MZUZU UNIVERSITY

FACULTY OF SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY AND INNOVATION

DEPARTMENT OF PHYSICS AND ELECTRONICS

END OF SEMESTER EXAMINATION

PHYS 1101: GENERAL PHYSICS I

DATE : MARCH 21, 2025 TIME ALLOWED: 3 HOURS (14:00 – 17:00)

INSTRUCTIONS

1. ANSWER ALL THE 16 QUESTIONS IN THE ORDER THEY APPEAR.

2. SHOW YOUR WORKING CLEARLY.

3. A CALCULATOR MAY BE USED.

4. TAKE g = 9.81 m/s2 .

PHYS 1101 General Physics I End of Semester Examination

1. The time t required for an object to fall from rest through a height h is given by
d
2
t = hp
g

where g is the acceleration due to gravity. Calculate the value of p that makes this equation
dimensionally consistent. [4 marks]

2. (a) A car is going around a bend at a constant speed. Is it accelerating? Explain. [2 marks]
(b) An object moving with uniform acceleration has a velocity of 12.0 cm/s in the positive x
direction when its x coordinate is 3.00 cm. If its x coordinate 2.00 s later is 25.00 cm, what
is its acceleration? [4 marks]

3. Three displacement vectors of a ball are shown in Figure 1, where |A|

t = 20.0 m, |B|
t = 40.0 m, and
t = 30.0 m. Find
|C|
(a) the resultant displacement in unit vector notation. [7 marks]
(b) the magnitude and direction of the resultant displacement. [3 marks]

Figure 1

4. A student throws a set of keys vertically upward to her sorority sister, who is in a window 4.00 m
above. The second student catches the keys 1.50 s later.
(a) With what initial velocity were the keys thrown? [3 marks]
(b) What was the velocity of the keys just before they were caught? [3 marks]

5. A projectile is fired horizontally from a gun that is 45.0 m above flat ground, emerging from the gun
with a speed of 250 m/s.
(a) How long does the projectile remain in the air? [4 marks]
(b) At what horizontal distance from the firing point does it strike the ground? [3 marks]
(c) What is the magnitude of the vertical component of its velocity as it strikes the ground? [3 marks]

6. Two airplanes taxi as they approach the terminal. Plane 1 taxies with a speed of 12 m/s due north.
Plane 2 taxies with a speed of 7.5 m/s in a direction 20˝ north of west. What are the direction and
magnitude of the velocity of plane 1 relative to plane 2? [5 marks]

7. (a) State Newton’s first law of motion. [2 marks]

Page 1 of 3
PHYS 1101 General Physics I End of Semester Examination

(b) A passenger sitting in the rear of a bus claims that she was injured when the driver slammed on
the brakes, causing a suitcase to come flying toward her from the front of the bus. If you were
the judge in this case, what disposition would you make? Why? [2 marks]

8. A force Ft applied to an object of mass m1 produces an acceleration of 3.00 m/s2 . The same force
applied to a second object of mass m2 produces an acceleration of 1.00 m/s2 .
(a) What is the value of the ratio m1 /m2 ? [3 marks]
(b) If m1 and m2 are combined into one object, find its acceleration under the action of the force F.
t
[4 marks]

9. A 5.00 kg object placed on a horizontal table is connected to a string that passes over a pulley and
then is fastened to a 9.00 kg hanging object, as in Figure 2.
(a) If the coefficient of friction between the 5.00 kg object and the table is 0.5, find the acceleration
of the two objects. [4 marks]
(b) Calculate the tension in the string. [3 marks]

Figure 2

10. (a) Engine 1 does twice the work of engine 2. Is it correct to conclude that engine 1 produces twice
as much power as engine 2? Explain. [2 marks]
(b) State the work-kinetic energy theorem. [2 marks]
(c) A 60 kg bicyclist rides his 7.5 kg bicycle with a speed of 15 m/s.
i. How much work must be done by the brakes to bring the bike and rider to a stop? [3 marks]
ii. What is the magnitude of the braking force? [4 marks]

11. (a) What is linear momentum? [1 mark]

(b) A 1.5ˆ103 kg car accelerates from rest at 4.5 m/s2 for 0.60s.
i. What momentum does it acquire in that time? [3 marks]
ii. What was the impulse exerted on it? [2 marks]

12. (a) What is torque? [1 mark]

(b) Two forces produce the same torque. Does it follow that they have the same magnitude?
Explain. [2 marks]

13. A disk rotates about its central axis starting from rest and accelerates with constant angular
acceleration. At one time it is rotating at 10 rev/s; 60 revolutions later, its angular speed is 15 rev/s.
Calculate

Page 2 of 3
PHYS 1101 General Physics I End of Semester Examination

(a) the angular acceleration of the disk. [3 marks]

(b) the time required for the disk to complete the 60 revolutions. [3 marks]
(c) the time required for the disk to reach the 10 rev/s angular speed. [3 marks]

14. A windmill has an initial angular momentum of 8500 kg m2 /s. The wind picks up, and 5.86 s later
the windmill’s angular momentum is 9700 kg m2 /s. What was the torque acting on the windmill,
assuming it was constant during this time? [3 marks]

15. A student sits on a piano stool holding a sizable mass in each hand. Initially, the student holds his
arms outstretched and spins about the axis of the stool with an angular speed of 3.72 rad/s. The
moment of inertia in this case is 5.33 kg m2 . While still spinning, the student pulls his arms in to his
chest, reducing the moment of inertia to 1.60 kg m2 . What is the student’s angular speed now? [3 marks]

16. A uniform plank of length 2.00 m and mass 30.0 kg is supported by three ropes as indicated by the
vectors in Figure 3. Find the tension in each rope when a 700-N person is d = 0.500 m from the left
end. [6 marks]

Figure 3

END OF QUESTION PAPER