Utilizing the principles learned in your portfolio assignment, explain the changes in momentum that would be experienced in the following scenarios: A small ball is at rest, and a large rubber ball is moving at a high velocity. When they collide, the small metal ball begins to roll quickly. What must have happened to the momentum of the small ball?
In this scenario, we can apply the principle of conservation of momentum, which states that the total momentum of a system remains constant before and after a collision, provided no external forces are acting on it.
Initially, the small ball is at rest, so its initial momentum is zero. On the other hand, the large rubber ball is moving at a high velocity, meaning it has momentum.
When the two balls collide, they exert forces on each other due to the collision. According to Newton's third law, these forces are equal in magnitude and opposite in direction. Therefore, the large rubber ball transfers some of its momentum to the small metal ball, causing the small metal ball to start rolling quickly.
Since the small metal ball was initially at rest and now has a non-zero momentum after the collision, it implies that the momentum of the small ball has increased. This change in momentum occurred because the large rubber ball transferred some of its momentum to the small ball during the collision.
In conclusion, the momentum of the small ball must have increased when it started rolling quickly after the collision with the large rubber ball.