocity of 5.0 meters per second off the top of a 1.19 meter high desk. How far away does the book land?

Answer 1

Answer:

2.45 m

Explanation:

First of all, we have to calculate the time of flight of the book, by using the equation for the vertical motion:

$h=\frac{1}{2}gt^2$

where

h = 1.19 m is the vertical distance covered by the book

g = 9.8 m/s^2 is the acceleration of gravity

t is the time of flight

Solving for t,

$t=\sqrt{\frac{2h}{g}}=\sqrt{\frac{2(1.19)}{9.8}}=0.49 s$

Now we can find the horizontal distance covered by the book, which is given by

$d=v_x t$

where

$v_x = 5.0 m/s$ is the horizontal velocity

t = 0.49 s is the time of flight

Substituting,

$d=(5.0)(0.49)=2.45 m$

So the book lands 2.45 m away.