MP112 Mechanics and Modern Physics

Problem set 6 / 2015

You will be asked to answer one of the following in your tutorial during the week of
2327 March. Each tutor will randomly select the quiz question from among the
un-starred questions, and will do one or both of the starred questions before you work
on yours.
*1. A body is moving such that its displacement from equilibrium is
x = 4x0 cos(2t/t0 ) 3x0 sin(2t/t0 ) ,
where x0 = 1m and t0 = 1s.
(a) Show that this body is moving with simple harmonic motion.
(b) What is the amplitude of the motion? What is the period? What is the
maximum speed of the body?
(c) What is the total energy of the body, if its mass is m = 1kg?
2. A body A with mass mA = 0.40kg is lying at rest on a frictionless horizontal table,
attached to a horizontal spring with spring constant k = 25N/m. A second body
B with mass mB = 0.25kg comes along with a speed u = 6.0m/s from the opposite
direction of the spring, and collides directly with A. The coefficient of elasticity of
the collision is e = 0.50.
(a) What are the velocities of A and B immediately after the collision?
(b) Body A will now begin oscillating with simple harmonic motion. What is the
angular frequency, period and amplitude of this oscillation?
(c) Will A and B collide again?
3. (a) A body with mass 0.248kg, attached to a horizontal spring with spring constant k = 158N/m, is undergoing simple harmonic motion. Find the period
of the motion.
(b) At time t = 0, the position of the body is x = 8.25cm, and its velocity is
v = 1.65m/s.
i. Determine the amplitude of the motion.
ii. Determine the phase .

4. A fish with unknown mass m is attached to the end of a vertical spring with spring
constant k = 158N/m, and released. In its new equilibrium position the spring is
stretched 8.20cm.
(a) What is the mass of the fish? Take g = 9.81m/s2 .
(b) Explain why the vertical position y(t) of the fish relative to the equilibrium
position is given by y(t) = 8.20cm cos(t/0.0914s).
(c) What is the velocity of the fish at t = 1.00s?
*5. (a) A block with mass m = 0.764kg is attached to the end of a vertical spring,
causing the spring to stretch 4.26cm. Determine the spring constant k. Take
g = 9.81m/s2 .
(b) A bullet with mass 20.0g is fired into the block, which is hanging at rest in its
equilibrium position, from directly below at a speed of 100m/s, and becomes
embedded in the block. Find the speed of the block and bullet immediately
after the bullet hits.
(c) Find the amplitude and period of the resulting simple harmonic motion.
(d) What is the position of the block relative to its equilibrium 0.250 seconds
after the bullet hit?
6. A 4.00kg block is suspended from a spring with k = 500N/m. A 50.0g bullet
is fired into the block directly from below with a speed of 125m/s and becomes
embedded in the block.
(a) Find the amplitude and period of the resulting simple harmonic motion.
(b) What percentage of the original kinetic energy of the bullet is transferred to
the mechanical energy of the oscillator?