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 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 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.

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.

Lighter objects need less force than heavier ob…

Answer 1

The argument that best supports the student's claim is:

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

This statement implies that for a given force (in this case, 40 N), a lighter object (box 1) will experience a greater acceleration than a heavier object (box 2), which aligns with the observed accelerations of 10 m/s² for box 1 and 5 m/s² for box 2. Therefore, since box 1 accelerates more than box 2 under the same force, box 1 must have a smaller mass.