A student is investigating mass and acceleration. The student applies the same force of 40 N force to two boxes that have the same size and shape. Box 1 experiences an acceleration of 10 m/s^2 and box 2 experiences an acceleration of 5m/s^2.

Question

The student claims that box 1 must have a smaller mass than box 2. Which argument best supports the student's claim?(1 point)
Responses:

Lighter objects need less force than heavier objects to start moving but will accelerate at the same rate.
Lighter objects need less force than heavier objects to start moving but will accelerate at the same rate.

Lighter objects need greater force than heavier objects to start moving but will accelerate at the same rate.
Lighter objects need greater force than heavier objects to start moving but will accelerate at the same rate.

Heavier objects need less force than lighter objects to accelerate at the same rate.
Heavier objects need less force than lighter objects to accelerate at the same rate.

Heavier objects need greater force than lighter objects to accelerate at the same rate.
Heavier objects need greater force than lighter objects to accelerate at the same rate.

Answer 1

The claim that box 1 has a smaller mass than box 2 can be best supported by the following reasoning:

Lighter objects need less force than heavier objects to accelerate at the same rate.

This statement is also related to Newton's second law of motion, which states that \( F = m \cdot a \) (force equals mass times acceleration). Given that both boxes are subjected to the same force (40 N), the difference in their accelerations indicates that their masses must be different. Since box 1 accelerates more (10 m/s²) than box 2 (5 m/s²), it suggests that box 1 must indeed have a smaller mass.

So, the better option to support the student's claim is:

Heavier objects need greater force than lighter objects to accelerate at the same rate.

This aligns with the notion that to achieve a greater acceleration, less massive objects require less force.