4. If your speeding car slams into a haystack and comes to rest, how will the IMPULSE that acts on it compare with slamming into a brick wall and coming to rest?
A) The impulse will be more.
B) The amount of impulse will be the same either way.
C) The impulse will be less
To compare the impulse acting on a car that slams into a haystack and comes to rest versus slamming into a brick wall and coming to rest, we need to understand the concept of impulse.
Impulse is defined as the change in momentum of an object, and it is equal to the force exerted on the object multiplied by the time it acts for. In equation form, impulse (J) can be expressed as J = F * Δt, where F represents the force and Δt represents the time interval over which the force is exerted.
In the given scenario, the car is initially in motion and comes to rest after colliding with either the haystack or the wall. When the car hits the haystack, it experiences a force from the haystack to bring it to a stop. Similarly, when the car hits the wall, it experiences a force from the wall to bring it to a stop.
However, there is a difference between the forces exerted by the haystack and the wall. The force exerted by the haystack will be softer and less rigid compared to the force exerted by the wall. This is because the haystack is more compressible and can absorb some of the car's kinetic energy, ultimately resulting in a longer time interval for the force to act.
On the other hand, the wall is rigid and does not compress or absorb the car's energy. Consequently, the time interval for the force to act is shorter compared to the haystack scenario.
Given this difference in force and time interval, we can conclude that the impulse acting on the car when it slams into the haystack and comes to rest will be less than the impulse when it slams into the brick wall and comes to rest. Therefore, the correct answer is C) The impulse will be less.