Brain Twister #2

[redz]

The time/temp./earths rotation/ humidity/ elevators speed/ are all worthless and added info. to through us off.

I`m not so sure that piece of information is to throw you off.

[MickeyKnox]

I`m not so sure that piece of information is to throw you off.

Until you reach terminal velocity on the way down. (removing the air variable)

[diabolicsoul]

I`m not so sure that piece of information is to throw you off.

You would think so, but, the whole notion of this thread is a brain teaser.

It wouldn't be much of a brain teaser if you had to do an equation to find the total time of the coin to drop at rest and the total time of the coin to drop as the elevator is moving.

As far as my knowledge takes me: You 'weigh' more as the elevator goes up, but the 'mass' and 'gravity' are still constant.

You would weigh less as the elevator goes down, but the mass and gravity are still the same.

Therefore, the coin will still fall down at a rate of 9.8 m/s and the distance will always be 4 ft.

[likelifting]

Potato

[wmaousley]

You are on an elevator going up at a constant rate of speed when a quarter falls out your pocket. Lovbyts sees this and observes it hitting the floor. How much quicker does it hit as compared to if the elevator were not going up.

Additional info:
the distance from your pocket to the floor of the elevator is 4 feet
the elevator is going up 32 feet per second
The quarter weighs 5.67 grams
It's 80 degrees in the elevator
zero humidity
and it's 3pm Eastern time
You are standing at the equator, and the rate of earth's rotation is 1040mph

If you have worked out the math and know the answer, hold off and let others get a chance. If you are not sure or are guessing, go ahead and give it a shot


Good luck!
---Roman

The exact same rate

[likelifting]

The exact same rate

^ this

[lovbyts]

It never reaches the floor because I catch it and put it into my pocket.

On another note anyone with a pocket that is 4 feet from the ground is pretty damn tall unless it's a short chest pocket.

No this is the answer.

[redz]

I`m sticking with my 1/8th of a second faster. The floor of the elevator is moving upwards at a rate of 32ft per second meaning if the total fall was 4 feet it would take an 1/8th of a second less to close that gape.

[Times Roman]

Its actually a trick question TR. Youre traveling the same speed of the elevator, but even if you "jump up" which you're actually NOT doing, you'll crash and die.

no. my response was accurate. but it's also a physical impossibility since no one can "jump up" fast enough to offset the terminal velocity speed of the elevator right before impact. If you could do that, you'd be able to jjump over small trees

I did a proportion.. I just didn't factor in the difference b.t. The non-moving and moving b.c I was trying to figure out what value I needed to use and I got tired so I half assed it

really, which half? =)

When are you going to give us the right answer? I still think it's unchanged since essentially, the distance the coin has to travel, and gravity are the only thing that matters in this question, IMO. The weight of the coin doesn't matter because its dropping speed will remain the same whether it's 1 pound or 20 pounds.

The time/temp./earths rotation/ humidity/ elevators speed/ are all worthless and added info. to through us off.

I would never feed you irrelevent information to through you off. It was meant to distract you. Different.

No this is the answer.

The real answer would have been impossible to calculate because i didn't give you (believe it or not) all the relevent information. You would also have to know the distance the quarter was from the exact gravitational center of the earth when it was dropped. See, the further from this center, the weaker the gravitational pull, and therefore, the slower the quarter will drop (accellerate). so the higher up the elevator goes, the longer it takes the quarter to hit the floor.

But to be practical, a guy with a very precise digital stop watch would not be able to tell the difference between whether the elevator was going up at a constant rate, or not moving at all. the only time there would be a difference would be if the elevator were NOT moving at a constant rate.

[Shol'va]

Before I can even begin I need to know a few things. First is this occurring during a leap year? What type/brand of elevator are you using for this example and what is the elevator weight load ratings? Was this elevator constructed before or after 2001? How many floors does this elevator access? Does the opening of the elevator doors face north, south, east or west? When was this elevator last inspected for safety and accuracy? How many others are on the elevator at the time of this test? How many are male and how many are female? What are their combined and separate weights? Did the Elevator inspector drive to work that day or bring his lunch? What year was this quarter minted? At which mint was it struck? What type and brand of pants are used in figuring the answer to this question? You state that it's 3 pm eastern time but is that also Central Daylight Time as well? Is the person or persons doing this test certifiable? And last but not least what does X equal?
Answering these questions will allow me to go on to step 2 in finding the proper answer for your question.

[RaginCajun]

Did someone say boobs?

[wmaousley]

its the same fall rate

[likelifting]

^ Still my guess too.

I think its kind of like if you are in the back seat of a car that is traveling 60mph. You can toss a ball across the back seat to somene else and play catch back and forth without the ball hitting the back window at 60. ...or something.