In a science experiment, a student releases a ball down a 3 m ramp. If the ball has an average speed of 3 m/s, which of the following must be true?(1 point) Responses It took the ball 3 s to reach the halfway point down the ramp. It took the ball 3 s to reach the halfway point down the ramp. At a certain point, the ball traveled faster than 3 m/s. At a certain point, the ball traveled faster than 3 m/s. The ball never went faster than 3 m/s. The ball never went faster than 3 m/s. The ball traveled at a constant speed of 3 m/s. The ball traveled at a constant speed of 3 m/s. Skip to navigation

1 answer

Given that the ball has an average speed of 3 m/s while rolling down a 3 m ramp, we can analyze each statement:

  1. It took the ball 3 s to reach the halfway point down the ramp.

    • The average speed is calculated over the entire distance and the time taken. The total time to travel 3 m at an average speed of 3 m/s would be 1 second (since time = distance/speed, 3 m / 3 m/s = 1 s). Therefore, it would not take 3 seconds to reach halfway (which is 1.5 m).
    • This statement is false.
  2. At a certain point, the ball traveled faster than 3 m/s.

    • Since the average speed is 3 m/s, it is possible that the ball could have accelerated and thus traveled faster than 3 m/s at some points during its descent. This would depend on how the ramp is structured (if it is inclined).
    • This statement could be true.
  3. The ball never went faster than 3 m/s.

    • This contradicts the possibility of acceleration. If the ramp has an incline, then the ball would need to have faster speeds at certain points to achieve an average speed of 3 m/s.
    • This statement is false.
  4. The ball traveled at a constant speed of 3 m/s.

    • If the ball traveled at a constant speed of 3 m/s, it would uniformly cover the distance in a certain time (specifically, 1 second). However, it is unlikely that it remained at a constant speed if it accelerated down the ramp.
    • This statement is false.

Therefore, the only statement that must be true is: At a certain point, the ball traveled faster than 3 m/s.