Question

Katie rolls a toy car off the end of a table.

A car sits on a tall orange box with a shorter orange box in front if it. A short line from the car leads to line A, which points straight down to the shorter box, line B, which leads down to the shorter box at an angle, line C, which curves down to the shorter box, and line D, which extends past lines A-C and then points straight down to the shorter box.

Which path will the car follow when it leaves the table?

A
B
C
D

Answer 1

C

When the car leaves the table it has horizontal velocity but gravity immediately accelerates it downward. Its horizontal speed stays nearly constant while its vertical position changes with time (y = −½gt²), so the path is a curved (parabolic) fall — not straight down (A), not a straight diagonal (B), nor one that goes straight then drops (D).