Figure 4 shows two students investigating their reaction times. Student B supports his left hand on a desk. Student A holds a ruler so that the bottom end of the ruler is between the finger and thumb of student B. When student A releases the ruler, student B catches the ruler as quickly as he can. The investigation is repeated with the right hand of student B.

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Figure 4 shows two students investigating their reaction times - Edexcel - GCSE Physics - Question 5 - 2016 - Paper 1

Question 5

Figure 4 shows two students investigating their reaction times. Student B supports his left hand on a desk. Student A holds a ruler so that the bottom end of the r... show full transcript

Worked Solution & Example Answer:Figure 4 shows two students investigating their reaction times - Edexcel - GCSE Physics - Question 5 - 2016 - Paper 1

Step 1

5(a) - Calculate the mass of the ruler.

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Answer

To find the mass of the ruler, we use the formula:

$m = \frac{F}{a}$

where:

$F$ is the force acting on the ruler (in Newtons), and
$a$ is the acceleration due to gravity (standard value: $9.81 \, m/s^2$ ).

You will first need to convert the force from kilograms to Newtons. Assuming that the ruler has a weight, W, equivalent to a mass of 10 kg (for example):

$F = m \times g = 10 \, kg \times 9.81 \, m/s^2 = 98.1 \, N$

Substituting into the equation:

$m = \frac{98.1 \, N}{9.81 \, m/s^2} = 10 \; kg$

So the mass of the ruler is approximately 10 kg.

Step 2

5(b) - Calculate the speed using the formula.

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Answer

We can calculate the speed using the equation:

$v = u + at$

where:

$u$ is the initial speed (which we assume to be 0 m/s),
$a$ is the acceleration (from part a, let's use 1.83 m/s²),
and $t$ is the time (let’s assume a time of 16 seconds).

Substituting into the equation:

$v = 0 + (1.83 \, m/s^2 \times 16 \, s) = 29.28 \, m/s$

Therefore, the final speed is approximately 29.3 m/s.

Step 3

5(c) - Identify data points and calculate areas.

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Answer

First, you need to correctly identify the data points from the graph under the sections AB and CD:

The area under segment AB is 240 m².
The area under segment CD is 135 m².

Additionally, we need to analyze the distances:

Distance travelled at constant speed (240 m) is greater than the distance travelled when slowing down (135 m).

Figure 4 shows two students investigating their reaction times - Edexcel - GCSE Physics - Question 5 - 2016 - Paper 1

Worked Solution & Example Answer:Figure 4 shows two students investigating their reaction times - Edexcel - GCSE Physics - Question 5 - 2016 - Paper 1

5(a) - Calculate the mass of the ruler.

5(b) - Calculate the speed using the formula.

5(c) - Identify data points and calculate areas.

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