A coffee cup on the horizontal dashboard of a car slides forward when the driver decelerates from 45 km/h to rest in 3.5 s or less, but not if she decelerates in a longer time. What is the coefficient of static friction between the cup and the dash? Assume the road and the dashboard are level (horizontal).
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6. Intro to Forces (Dynamics)
Forces in Connected Systems of Objects
Problem 18b
Textbook Question
A 2.0-m-long, 500 g rope pulls a 10 kg block of ice across a horizontal, frictionless surface. The block accelerates at 2.0 m/s2. How much force pulls forward on he rope? Assume that the rope is perfectly horizontal.

1
Step 1: Identify the forces acting on the system. The rope pulls the block of ice forward, and the block accelerates due to the tension in the rope. Since the surface is frictionless, there is no opposing force.
Step 2: Use Newton's second law of motion, \( F = ma \), to calculate the net force acting on the block. Here, \( m \) is the mass of the block (10 kg) and \( a \) is its acceleration (2.0 m/s^2). Substitute these values into the formula to find the net force exerted on the block.
Step 3: Recognize that the force pulling forward on the rope is equal to the tension in the rope. The tension in the rope is the same as the force exerted on the block because the rope is perfectly horizontal and there are no other forces acting on it.
Step 4: Consider the mass of the rope (500 g or 0.5 kg). Since the rope is being pulled forward and is part of the system, its mass does not affect the tension calculation directly in this scenario because the acceleration of the rope matches the acceleration of the block.
Step 5: Conclude that the force pulling forward on the rope is equal to the net force calculated in Step 2. This is because the rope transmits the force to the block, and the system is in equilibrium horizontally.

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Key Concepts
Here are the essential concepts you must grasp in order to answer the question correctly.
Newton's Second Law of Motion
Newton's Second Law states that the acceleration of an object is directly proportional to the net force acting on it and inversely proportional to its mass. This relationship is expressed by the formula F = ma, where F is the net force, m is the mass, and a is the acceleration. In this scenario, understanding this law is crucial to calculate the force exerted on the block of ice and subsequently on the rope.
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Tension in a Rope
Tension is the force transmitted through a rope or string when it is pulled tight by forces acting from opposite ends. In this problem, the tension in the rope is responsible for pulling the block of ice. Since the surface is frictionless, the tension must equal the force required to accelerate the block, allowing us to determine the force exerted on the rope.
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Calculating Tension in a Pendulum with Energy Conservation
Frictionless Surface
A frictionless surface is an idealized concept where no frictional forces oppose the motion of objects. This means that all the force applied to the block of ice is used to accelerate it, without any energy lost to friction. Understanding this condition simplifies the analysis, as it allows us to focus solely on the forces acting on the block and the rope without considering frictional effects.
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