If you attach a string to a ball and begin swinging it around your head, the bal

Question

If you attach a string to a ball and begin swinging it around your head, the ball will travel in a circle. Let's suppose that the ball is traveling counterclockwise, as viewed from overhead. a. Although the ball is traveling with a constant speed, it is accelerating. Which way is it accelerating? b. In which direction is the net force on the ball? c. In which direction is the ball traveling at the moment it passes directly in front of you? d. If you let go of the string at the moment the ball passes directly in front of you, which way will the ball travel? Why? e.You feel an outward tug on the string, yet there is no outward force on the ball. The only way that the ball can tug on the string is if the string is tugging on the ball. What effect does the string's pull have on the ball if there isn't any outward force on the ball?

Explanation / Answer

In the absence of forces, an object in motion stays in motion (in the same direction). A. It is accelerating inward along the string, toward the center of the circle. B. Inward, along the string. C. The ball is always traveling perpendicular to the string. So, at this point it is going toward your left. D. In the direction it is traveling, which is to your left. E. A portion of the ball's momentum counteracts the pull inward along the string, producing the pull that you feel.

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