Question

Two skaters, a man and a woman, are standing on ice. Neglect any friction between the skate blades and the ice. The mass of the man is 81 kg, and the mass of the woman is 60 kg. The woman pushes on the man with a force of 50 N due east. Determine the acceleration (magnitude and direction) of (a) the man and (b) the woman.

Answer 1

(a) The man has an acceleration of about 0.62 meters per second squared east.

(b) The woman has an acceleration of 0 meters per second squared nowhere since the woman is in mechanical equilibrium. The woman stops once she hits the man with a force of 50 N.