Two persons are applying forces on two opposite sides of a moving cart. However, the cart still moves at the same speed in the same direction. What can we infer about the magnitudes and direction of the forces applied?

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Forces get added

Forces get cancel

Forces get multiplied

None of the above

answer is B.

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Detailed Solution

Two persons are applying forces on two opposite sides of a moving cart. However, the cart still moves at the same speed in the same direction. From that we can decide that the forces get cancelled.
The sum of all the forces acting on an object is the magnitude of the force acting on it. If all the forces act in the same direction, then the magnitude of the force increases. If the forces act on an object in different directions, then the magnitude of the force decreases. According to the first law of motion, a body at rest or uniform motion will continue to be at rest or uniform motion until and unless a net external force acts on it. Since the cart is still moving at the same speed and in the same direction, the forces applied by the persons on the cart will not affect the cart. Here the forces are applied in opposite directions, and the cart still moves at the same speed in the same direction. When there is no applied force effect on the cart, the cart will continue its motion. That means the force exerted by two people is of the same magnitude. Therefore, these forces would cancel each other and hence the object stays in the same state of motion as earlier. The following diagram shows the application of forces on the object:
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