Understanding Collisions

What occurs when two or more objects come into contact?

• A transfer of momentum and kinetic energy

• No significant change

• A decrease in their total energy

• An increase in their gravitational pull

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What is true about the net momentum in a collision in the absence of external forces?

• It increases significantly

• It decreases over time

• It remains the same before and after the collision

• It is not conserved

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What defines an elastic collision?

• No kinetic energy is lost

• Generation of heat

• Significant loss of kinetic energy

• Objects stick together after collision

Which example closely represents an ideal elastic collision?

• Playing pool

• Dropping a book

• Bouncing a basketball

• A car crash

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Why is no real-world collision perfectly elastic?

• Objects are perfectly rigid

• Because of external forces like friction and air resistance

• All collisions are perfectly elastic

• Due to the conservation of momentum

What happens to the kinetic energy in an inelastic collision?

• Some of it is lost

• It turns into potential energy

• It is fully conserved

• It increases

In an inelastic collision, what happens to the colliding bodies?

• They end up entangled or stuck together

• They disintegrate

• They pass through each other

• They bounce off with increased energy

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What is conserved in both elastic and inelastic collisions?

• Momentum

• Mass

• Kinetic energy

• Volume

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In the car crash example, what happens to the velocity of the combined mass after the collision?

• It doubles

• It becomes zero

• It remains the same

• It is halved

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What is a characteristic of the momentum after a car crash in an idealized scenario without road friction and air resistance?

• It is not conserved

• It decreases

• It is conserved

• It increases

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