Ahlayia is pushing a shopping cart at the grocery store. Her little brother, Denerio, decides to come up behind her and give the cart a hard shove, as little brothers do:) What is likely to happen and why?

Question

The force of Denerio's shove will add to the force of Ahlayia's pushing and will slow the cart
The force of Denerio's shove will be subtracted from the force of Ahlayia's pushing, and the cart will stop
The force of Denerio's shove will cause the cart to crash.
The force of Denerio's shove will add to the force of Ahlayia's pushing and the cart will move faster.

Answer 1

The most likely scenario is:

The force of Denerio's shove will add to the force of Ahlayia's pushing, and the cart will move faster.

When Denerio gives the cart a hard shove from behind, that force will combine with the force Ahlayia is already applying to push the cart. Since both forces are in the same direction (forward), the total force acting on the cart will increase, resulting in greater acceleration according to Newton's second law of motion (F = ma). Thus, the cart is likely to move faster.