High School

Devon Reid has a mass of 182 lbs. He jumps to dunk a basketball with an initial vertical velocity of 2.6 m/s. Devon bends his knees and pushes off the ground in 0.4 seconds. What is the pushing force on his legs?

A. 455 N
B. 728 N
C. 936 N
D. 1040 N

Answer :

Final answer:

To calculate the pushing force on Devon's legs, we can use Newton's second law of motion. By substituting the given values into the equation, we find that the pushing force is approximately 1040 N.

Explanation:

To calculate Devon's pushing force, we can use Newton's second law of motion, which states that force equals mass times acceleration. Devon's mass is given as 182 lbs, which we need to convert to kg by dividing by the conversion factor 2.205 lbs/kg. The acceleration can be calculated using the equation a = Δv / t, where Δv is the change in velocity and t is the time. In this case, Δv is the difference between Devon's initial vertical velocity of 2.6 m/s and his final velocity of 0 m/s (since he pushes off the ground). The time is given as 0.4 s. Finally, we can plug in the values into the equation to find the pushing force: force = mass * acceleration.

By substituting in the given values, we get force = (182 lbs / 2.205 lbs/kg) * [(0 m/s - 2.6 m/s) / 0.4 s]. Evaluating the expression gives us a pushing force of approximately 1040 N. Therefore, the correct answer is (d) 1040 N.

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