So…
Explain how a cannon firing demonstrates the law of conservation of momentum.
How do I do that?
-Miles
translation:
Initially the cannon and cannonball are at rest, so the total momentum of the system is zero. No external forces act on the system in the horizontal direction, so the system’s linear momentum in this direction is constant. Therefore the momentum of the system both before and after the cannon fires must be zero.
Any time a cannon releases a projectile, it experiences a “kick” and moves in the opposite direction of the projectile. The more massive the firearm, the slower it moves.
The same way you should do the rest of your homework:
Listen attentively in class (don’t doodle in your notebook)
Engage with your teacher and classmates on the subject at hand
Read your book and ASK QUESTIONS when you don’t understand something (ask your teacher, not The Internet)
Work through the examples in the book / lecture and make sure you get the same results… again, if you don’t get the right answer, ask your teacher
Short answer: learn. School is about learning, not just jumping through hoops to get grades.
If you leave school without getting an education, what are you going to do once you burn all the money mommy and daddy gives you? Flip burgers? Mop floors? Turn tricks? There’s only so much you can do without an education.
No offense to the chefs, janitors and hookers on these fine fora…
Cannonball goes forwards, cannon goes backwards. As momentum equals mass times velocity and must be equal for momentum to be conserved (zero overall) in both heavy cannon moves slowly, light cannon ball moves quickly.
But what maestro said.
It is not possible to toss a uni , while jumping, and not twist yourself
A cannon can fire a weightless projectile at infinite speed. Also known as a flashlight. The speed of light my’s well be infinite, as we lack the ability to notice stuff that moves faster.
The way mass reacts to input (crappy lag, plus lame overrun), is why lighter gear is so worth buying, if you can $.
No one knows this but cannons are actually quite delicate creatures. They work hard for next to nothing and are a vital part of the corporate world’s job network They deserve respect and recogniton of those above them but rarely get noticed. Cannons really only have one job, that of momenting, a job that none of the rest of us would ever stoop to consider in our pathetic race up the corporate ladder. Who would want to moment when the vice-president of sales job is soon to open up?
So when a cannon gets fired from it’s low-paying, walked on position, it’s a tragedy. Shame on us for ignoring the lowly, yet essential cannon. Conserve momentum! Respect the cannon! Give them the recognition due! They deserve to have a place among the rest of us to perform their momentum with all the job security of that of the arrogant vice-president.
A Momentous Occasion.
Translation: = “I have no idea”
I would say that maestro has at least some idea…possibly even more than some.
I would be happy to help you. You didn’t seem to get much input from the others.
F=ma
Take it from there.
Maestro has great ideas. I would like to subscribe to his newsletter.
Translation: = “Neither do you”
And I’ll help out with the next part:
“Neither do I”
Correction: I have some idea, but I’m not taking a physics class. If I were, I’d endeavor to figure out the answer on my own, then maybe ask this august group of scholars (and us two) if it’s right…
Judgine from the fact that people with college degrees can’t figure this out/don’t understand, what the hell kindof school do you go to I mean you’re only 14?
Yes I don’t know either.
Thanks 
I got it figured out…
-Miles
“the fact”? What fact are you talking about?
This problem isn’t rocket science. It’s a demonstration of one of Newton’s Laws. Said laws have been around for centuries… plenty of time for everyone to figure them out.
Any decent high school physics professor should be able to cover simple Newtonian mechanics, simple thermodynamics, simple wave theory and a few other basic topics in the matter of a semester.
Unfortunately, physics doesn’t seem to be a requirement at public schools (at least they weren’t when I attended HS in Oregon). If you missed out, either your school couldn’t afford a science professor, or you chose not to attend the class. Either way, too bad…
IMHO, it seems science is taught “backwards” in public school… the curriculum at my HS specified biology first, chemistry next, and finally, physics. But chemistry is based on physics, and biology is based on chemistry. Wouldn’t students gain a deeper understanding of those subjects if they were taught in a more logical order?
Just curious…
…does this mean you found the answer to your question, or did you gain enough understanding of the topic of momentum to formulate your own answer?
Pop quiz tomorrow.
Thanks
I got it figured out…
-Miles
I think most people here do know the answer, it’s sort of common sense (actually just Newton’s Laws, which are just common sense with lots of fancy names).
We just don’t want to do this kid’s homework for him.
Or at least I don’t.