A paperboy moves at 3 m/s delivering newspaper. He throws a newspaper directly behind himself at 3 m/s, in the frame of reference of someone standing nearby, what is the motion of the newspaper?
To determine the motion of the newspaper in the frame of reference of someone standing nearby, we need to consider the velocities of both the paperboy and the thrown newspaper.
The paperboy moves at a velocity of 3 m/s to the right. Let's consider this as the positive direction. The newspaper is thrown directly behind the paperboy at 3 m/s. Since the paperboy is moving forward at 3 m/s, the velocity of the thrown newspaper relative to someone standing nearby is the sum of the velocities of the paperboy and the thrown newspaper.
In this case, the paperboy's velocity to the right (+3 m/s) is opposite to the direction of the thrown newspaper. As a result, the relative velocity of the newspaper is the difference between the magnitudes of the velocities.
Relative velocity = velocity of the paperboy - velocity of the thrown newspaper
Relative velocity = 3 m/s - 3 m/s
Relative velocity = 0 m/s
Therefore, the motion of the newspaper in the frame of reference of someone standing nearby is stationary. The newspaper appears to be not moving as observed by someone standing nearby, despite being thrown by the paperboy.