Adisorn conducts an experiment investigating Newton’s first law of motion by sliding several objects on a concrete floor, and then a wooden plank using the same force in all trials. The distance in centimeters traveled in one second over five trials is recorded in the following table. Newton’s First Law of Motion Surface: Concrete Floor Object Trial 1 Trial 2 Trial 3 Trial 4 Trial 5 Toy 26 33 28 30 27 Block 19 21 21 19 20 Ball 37 33 40 36 42 Pen 25 27 19 22 26 Surface: Wooden Plank Object Trial 1 Trial 2 Trial 3 Trial 4 Trial 5 Toy 22 24 20 26 26 Block 17 18 13 19 15 Ball 31 24 35 27 29 Pen 21 15 18 21 21 Using this data, which of the following statements is true? (1 point) Responses The ball being pushed on the concrete floor had the least friction force against it. The ball being pushed on the concrete floor had the least friction force against it. The pen being pushed on the concrete floor had the least friction force against it. The pen being pushed on the concrete floor had the least friction force against it. The block being pushed on the wooden plank had the least friction force against it. The block being pushed on the wooden plank had the least friction force against it. The wooden plank had less friction than the concrete floor. The wooden plank had less friction than the concrete floor. Skip to navigation

1 answer

To determine which statement is true based on the experimental data, we can analyze the distances traveled by the different objects on both surfaces (concrete floor and wooden plank).

When comparing the distances traveled in one second:

Concrete Floor:

  • Toy: 26, 33, 28, 30, 27 (Average = 28.8 cm)
  • Block: 19, 21, 21, 19, 20 (Average = 20 cm)
  • Ball: 37, 33, 40, 36, 42 (Average = 37.6 cm)
  • Pen: 25, 27, 19, 22, 26 (Average = 23.8 cm)

Wooden Plank:

  • Toy: 22, 24, 20, 26, 26 (Average = 23.6 cm)
  • Block: 17, 18, 13, 19, 15 (Average = 16.4 cm)
  • Ball: 31, 24, 35, 27, 29 (Average = 29.2 cm)
  • Pen: 21, 15, 18, 21, 21 (Average = 19.2 cm)

Now, we compare the average distances to assess friction:

  1. The ball on the concrete floor: 37.6 cm vs. 29.2 cm on the wooden plank. It traveled further on the concrete floor, indicating less friction on that surface compared to the wooden plank.

  2. The pen on the concrete floor: 23.8 cm vs. 19.2 cm on the wooden plank. Again, it traveled further on the concrete floor.

  3. The block on the concrete floor: 20 cm vs. 16.4 cm on the wooden plank. It traveled further on the concrete floor.

  4. The toy on the concrete floor: 28.8 cm vs. 23.6 cm on the wooden plank. It also traveled further on the concrete.

Given this analysis, we can conclude that in this experiment, the friction on the concrete floor is less than on the wooden plank for all objects tested. Therefore, the statement:

"The wooden plank had less friction than the concrete floor."

is false. The correct statement, based on the data, is:

"The ball being pushed on the concrete floor had the least friction force against it,"

because it traveled the furthest distance compared to the same object on the wooden plank. Thus, the first option is the correct answer.