Curved QUALITATIVE REASONING

Below is a picture of a mass sliding down a curved, frictionless ramp. Three points have been

marked on the ramp, labeled A, B, and C

Compare the velocity of the mass at each of the three points. Is the velocity constant, continually

increasing, continually decreasing, or varying in some other way as the mass slides down the

ramp?

Compare the acceleration of the mass at each of the three points. Is the acceleration constant,

continually increasing, continually decreasing, or varying in some other way as the mass slides

down the ramp?

Be sure to give reasons for your answers based on the diagram and what you know about

acceleration and velocity.

HINT: What did Galileo’s ramp show about the relationship between acceleration and the angle

of a ramp?

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