A mother and her small child are standing in an inflatable bouncy house on opposite sides. The mother jumps up and comes back down again, transferring her kinetic energy to the child through the floor. How will the motion of the small child change?(1 point)

Question

Responses

The child will move down at the same speed at which the mother came down.
The child will move down at the same speed at which the mother came down.

The child will move up at a faster speed because the child has less mass.
The child will move up at a faster speed because the child has less mass.

The child will move up at a slower speed because the child has less mass.
The child will move up at a slower speed because the child has less mass.

The child will move up at the same speed at which the mother came down.

Answer 1

The correct response is:

The child will move up at a faster speed because the child has less mass.

When the mother jumps and comes down in the bouncy house, her kinetic energy transfers to the floor, causing the bouncy house to push the child upward. Since the child has less mass compared to the mother, according to the principle of conservation of momentum, the child will experience a larger acceleration and thus will move up at a faster speed than the speed at which the mother came down.