To find the mass of the cart, we can use Newton's second law of motion, which states that \( F = m \cdot a \), where \( F \) is the force applied, \( m \) is the mass of the object, and \( a \) is the acceleration.
We can rearrange the equation to solve for mass:
\[ m = \frac{F}{a} \]
Using the data from any of the trials, we can calculate the mass.
- Trial 1:
- Force (F) = 10 N
- Acceleration (a) = 2.5 m/s²
\[ m = \frac{10 , \text{N}}{2.5 , \text{m/s}^2} = 4 , \text{kg} \]
- Trial 2:
- Force (F) = 12 N
- Acceleration (a) = 3 m/s²
\[ m = \frac{12 , \text{N}}{3 , \text{m/s}^2} = 4 , \text{kg} \]
- Trial 3:
- Force (F) = 22 N
- Acceleration (a) = 5.5 m/s²
\[ m = \frac{22 , \text{N}}{5.5 , \text{m/s}^2} = 4 , \text{kg} \]
In all trials, we consistently calculate the mass of the cart to be 4 kg.
The correct answer is:
b) 4 kg.