Select ALL the correct answers.

Question

A silver coin rubs vigorously against a wool cloth. The cloth becomes positively charged. Which statements are true?
Group of answer choices

The silver coin lost electrons.

The wool cloth gained protons.

The wool cloth lost protons.

The silver coin gained electrons.

The wool cloth lost electrons.

Answer 1

The true statements in this scenario, where a silver coin rubs against a wool cloth and the cloth becomes positively charged, are:

1. The silver coin lost electrons.

   • When the wool cloth becomes positively charged, it indicates that it has lost some electrons. Since electrons have a negative charge, their removal from the wool cloth leaves it with a net positive charge, while the silver coin gains some of those electrons, making it negatively charged.

2. The wool cloth lost electrons.

   • This is true as well. The wool cloth becomes positively charged because it has lost electrons during the rubbing process.

The other statements are incorrect:

• The wool cloth gained protons. (False: Protons do not move in this process; only electrons do.)
• The wool cloth lost protons. (False: Protons remain fixed in the atoms and do not transfer.)
• The silver coin gained electrons. (False: The silver coin actually loses electrons to the wool cloth in this process.)

So, the correct answers are:

• The silver coin lost electrons.
• The wool cloth lost electrons.