- #1
Chandasouk
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Homework Statement
An 80.0-kg man jumps from a height of 2.50 m onto a platform mounted on springs. As the springs compress, he pushes the platform down a maximum distance of 0.240 m below its initial position, and then it rebounds. The platform and springs have negligible mass.
What is the man's speed at the instant he depresses the platform 0.120 m?
If the man just steps gently onto the platform, what maximum distance would he push it down?
I start with an energy bar graph
Initial (Top) PE = Final(Bottom) KE+ Uspring
mgh = .5mv2 + .5k[tex]\Delta[/tex]x2
I thought it would be simple from here, but I realized I didn't have a spring constant k. I think I found it though. Since K =N/m, it'd be the same as K=mg/m ?
He compressed it it's maximum length of .240m so...
K=(9.80m/s^2)(80kg)/.240m = 3266.7N/m
So, to answer the first part, I just plug in my givens
(80kg)(9.80m/s^2)(2.50m) = .5(80kg)V^2 + .5(3266.7n/m)(.120m)^2
V = 6.96m/s ?