Big bird was selling cookies in a lift and cookie monster entered it. Big bird charges the cookies by weight. Cookie monster didn't know when is the right time to buy the cookies so it would be cheaper and wants to as the people at yahoo answers and he needs the answer quick. So should cookie monster buy the cookies when the lift is stationary, accelerating upwards, accelerating downwards or when its decelerating. Please show some numbers for easy understanding because cookie monster did not study science in his school.
2006-09-07 16:36:46 · 8 answers · asked by Cookie Monster 1 in Science & Mathematics ➔ Physics
Errata
... ... wants the people at yahoo answers to help him ... ...
2006-09-07 16:37:50 · update #1
Me Cookie Monster. Me say Doug right, because when me put cookies in elevator and go down reeeeeal fast, cookies float waaaaay up to ceiling. Big Bird SO surprised to see cookies float off scale, he pay ME for cookies.
Next time me try jumping when elevator at top and see if Cookie Monster float to bottom like feather.
Then funny thing happen. Me put cookies on scale at bottom floor and ask Big Bird to push button for top floor. Elevator go up, and cookies get heavier! Now me very confused. Then just before top floor, elevator start to go verrrrrry slowly, and cookies get lighter!
What up with THAT, me want to know? Is mass of cookie changing due to deceleration vector as cookie slow against force of gravity (980 cm/sec^^2) over time of deceleration? How this relate to weight transfer when me drive Cookiemobile and hop on brakes when Telly Monster ride bike into street, hmmmmmm?
Maybe me change name to Apple Monster. Either that or me eat only cookies called Newton.
"C is for Cookie, but D is delta-V, C is for Cookie, but D is delta-V, C is for Cookie, but D is delta-V, OH, cookie cookie slow with delta-V..."
2006-09-07 16:50:37 · answer #1 · answered by Scott F 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Cookie should buy the cookies when the elevator is accelerating downward. This is because a downward acceleration is equivalent to an upward gravitational field (this is called the equivalence principle). This upward field partially cancels the downward field of "real" gravity, so everything dropping with the elevator appears to weigh less. For example, if the elevator is falling with an acceleration of -1/3 g, then the cookies will appear to weigh only 2/3 of what they'd weigh if the elevator were not accelerating.
2006-09-07 16:44:32 · answer #2 · answered by Benjamin N 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Cookie Monster should buy when the lift is accelerating downwards since the net acceleration will be g-a where g is gravitational acceleration and a is lift acceleration.
Doug
2006-09-07 16:41:12 · answer #3 · answered by doug_donaghue 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Agrees with doug, sshould weight when the life is accelerating downwards. It would show less weight for the same amount. But this difference is not significant. So just buy the cookies...haha
2006-09-07 16:45:56 · answer #4 · answered by BaTu 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Assuming the cookies are more expensive when heavier, then the answer is they are cheaper when acceleration is downwards.
2006-09-07 16:43:16 · answer #5 · answered by David A 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Bird Bird and Cookie Monster? No Elmo? NO ELMO??
2006-09-08 02:28:20 · answer #6 · answered by citrusy 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Use double pan balance for all conditions or use single pan balance when going down
2006-09-07 17:09:39 · answer #7 · answered by mfi 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
it should buy it when it is acceleratin.
cuz wen it is accelerartin and u buy, u can sav it and wen it goes really high, u get much profit for it.
2006-09-07 16:45:14 · answer #8 · answered by ? 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋