Physics (10th Edition)

Published by Wiley
ISBN 10: 1118486897
ISBN 13: 978-1-11848-689-4

Chapter 7 - Impulse and Momentum - Check Your Understanding - Page 189: 20

Answer

The center of mass of the drops will be above the halfway point.

Work Step by Step

Take 2 parts of dripping water: part A above the halfway point and part B below the halfway point. We have $$v_{cm}=\frac{m_Av_A+m_Bv_B}{m_A+m_B}$$ Take $m_A+m_B$ to be constant, while $v_{cm}$ is already always constant. Now we know that the water's speed increases as it falls downward, so we can expect that $v_B\gt v_A$. Therefore, it follows that $m_B\lt m_A$, or there are more masses of water clustering in the upper part of the flow. So the center of mass of the drops will be above the halfway point.
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