Question
A billiard ball moves with 3 kg⋅m/s of momentum and strikes three other billiard balls. What is the total momentum of the balls after the collision? Responses 3 kg⋅m/s 3 kg⋅m/s - no response given less than 3 kg⋅m/s less than 3 kg⋅m/s - no response given It depends on the mass of each ball. It depends on the mass of each ball. - no response given more than 3 kg⋅m/s more than 3 kg⋅m/s - no response given
Answers
GPT-4o mini
The total momentum of a system is conserved in collisions, provided that there are no external forces acting on the system. This means that the total momentum before the collision equals the total momentum after the collision.
In this case, before the collision, there is a single billiard ball with a momentum of 3 kg⋅m/s. After it strikes the three other billiard balls, the total momentum of the system (the original billiard ball and the three others) will also be 3 kg⋅m/s, assuming the collision is perfectly elastic and there are no external forces acting on the balls.
Therefore, the total momentum of the balls after the collision is **3 kg⋅m/s**.
In this case, before the collision, there is a single billiard ball with a momentum of 3 kg⋅m/s. After it strikes the three other billiard balls, the total momentum of the system (the original billiard ball and the three others) will also be 3 kg⋅m/s, assuming the collision is perfectly elastic and there are no external forces acting on the balls.
Therefore, the total momentum of the balls after the collision is **3 kg⋅m/s**.