AS Daily A Level Physics question
A trolley on a smooth, level bench accelerates at 0.80 m/s^2 when pulled with a steady 4.0 N force. The same pull is applied to a second trolley with four times the mass. What is the acceleration of the second trolley?
Answer
The correct answer is B.
Correct: B — 0.20 m/s^2. With the same force and four times the mass, the acceleration is one quarter of 0.80 m/s^2, so 0.80/4 = 0.20 m/s^2. A This halves the acceleration instead of quartering it, ignoring that acceleration is inversely proportional to mass. B This is correct because increasing mass by 4× reduces acceleration to 1/4 for the same force. C This assumes acceleration is unaffected by mass, which is false when the force is fixed. D This wrongly treats acceleration as increasing with mass (or multiplies by 4), reversing the inverse relationship.